Found a nice video detailing the front rack position and most common faults. Most individual’s issue in attaining a good position is thoracic spine extension as well as that shoulder mobility.
Three stretches to aid in getting into the front rack position start about halfway through the video…but this guy does give some good insight as to the ‘why’ you can have problems.
1) Overhead shoulder stretch (the one we used with your broomhandle works very similarly). In the video, he uses a band hung from a low anchor, which gives you a little more of an isolated stretch vs. our ‘poor man’s’ method.
2)Wrist stretches. You can do this one from your chair…place your palm between your legs with your fingers rotated toward your torso. He also uses a band in a way I haven’t seen it done before…using a bit of distraction and creating more space between the carpal bones. Give it a shot!
3)Thoracic mobility with a pair of lacrosse/tennis balls or even your foam roller. Tape a couple of balls together (lacrosse balls are great for this, tennis balls work very well but are less intense. Place the balls or the foam roller along the midback, perpendicular to the spine and go through a cycle of flexion/extension for each segment along the mid and upper back.
Stella Fitness 