Ladies–have you ever woken up one morning, tried to reach your arms above your head to get a good morning stretch, and then–BING!!–you felt a sharp pain in your shoulder that wasn’t there the day before?
This is a common scenario I hear about ALL THE TIME from my women once they get into their 50s.
They go to sleep feeling strong, mobile, and confident; and they wake up hurting and feeling like they aged 20 years…
What the heck is going on??
Since 2012, I have been helping women solve issues exactly like this, and time and again I have seen it all come down to one thing–muscle inhibition.
Muscle inhibition means that your muscles are not working properly, causing your joints, ligaments, tendons, fascia, and other parts of your body to take on more stress.
When there is a little bit of muscle inhibition, we often don’t notice it too much.
But as the years (and decades) go by, more and more muscles may become inhibited, leading to increased tightness throughout the body, weakness during daily activities, and stiffness in the joints.
Eventually, there is the proverbial straw that breaks the camel’s back–something so small and insignificant but just enough of a stress on your already stressed system that something in your body has to give.
And that’s when you go to sleep feeling perfectly fine and wake up with pain and limited motion unlike anything you’ve felt before.
The good news is that while it is your muscles that are the problem, it is also your muscles that are the solution.
Essentially what has happened is your muscles have temporarily stopped being able to send and receive communication signals to and from your central nervous system. This is similar to what happens when the battery cables in your car get too loose.
The battery works just fine. The engine works just fine. But because of the loose battery cables, the communication between the battery and the engine isn’t happening and the car doesn’t work.
However, by tightening the loose battery cables, the engine immediately starts working again and your car can drive perfectly well.
With muscle inhibition, your muscles temporarily stop working like they are supposed to, leading to poor joint mobility and pain.
However, once this muscle inhibition is addressed, your muscles can immediately start working again, moving your joints through their full range of motion pain free.
So how do you get rid of this muscle inhibition?
That’s where Muscle Activation Techniques®, aka MAT®, comes into play.
The MAT® process identifies exactly what muscles within your body are inhibited and then addresses those muscles directly, helping them to function like they are supposed to right away.
What I have seen time and again while practicing MAT® since 2012 is a shoulder issue is rarely caused by the shoulder itself. More times than not, it is the muscles of the back and core that are inhibited and leading to the shoulder pain you are experiencing.
Fortunately, the MAT® process takes the guesswork out of figuring out where within YOUR body you have inhibited muscles, so I am able to make a plan specifically for you and what your body is needing to get better.
If you would like to get your body assessed to see where you have inhibited muscles, you can schedule your initial MAT® consultation and assessment with me here.
I am able to take clients in person at my studio–Muscle Activation Schaumburg–in the northwest suburbs of Chicago.
Your shoulder pain does not have to hold you back from doing the things you love. You can feel strong, mobile, and pain-free again, and getting rid of muscle inhibition is the key to doing that.
I can’t wait to see you on my MAT® table soon!
In strength and health,
Julie
Julie Cates is an experienced, certified, and insured National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) Certified Personal Trainer and mastery level Muscle Activation Techniques® (MAT®) Rx Specialist (MATRx).
She is one of 88 certified mastery level Resistance Training Specialists® (RTSm) in the world. This combination makes her style of training impactful and still preventative and restorative of joint and muscle issues and pain that are common with exercise.
Julie specializes in working with women 50 and over. Specifically, her main focus is working with women with bone density loss, muscle loss, Osteopenia, and Osteoporosis.
Julie has incredible experience working with brand new exercisers. Very specific types and styles of exercises are needed for restoring and maintaining bone density, and Julie guides her clients through these in a pain-free way.
She is also well experienced in helping women exercise even with various joint, bone, systemic, and neurological diagnoses. Julie is definitely your go-to personal trainer for women with Osteoporosis!
