The Best Thoracic Mobility Routine

Your thoracic spine is an important area of your body to have good mobility and range of motion.

Without good mobility in your thoracic spine, when lifting overhead you may end up arching backward too much in your lower back or over-stressing your shoulder joint.

Your shoulder blades lay on your rib cage. Your rib cage position is determined by your thoracic spine.

If your thoracic spine is stiff and not able to extend, you can’t put your shoulder blades in the best positions for overhead lifting.

One way to move your shoulder blades is to bend your entire upper body backward over your low back, leading to over-extension.

The short story: work at least weekly on your thoracic spine mobility.

How?

Use our Thoracic Mobility Routine, which is shown in in the video below and further down with photos and a written description.

1. Roll out and mobilize the upper back on a foam roller - 10 reps
2. Cat/cow - 10 reps
3. Thoracic rotation drill - 5 reps/side
4. Band pull apart - 10 reps

1. Foam Roll Thoracic Spine

• As a massaging technique
• As a joint mobilization technique

How to Set Up:

• Lay on your back with the foam roller around your shoulder blade height
• Bend your knees with your butt, and feet on the ground

1. Place your hands behind your head to support your neck
2. Slightly round your lower back by crunching your abs to avoid arching your lower back
3. Leading with your head, arch your upper back around the foam roller
4. Return to the starting position
5. Repeat for specified reps

• Avoid lifting your butt off the ground
• Keep your abs engaged to avoid arching your lower back too much
• Don’t go much lower than your shoulder blades with the foam roller or you will end up stressing your lower back too much

Many people under-utilize their mid back (thoracic spine) during this exercise. It’s important to focus on extending your thoracic spine when in the ‘extended’ position.

Understanding how to move the different parts of your spine is important. This exercise helps to build that mind-body awareness.

How to Set up:

• Position yourself on your hands and knees
• Place your hands below your shoulders
• Place your knees below your hips

Extended Position

1. From the starting position, slowly round your entire spine, including your neck, until you reach the rounded position
2. From the rounded position, arch your entire spine until you reach the extended position
3. Repeat for the specified number of reps

• Try to move your entire spine as one unit
• Avoid moving in one area of your spine more than the others

This thoracic rotation drill will help with that motion.

How to Set Up:

• To get into the starting position, get onto the ground, sitting on your shins
• Place both forearms on the ground
• Place one hand behind your head. That will be the direction you are rotating
• Sit your butt back to your heels to round your lower back

1. From the starting position, rotate your chest in the direction away from the hand/arm on the ground
2. Turn your head and neck as well
3. Return to the starting position
4. Repeat for the specified number of reps

• Keeping your back rounded helps to avoid over-extension
• For the hand on the ground, you can place either your hand or forearm on the ground
• For the hand on the rotating side, you can place your hand behind your head, behind your back, or open in the air, whichever feels best

The band pull apart helps achieve this.

Mobility of your thoracic spine is important, but so is strength and muscular endurance.

How to Set Up:

• From a standing position, slightly bend your knees
• Grab the band overhand, at about shoulder width, just beginning to have tension in the band
• Place your hands just below shoulder height
• Make sure your shoulder blades are not pinched together

1. From the starting position, pull the band apart
2. Stop when it touches your chest
3. Hold for ½ a second
4. Return to the starting position, keeping tension in the band the entire time

• Keep your head and neck relaxed
• Maintain your eyes looking forward
• Don’t pull the band back as far as possible. Stop once it touches your chest
• Avoid pinching your shoulder blades together; allow them to move naturally
• Perform the exercise at a slow, consistent pace