Notes

What is the Teres Major?

<h1><strong>What is the Teres Major?</strong></h1>
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<p><img src="https://pixabay.com/get/g0a818e3af87516b9d11485f78ee319aa9524c0f2dba623307852fcdf5dabd3f8def396a08a8f7b17968ca44f146f18d36db82e548b7080b26858a9807836d370_1280.png" style="width:600px"></p>
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<p>Photo by BlackRiv on Pixabay </p>
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<p>The teres major (major teres, great teres, or triangular muscle of the back) is a small and triangular muscle on the side of your torso that assists with movements such as lifting your arms above your head and performing seated shrugs. It’s one of the muscles in your back that you can see when you look at yourself in the mirror. It’s positioned just below (and slightly to the front of) the acromio-clavicular joint, or AC joint, which is that protruding part of your shoulder where your collarbone meets your top ribs. The teres major muscle originates on the highest point of the spine between the seventh and ninth thoracic vertebrae and inserts into a lesser tubercle, which is a small bump on the shaft of your humerus (the bone in your upper arm).</p>
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<h2><strong>How Does the Teres Major Function?</strong></h2>
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<p>The teres major muscle is a shoulder external rotator. It’s responsible for rotating your upper arm outward. This movement is mostly useful when you’re lifting your arms above your head. It also helps with bringing your arms back down to your sides after they’ve been lifted above your head. It’s also involved with stabilizing your AC joint. The AC joint is the connection between your collarbone and the top of your upper arm bone — your humerus. This joint is responsible for allowing your arms to move freely in a wide range of motion above your head. The teres major muscle helps hold this joint together so it doesn’t dislocate or slip out of place.</p>
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<h2><strong>How to Spot a Teres Major Injury</strong></h2>
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<p>If you’ve noticed that you’ve suddenly lost significant control over your shoulder and elbow movements, it’s possible that you’ve injured your teres major muscle. To confirm your suspicion, try lifting your arms above your head. If one or both of your arms feels significantly weaker than usual, then there’s a good chance that you’ve injured your teres major muscle. The teres major is located very close to your AC joint. So, it’s very possible that you’ve injured your teres major muscle during a fall or a sports-related accident as it’s located at one of the most common impact sites on your upper body. To confirm your suspicions, you can perform an impingement test on your AC joint by pressing on the joint while lifting your arms above your head (see image below).</p>
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<h2><strong>How to Stretch the Teres Major</strong></h2>
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<p>Like any muscle that’s prone to injury, the teres major is best stretched after a workout or a strenuous day at work, when your muscles are warm and more flexible. You can do this by grabbing a wall for support and placing one leg behind you and out of sight. Make sure to keep your standing leg straight, but not hyper-extended. Next, reach your free arm above your head and grab the wall. While keeping the rest of your body still, rotate your arm towards your back until you feel a gentle stretch in the front of your shoulder. Hold this stretch for 30 seconds and then switch sides.</p>
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<img width="315" src="https://integrativeworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/anatomy-teres-major.jpg">
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<h2><strong>How to strengthen the Teres Major</strong></h2>
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<p>While there are many different types of exercises that can help strengthen your teres major muscle, one of the most effective methods is rope climbing. Using https://releasemuscletherapy.com/teres-release/ and a sturdy object that’s about 4 feet off the ground, you can perform a very effective form of climbing that will strengthen and build your teres major muscles. You can also try band shoulder external rotations to strengthen and build your teres major muscles.</p>
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<h2><strong>Conclusion</strong></h2>
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<p>The teres major is a small, yet extremely important muscle in your body. It’s one of the muscles in your back that you can see when you look in the mirror. It’s positioned just below (and slightly to the front of) the acromio-clavicular joint, or AC joint, which is that protruding part of your shoulder where your collarbone meets your top ribs. The teres major muscle originates on the highest point of the spine between the seventh and ninth thoracic vertebrae and inserts into a lesser tubercle, which is a small bump on the shaft of your humerus (the bone in your upper arm).</p>
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Read More: https://releasemuscletherapy.com/teres-release/