Hi, I’m 30 and I suffer from Hyperkyphosis and Hyperlordosis, due to a spinal growth defect. I’ve always been in a lot of pain, but the doctors I had seen in the past always said that nothing could be done. I recently started seeing a specialist, though, who has been great. He prescribed a corset (yes, it does work for adults) and rehab. After a few months, the corset has already improved my condition. But the rehab exercises aren’t ideal, since they’re not tailored to my condition. So now I hit the gym to help correct my posture.
Basically, I need to strengthen weak and lengthened muscles and stretch the tight and shortened ones, right?
The specialist said I should especially strengthen my upper back and abdominals and that the chest and lower back muscles are tight and shortened.
I want to do a more precise workout, though and have done some research. I’ve mostly read physical therapy books and gathered information from medical and doctors’ websites. This is what I’ve found:
Shortened / tight muscles
- Upper trapezius, sternocleidomastoid
- Anterior deltoids
- Pectorialis major and minor
- Lower back, trunk extensors (erectors spinae, quadratus lumborum)
- Hip flexors (iliopsoas, psoas major, rectus femoris)
Stretched / weak muscles
- Deep neck flexors
- Posterior deltoids
- Middle and lower traps, rhomboids
- Abdominals, obliques, serratus anterior
- Glutes
What I’m not clear on is what’s up with these:
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Lateral deltoids
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Latissimus dorsi: Some sources say they’re tight, some say they’re weak.
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Hip adductors: Mostly, they’re not mentioned at all, but somewhere it said they’re shortened because of the interior rotation of the femur.
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Hip abductors: I haven’t found any mention of the at all.
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Hamstrings: Some sources say they’re tight. Others say that they’re weak, same as the glutes, but can appear to be tight. In rehab and physical therapy, I was always supposed to stretch my hamstrings. If they’re already weak and lengthened, doesn’t that make them worse? And when I stretch them they do appear to be rather tight and shortened.
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Quads: Many sources don’t mention them at all, some say they’re tight like the hamstrings. I know the hip flexor rectus femoris is part of them, but what about the other muscles?
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Calves: Some say they’re tight like the hamstrings. Some say they’re weak like the hamstrings.
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Tibialis: Somewhere it said they’re tight, like the quads.
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Biceps and triceps: They don’t have anything to do with all this, do they?
I’m fairly new to this, so I’d appreciate your input. Thanks in advance!