Modifying Your Front Squat For Shoulder Mobility Issues
Many people actually struggle with shoulder and wrist mobility issues when racking the bar in the traditional front squat position. Rather than throw the exercise away altogether, I will have my clients (myself included) look to modify their bar hold so that they can continue to front squat whilst they are working on improving their shoulder and wrist mobility.
In the image below you will see one of Principle Four Osteopathy clients demonstrate one of the modifications to allow the bar to be racked.
The key with this hold is to have the bar sitting across your anterior deltoids and close up against the neck (not so close that you actually stop yourself from breathing though). Ones arms should be parallel to the ground and the aim is to maintain a stable arm position throughout the squat. A common fault observed with this bar hold is ones elbows may drop. This could be a technique error or perhaps a need to increase ones strength through the trunk and upper body. So keep an eye out for this when trying this technique.
This blog post was written by osteopath Heath Williams of Principle Four Osteopathy.
Principle Four Osteopathy is one of Melbourne City CBD and Docklands leading osteopathy clinics. We provide a range of services that includes hands on manual therapy, exercise prescription for rehabilitation, strength and conditioning and performance, functional movement screening and ergonomic risk assessments.
If you would like to find out more about our practice, please check us out at www.principlefourosteopathy.com. Appointments can be made by calling 03 9670 9290 or booking online at www.principlefourosteopathy.com.