The Serratus Anterior by Daniel Dominguez L.AC

The Serratus Anterior by Daniel Dominguez L.AC

 
Origin: Superolateral surfaces of upper 8 or 9 ribs at the side of chest
Insertion: Vertebral border of scapula
Action: Draws scapula forward and upward; abducts scapula and rotates it; stabilizes vertebral border of scapula
Innervation: Long thoracic nerve (C5, C6, C7)
Arterial Supply: Circumflex scapular artery

Photos and above information from washington.edu

This is a muscle that I came to know very well while treating athletes at the 2017 Catalyst Games.  This is a CrossFit style competition that draws 500+ athletes to its event in Rochester, New York. 

I assessed over 40 athletes with shoulder injuries that day while working at the Catalyst Games.  Across the board every athlete with a shoulder injury regardless of the main cause had weakness of the Serratus Anterior. 

With over 6 years of treating athletes, I've seen this time and time again. If an injury occurs to the shoulder regardless if it is shoulder impingement, labrum tear, shoulder strain or rotator cuff injury. The first muscle to shut down and the last to turn back on is the Serrates anterior.(SA)

This is known as motor inhibition. A common disorder that is caused by 3 main things. 1. Overuse, 2 posture 3 Injury due to trauma.  Why is this muscle so important? It is one of the main contributors to scapular control and protraction. Also known as the big swing muscle or boxers muscle. 

It is innervated by the long thoracic nerve and also a common muscle of dysfunction in young female athletes with scapular winging.  Often over worked in crossfit due to pull ups and over head lifts or throwing sports. As well as boxing and volleyball. 

I have seen weakness of the SA in shoulder and elbow injuries. If you lack scapular control you are also prone to Levator/trap tightness due to an anterior scapular tilt. This is more common in athletes that sit at a desk during the day. We like to think that the one hour we spend working out will off set the 8 hours at a desk but Unfortunately that is not the case. 

The specific style of acupuncture practiced at Buffalo Orthopedic & Sports Acupuncture (Locations in Buffalo and Rochester) can restore motor inhibition and strengthen a muscle quickly to return athletes to competition in as few as 1-5 weeks depending on the severity of the injury. 

I think a misconception I see commonly is that all acupuncture is the same. I can guarantee you that there are maybe 3-4 people that know how to effectively restore function to these muscles  in Upstate New York and if they do I have taught them. 

Please message me if you have questions about your shoulder/elbow or wrist injury  and how sports acupuncture can help you recover and return you to sport FAST! 

If you are an acupuncturist reading this and have questions please visit https://www.chinesemedicinethatworks.com/workshops-2 and sign up for seminars taught by Richard Hazel and myself if you would like to know how to take your clinical skills to the next level. We will be in San Francisco in March, Dublin, Ireland in April and Syracuse 3-4 times over the course of 2018. 

#sportsacupuncutre #orthopedicacupuncutre #acupuncture #dryneedling #buffaloacupuncture #poweredbybosa #shoulderinjuries #alternativemedicine #bosa

Dan Dominguez can be found on Facebook as well as his Instagram account "thesportsacu".  Dan is currently seeing clients in both Buffalo and Rochester.  

BOSA Rochester is coming to CrossFit Taproot!

We are fired up to announce that we have partnered up with Dan Dominguez L.AC to bring BOSA Rochester to CrossFit Taproot!

Already a game changing partner for our athletes and our competition team, Team Hybrid Athletics we feel Dan and BOSA can help many, many more people.

Acupuncture is for ANYONE.  You do not have to be a competitive athlete to benefit from this game changing treatment method.

At the start of this great partnership, Danny will be at CrossFit Taproot twice a month treating clients.

Why Acupuncture you ask?

This quote from hoopshype.com journalist Alex Kennedy sums up why you should do Acupuncture:

From a NBA Western Conference Coach:

“Whenever a player puts time and money into their body, into recovery, it’s a smart investment. The way I explain it to our players is if you had a machine that prints money, you’d obviously take good care of it, put the best stuff in it, do regular maintenance and do whatever you can to make sure that machine is always working and in tiptop condition, right? Well, players have a machine that prints money and it’s their body. So they need to put the right things in their body food-wise, get check-ups – even when nothing seems wrong – for maintenance and treat their body like they’d treat that machine. The guys who get it, who know their body and what it needs to perform at a high level, they’re the true professionals.”

On a personal note:

As a long time competitive athlete, I have and still do put A LOT of demands on my body.  I have tried everything to help my body recover from the stresses I put it under.

Acupuncture with cupping when needed by far is the fastest and most effective way I have found to get me back on the floor to be competing at my best.  Even on competition days if there is a problem spot Dan quickly assesses and gets me feeling 100% QUICKLY so I have no ailments.

One of the best qualities about Dan is his extremely thorough assessment before each session.  The evaluation alone is worth the money.

Often times it’s just import to find the weakness, before it hurts you and that’s what Dan is great at.

There are certain trends to injury... Shoulder injury regardless of what type will shut down certain muscles.  Dan is great at sifting through which muscles are weak to provide effective necessary treatment to restore function to inhibited muscles.

There is many ways to help our bodies recover but with Acupuncture its short, sweet and to the point.  Multiple 60-90 minute sessions weekly or monthly (generally) is not required.

Starting this Tuesday, January 9th, 2018 BOSA at CrossFit Taproot is taking limited patients and will have a FULL availability on January 26, 2018.

We already have dates for February 2018 as well.  They are 02/07/2018 and 02/28/18.

Use the link (copy and paste) here to book your appointment today :).

https://buffalosportsacupuncture.janeapp.com/

#poweredbybosa #bosarochester #crossfittaproot #sportsacupuncture #dryneedling #orthopedicacupuncture #acupuncture #crossfit #recover #mobility #health #wellness #competitor #athletes #teamhybridathletics #competition #wodchester #noweaklinks #crossfitopen #crossfitgames #rochester #newyork #optimalperformance #gamechanger