Do this Stick Stretch for Parkinson’s Stooped Posture

When Parkinson’s makes you feel stiff and causes your posture to stoop forward, a cascade of problems occurs, leading to pain and mobility issues. Routinely encouraging your shoulders, shoulder blades, and spine to move is crucial to counteracting the stooped posture and associated pain that are common in Parkinson’s disease.

Reaching your arms overhead is a complex movement, requiring the coordination of multiple parts of your skeleton. Your shoulder blade (scapula) and arm bone (humerus) have to work together in a simultaneous, synchronized pattern.

Your shoulder blades should “glide and float” on your rib cage. If you have a stooped posture, your shoulder blades can’t sit or glide normally on the ribs, causing pain in your upper back and shoulders.

This simple, basic stick exercise is great for stretching your shoulders and upper back.

Check out this video to see how to do the Stick Stretch for Parkinson’s Stooped Posture:

Here are the steps to do this exercise. All you need is a 48-inch dowel, walking pole, or broom handle.

• Start by standing or sitting up tall, holding the stick horizontally with palms toward your body. Make sure your feet are wider than hip-width apart.

• On an exhale, lift the pole above your head. Stay tall. Try to keep the stick even.

• Try to increase your stretch each time, staying within a pain-free range. Feeling the stretch is fine, but pain should be minimal. Don’t contort your body to get more range.
• Return to starting position and repeat 10 times.

This is a great stretch either before your workout or at the end as a cool-down. Stay tuned for other stick stretches!

💜 Kimberly