Reaching behind the back is an important functional movement. Many assume it’s from a loss of shoulder internal rotation. But if you’re limited in this movement, it can be more than just IR. So we don’t often go to this stretch to improve internal rotation. To view more episodes, subscribe, and ask your questions, go to mikereinold.com/askmikereinold. #AskMikeReinold Episode 280: Stretching Shoulder Internal Rotation with the Behind the Back Stretch Listen and Subscribe to Podcast You can use the player below to listen to the podcast or subscribe. If you are enjoying the podcast, PLEASE click here to leave us a review in iTunes, it will really mean a lot to us. THANKS! Show Notes * Does Reaching Behind the Back Reflect the Actual Internal Rotation of the Shoulder? Transcript Student:So stretching shoulder internal rotation with the behind the back stretch. Jim from New York, I loved your shoulder course and podcast. This is my first question. I see both physical and occupational therapists treating shoulders, trying to regain internal rotation with the IR towel stretch behind the back. I’ve never been a fan of this and feel there are better ways to regain IR. What are your thoughts on trying to regain IR with the towel up the back stretch? Mike Reinold:Yeah, I feel like you’re ready to fight somebody right now, Eric. Is that a Long Island thing? Student:I think so. Mike Reinold:I love it. I love it. I mean, that’s why this question from Jim from New York, I figured, he’s probably saying it with that same accent and stuff. So the two of you in a conversation would be amazing. So, all right. So, behind the back towel stretch. Who wants to start on this one? I actually have some blog posts on this, too, that you can Google around here, but that’s certainly not a stretch that we do at Champion. I don’t think anybody does it. If we saw somebody doing it, that would probably go poorly. But we’d have a little chat about that, but I get the concept of this, right? Mike Reinold:Functionally, a lot of patients, especially older patients and bigger surgical procedures, they complain functionally that they can’t do activities behind their back. So gentlemen reaching in their back pocket sometimes, right? Going up the back and females is a common complaint that they talk about. They talk about how that’s super awkward. So people, give them a towel and say let’s tug on it. Let’s torque this thing. Who wants to start this one on, we’ll just get right to it and say why we don’t use it. Right? Because I think that’s an important thing to talk about who wants to start? What’s up, Dave? Dave Tilley:I think this is a good example of a summary content that we use a lot and I learned from Mike and Lenny when I first started is you can have someone who is like stiffness from a muscular point of view,