Question
Hi, I'm 13 years old, girl and my shoulder blades always stick out. Regardless of whether I'm standing straight with correct posture, I look like I have cut off wings sprouting from my back.I try to always be aware of my posture whenever possible, sitting and standing. Friends commenting on it made me aware of it. Is this normal? Are there any exercises I can do to fix this? Or is it something I should be concerned about? Thanks.

Answer
HI Layla,

Some young women who are lean will show prominent shoulder blades (scapulae) and it's just normal body architecture.   For others they have weak muscles that allow their scapulae to pop away from the body.   One muscle in particular, the serratus anterior, helps keep the scap's against the body.  You can test this by going into a push up position on the floor.  If one or both of your scapula bones pops away from your body, then there is serratus anterior weakness.   If you damaged the nerves to the serratus anterior muscle from injuries or from activities such as using crutches (that compress the armpit where the nerve to the serratus is located), then you will have a "winging" scapula.  You might simply have weakness to the shoulder muscles including the serratus anterior.   Doing the "push up plus" exercise can help, as can others.  See these articles for descriptions http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2684151/    and     https://www.shoulderdoc.co.uk/section/492     Also, there's a ton of videos on YouTube on "serratus anterior exercises for winging scapula" that you can check out.   Most importantly, you should find a certified sports chiropractor in your area and get evaluated to determine exactly what muscles are weak or if you really do have a problem, because you might not, and a trained professional can help put your mind at ease about this.   

I hope this was helpful.

Dr. G