Need some effective chest techniques!

[Baby Bean]

My story is that I am 9 months into employment as an MT and it has been a wild ride. I went from doing my full-body deal, hit a few knots here and there to now - being overwhelmed by the tissues and horrible postural deviations that I encounter. As I learned to palpate more and more it seemed the workload increased and increased. So now I am in a phase where I am learning to develop treatment plans for clients over a period of time.

The Number 1 thing I write in my notes day in and out is "rounded shoulders, tight pecs". I work on mostly women, many larger women as well, so it was a matter of time before I realized that all these "ooo, my upper back and neck" women needed serious pec work. I always recommend pec stretches and have recently been brushing over the area, but I am intimidated by it. We hardly worked pecs in school, especially not with emphases on balancing the rhomboids and correcting posture.

I need some good pec moves to bring those damn shoulders back! I haven't had a lot of luck looking for youtube videos. A video or article would be great. I have a hard time transposing casual descriptions into my massage. Any advice on treating the 80% of female clients i have with tight pecs would be great too. I notice a lot of big gristly knots near pec insertion, and just medial or on top of anterior delt.

 

[~Nikki~choke it urself]

Need some effective chest techniques!

I look at the rounding from a number of perspectives. There tends to be a pull forward toward the center, as well as a pull downward toward the pelvis. As an MFR therapist, my technique may be different from yours, but lengthening in these planes is what is important. Working across the chest/clavicles/anterior shoulders to open in this direction can be coupled with home stretching in a longitudinal direction; that is, placing a roll (or similar) from top to bottom under the spine and they lie on top, opening in an outward direction. Releasing the shoulder region "upward" can be coupled with the roll placed in a horizontal plane under them and allowing them to decrease the thoracic kyphosis.

I try to get my students to think beyond the muscle, into the overlying fascia. The three dimensional patterns of postural restriction typically transcend individual muscle origins and insertions.

I have a hard time transposing casual descriptions into my massage. Any advice on treating the 80% of female clients i have with tight pecs would be great too.

Sorry, my description is casual.

 

[eldo rocks]

Need some effective chest techniques!

As a female, I enjoy passive stretches the most. I do a lot of stretching on my own and prefer to keep massage techniques to the ones that I can do on myself because most of the time, anything that anyone else does to me just HURTS! I've also found that some of my postural deviation comes from my entire thoracic area where I benefit from more stretching and deep cross-fiber friction on attachments.

I recommend getting massages from a variety of different therapists in your area and asking each of them to do some work on your pecs. Hopefully you can pick up some really good ideas from them. Try not to be intimidated- if you are, then your clients will be intimidated and/or apprehensive. Practice what you learn on someone you know well and trust to give you good feedback.

 

[Lone Wolf]

Need some effective chest techniques!

I also like to get to the pecs through the arm pit. I lift the arm and I get to the underside the the pecs through the arm pit than I strecht the arm overhead while my hand is still holding pec minor.

Also I go from the sterum to the deltoids by using my fist with no lotion. Make sure you only go in one direction

 

[gia]

Need some effective chest techniques!

Wow. You guys really do know what your doing dont you?
I am a larger woman and my chiropractor always says well its these causing your back trouble.
I visualized the responses to the post and all those techniques mentioned are very effective. I don't tend to think women
that are well endowed up there have much an issue about getting in there and making it feel better.
I used to do alot of flys, which seemed to help me but I have always liked to lift and stretch.
I would wait in great anticipation when the wing part of the shoulder blade was given attention to.
Sometimes it was missed but everything you guys said was done for me.
My chiropractor also had a gym so I was there every day, working out one, massage and adjustment the other days.
Now, years later, with the issues I have I still always seem to come back to basic yoga.
I found these stretches and maybe, if they are willing, you might suggest to your clients they are very relieving.
Or not....FWIW. SRK
http://www.crossfitoakland.com/archives/2010/04/corrective-exercises-your-trapezius

 

[lightspeed21]

Need some effective chest techniques!

These look like some good exercises. I'll have to try them out. Thanks!

 

[gaga4cash]

Need some effective chest techniques!

The best techniques I find (especially for women, where you can't work the whole pec) are a combo of Passive Stretching, MET's, and PNF. You should be able to fine info pretty easy on all these techniques online.