yoga book / asanas / (kurzhantel-) nackendrücken

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last modified: 28 Dec 2024
Name: Nackendrücken

Classification

Classic: functional exercise
physiological: excellent strengthening of the deltoid, secondary strengthening of the triceps

Contraindication

Various disorders of the shoulder joint can contraindicate this exercise. For example, in the case of subacromial impingement or biceps tendinitis, the movement can trigger the associated pain. Instabilities of the shoulder joint and experienced dislocations should not be a contraindication, however, as the movement is performed with constant further exorotation of the arms.
In addition to disorders of the shoulder joint, disorders of the elbow joint may also be a contraindication.

Effects

• (257) Strengthening the lateral abductors, especially deltoids
• (302) Strengthening the triceps
• (292) Strengthening the trapezius, pars descendens

Preparation

Follow-up

derived asanas:

similar asanas:

Diagnostics (No.)

Instructions

1. Sit on an inclined bench with the backrest at a wide angle, between approx. 80° and 90°.
2. Pick up two dumbbells and swing them over your elbows so that your upper arms are level with your body.
3. Press the dumbbells slowly upwards, keeping the distance between them roughly constant.
4. The upper end position is reached when the elbow joints are stretched to approx. 2°. Strictly avoid overstretching them.
5. Then slowly bring the dumbbells back down to the starting position the same way you pushed them up.
6. Repeat the exercise for as long as it is possible in a controlled manner or according to a specific instruction.

Details

1. The overstretching of the elbow joints must of course be strictly avoided, as the external weight can cause a significant hyperextension moment in the elbow joints.
2. The speed of execution, the weight, the number of sets and repetitions per set, as well as the time distribution between the concentric contraction and the eccentric contraction of the performing muscles are the most important parameters of the exercise.
3. The exact angle of the backrest is not an entirely unimportant parameter. If it is very large (i.e. around 90°), this can easily lead to an unstable feeling, as the upper arms in the shoulder joint are often already at the end of their range of motion in the direction of exorotation in the shoulder joint with vertical forearms and not very good mobility. A slightly less steep backrest alleviates this somewhat, as less exorotation in the shoulder joint is then required if the forearms are still vertical. The exorotation ability in the shoulder joint is a function of the lateral abduction in such a way that it increases with its angular dimension. The further the arms are lowered, the lower the exorotation ability. If an attempt is then made to hold the forearms vertically with a steep backrest, the exorotating muscles, especially the infraspinatus, tend to spasm. This factor also speaks in favour of a not entirely steep backrest.
4. It is not uncommon to see a version in which the dumbbells are brought together overhead, but the usefulness of this is rather dubious. On the one hand, the need to stabilise the arms in both directions in the trained movement dimension is lost, which means a less complete training of the relevant muscles, and on the other hand, the „horizontal lever arm„, i.e. the horizontal vector component of the lever that the arms represent, is significantly reduced, which is a further facilitation. This relief relates both to the scapulohumeral muscles and to the muscles active in the elbow joint as extensors and flexors.
5. Execution with momentum is completely out of the question here: in particular the swing reversal or the „reverse swing“ at the lower starting point of the movement cycle poses a significant risk to all force-transmitting tendon tissue. This is all the more serious in the case of the shoulder joint, as degenerative rotator cuff lesions often tend to develop with age anyway, which in one case may be due more to a lack of training and maintenance stimuli, in the other case more to overuse. Regardless of the aetiology, a swing reversal clearly tends to add to existing pre-existing damage, whether already symptomatic or not, or to increase the extent of existing damage. This is all the more important as the shoulder joint is one of the most complicated joints in terms of its structure, stability and often also the treatment options available.
   The motivation for training with momentum, in particular swing reversal or the „reverse swing“, usually lies in being able to move larger masses; sports scientists estimate this effect to be up to 30%. However, those who act in this way ignore the fact that this effect is primarily based on storing kinetic energy of the eccentric downward movement in elastic energy of the tendons, whose physiological usable elasticity of 4% in relation to the length is thus far exceeded. Damage must be assumed to occur from 8% elongation in length, and from 12% it would affect the entire tendon cross-section. Apart from this, the swing reversal does not necessarily lead to better strength gains or better hypertrophy, because those who train in this way certainly tend to disregard the important factor TUT. Training with swing reversal loses out in the cost-benefit ratio at the latest.
6. The starting point of the movement is usually a lateral abduction of more than 10°-15°, so that relevant training of the supraspinatus can no longer be assumed. Other lateral abductions are probably more suitable for training it, whether standing or sitting with a resistance band or pulley or in a contralateral lateral position with a dumbbell.
7. In contrast to front raises and side raises, the question of rotation of the upper arm does not arise here, as the aim is to achieve a continuously vertical forearm, which means a large degree of exorotation. In the two exercises mentioned, however, rotation is always an option, whereby lateral abduction without exorotation of the upper arm results in a non-muscular (not soft-elastic) limit of movement early on. Another parameter is open here: should the forearms be pronated or supinated? In practice, a pronated forearm is the less problematic version, probably not least because the working range of the biceps (the sarcomere lengths travelled through) is longer and therefore more comfortable because it is less prone to cramps. In addition, the working range of the brachioradialis is also more favourable. The centre of gravity of the dumbbell is not affected by the extent of the overturning movement anyway.
8. The inclination of the backrest has already been estimated above as being limited by the cramp inclination of the infraspinatus. The question of a sensible lower limit for the angle of inclination of the backrest is less easy to answer. In principle, all angles up to clearly negative angles, as realised on an inverse incline bench, are good training options. Even larger negative angles than on standard training equipment are interesting from a physiological movement perspective. As the angle decreases, the load shifts from the deltoid and the external rotators of the shoulder blade, which must rotate it out in order to enable final lateral flexion at all, towards transverse adduction. This not only changes the load in the parts of the deltoid and further and further away from these towards the pectoralis major, but also the load in the various fibre tracts of the serratus anterior, away from the caudal fibres, which stabilise the shoulder blade external rotation, towards those that stabilise the shoulder blade against the retractor thrust. While there was hardly any risk of protracting the shoulder blades and thus causing damage to the pectoralis minor due to overloading during neck presses, this issue becomes increasingly important in the flat position. Of the parts of the deltoid, only the transverse adductor work of the pars clavicularis remains in the flat position
   If the support is tilted further towards a negative angle, the transverse adduction would increasingly become a lateral adduction, which not only engages all scapulohumeral lateral adductors, but also the trunkohumeral latissimus dorsi. In addition, it is also necessary to balance the vectorial part that wants to push the shoulder blades into elevation. The shoulder blade depressors are therefore involved.
9. The movement can be performed to the upper end point with and without elevation of the shoulder blades. Performing the movement with elevation of the shoulder blades has the advantage that it trains the pars descendens of the trapezius better, than if it only performed the external rotatory function of the shoulder blades, which should give it a desirably greater resilience in view of the everyday demands placed on this muscle in many people.

Variants