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STILL IN MOTION
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THIS WEEK'S STORY
If you’ve been reading this newsletter for a while, you know I think about imbalances a lot. The hip flexor versus the glute. The chest versus the upper back. The quad versus the hamstring.
Here’s the one that shows up most consistently in active adults over 60, and the one that causes the most shoulder problems: too much pushing, not enough pulling.
Think about the movements most people do when they train. Push-ups. Bench press. Overhead press. Chest flies. All pushing. All loading the front of the body. All feeding a pattern where the anterior shoulder and chest become dominant, and the posterior shoulder and upper back fall progressively further behind.
Now think about how most people sit, drive, and use devices. Forward. Rounded. Chest shortened, upper back lengthened.
By the time you add up a lifetime of forward-dominant posture and a training program that emphasizes pushing over pulling, you have a shoulder that is structurally predisposed to impingement, rotator cuff stress, and the kind of chronic ache that lives just below the surface of everything.
The fix is not complicated. It requires acknowledging the imbalance and correcting it with intention.
THE MAIN MESSAGE
The general recommendation for balanced shoulder health is a pulling-to-pushing ratio of at least 2:1. For every pressing or pushing movement in your training, you should be performing two pulling movements. Most people are at 1:1 on a good day. Many are inverted.
What chronic pushing dominance produces over time:
-- Internal rotation of the shoulder — the humeral head rotates inward, narrowing the subacromial space where the rotator cuff tendons live. This is the anatomical precursor to impingement.
-- Weakened posterior rotator cuff — the infraspinatus and teres minor, which externally rotate the shoulder, become undertrained and inhibited. These are the primary protectors of the shoulder joint under load.
-- Upper trap dominance — when the mid and lower traps are weak from inadequate rowing, the upper traps take over stabilization, producing the chronic neck and upper shoulder tension most people attribute to stress alone.
-- Rounded thoracic posture — the chest shortens, the upper back rounds, and the cycle deepens. Pulling exercises directly counteract this by strengthening the tissues that hold the thoracic spine in extension.
Rowing movements — any exercise that draws the elbows behind the torso against resistance — are the primary corrective tool. They strengthen the mid and lower traps, rhomboids, posterior deltoid, and external rotators simultaneously. No single category of exercise does more for shoulder health and upper-body balance in older adults.
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Stretch of the Week: Doorway Pec Minor Stretch
Why: The pec minor — a small, deep chest muscle attaching to the coracoid process of the shoulder blade — is often the tightest structure in pushing-dominant individuals. When it shortens, it tilts the shoulder blade forward and downward, directly contributing to impingement and poor overhead mechanics.
How to do it:
Stand in a doorway and place your forearm vertically against the frame, elbow at or slightly below shoulder height
Step the same-side foot forward and rotate your torso gently away from the arm
Feel a deep stretch in the upper chest, below the collarbone, into the front of the shoulder
Hold 30–40 seconds per side, 2 rounds
Tuesday goes deeper: three chest and anterior shoulder stretch variations targeting different layers of pushing-dominant restriction.
Strength Move of the Week: Single-Arm Dumbbell Row
Purpose: One of the most effective and joint-friendly exercises for building the posterior shoulder chain: mid trap, rhomboids, rear delt, and the muscles that retract and depress the shoulder blade.
How to do it:
Place your left knee and left hand on a bench or sturdy chair for support, body roughly parallel to the floor
Hold a dumbbell in your right hand, arm hanging straight toward the floor
Row the dumbbell toward your hip by driving the elbow back and upward — elbow toward your back pocket, not your shoulder
Hold 1–2 seconds at the top, feeling the shoulder blade move toward the spine
Lower the weight slowly over 3 seconds
10–12 reps per side, 3 sets
Thursday takes a deeper look at three row progressions, including a floor option and a cable alternative, with cues for the most common form errors.
Suggested Equipment: Adjustable Dumbbell (20–50 lb range)
For rows in particular, you need a weight that allows clean mechanics at 10 to 12 reps — not a weight you can lift for 20. An adjustable dumbbell covering the 20 to 50 pound range covers the vast majority of pulling work for most adults at home.
Saturday’s equipment deep dive covers the full pulling toolkit: dumbbells, bands, cable machines, and the one low-cost addition that makes home rowing significantly more effective.
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THE TAKEAWAY
Add one more row for every press you do. That single change, applied consistently over a few months, is enough to meaningfully rebalance the shoulder and reduce the low-grade ache most people have come to accept as normal after 60.
YOUR TURN
Does your training include as much pulling as pushing? Do you have a shoulder that tends to be the troublesome one — the one that shows up when you reach overhead or sleep on it wrong? Tell me what your shoulder history looks like. Issue #33 has something to say on that front.
Still moving forward,
— The SIM60 Team
simsixty.com · Educational content only. Not medical advice.
