Rounded Shoulders

The acromion travels forward of the plumb line and the scapula loses its wall contact.

Default tier Low Records 8 Station Shoulder Girdle

What this describes

Rounded shoulders is a position of the shoulder girdle, not a diagnosis about the joint itself. The reliable readings are geometric: how far the front of the shoulder sits ahead of the gravity line, how much of the scapula can stay in contact with a wall, and how far the hand can reach back to the wall once the arm is at shoulder height. A single reading in a doorway at the end of the day is not enough — repeat it in the morning.

Three-grade thresholds

Grade	Threshold
Within range	Acromion within 10 mm of the plumb line; scapula keeps full wall contact; palm reaches the wall at shoulder height.
Borderline	Acromion 11–25 mm forward, or the hand stops 30–80 mm short of the wall at shoulder height.
Deviated	Acromion more than 25 mm forward, scapula lifts off the wall on both sides, or more than 80 mm of hand-to-wall gap.

Self-screens for Rounded Shoulders on this site

Reviewed 30 Sep 2026 Low frontal

Backpack Strap Mark Check

Photograph yourself with the bag you actually carry. Where the strap crosses the shoulder, and whether the shoulders stay level, is the whole reading.
Reviewed 27 Sep 2026 Moderate frontal

Wall Slide at Shoulder Height

Forearms on the wall, sliding up. The reading is how far the wrists get before a shoulder blade lifts or the lower back has to arch to help.
Reviewed 1 Oct 2026 Moderate frontal

Hand Behind Back Reach

One hand up the spine, measured from C7. It is a combined movement — extension, internal rotation and scapular glide — and the two sides almost never match.
Reviewed 23 Sep 2026 Moderate frontal

Prone Lift-Off Hold Time

Face down, lift both shoulder blades, and time how long they stay up before the neck takes over. A capacity reading, not a position reading.
Reviewed 24 Sep 2026 Low lateral

Supine Shoulder-to-Floor Gap

Lie flat and measure the space under each shoulder. Gravity does the work, so the reading shows where the shoulder rests when nothing is holding it.
Reviewed 14 Sep 2026 Moderate both

Acromion Plumb Photo

A side photograph with the acromion and the greater trochanter both marked. The horizontal distance between them answers whether the shoulder is stacked over the hip.
Reviewed 23 Aug 2026 Low lateral

Doorway Hand-to-Wall Reach

Arm at shoulder height, hand reaching back for the wall. The distance your middle finger misses it by is the reading, and the two sides rarely match.
Reviewed 4 Aug 2026 Low frontal

Wall Scapula Contact

Back to the wall, shoulder blades lightly pressed. The reading is how many blades keep contact, and which one gives up first when the effort is released.