Rotational movement integrated with precise timing/sequencing of the hip and glutei muscles will help give you the elusive power you seek. So few people understand how to rotate at the hip and engage the glutes with powerful contraction combined with rear foot plantarflexion.

This lack of sequencing and movement patterning means a loss of durability and inhibited optimum performance. Lack of ‘hip whip’ manifests itself in too much muscle recruitment from the upper torso and the client will ‘bleed’ unproductive energy. ‘Whipping the hip’ is not a sadomasochistic term, (that is for another article).   It is a term that represents the motion of powerful active contraction of the glute with rotational power of the hip joint.

Whip It!

It’s the ‘snap’ of activation with intent of movement that counts. No sloppy follow thru .The rear leg should have a tense activated glute and the rear foot should be plantar flexed with minimal weight resting on the ball of the foot.  I tell my clients if I walked behind you and hit that butt I better bounce off. No loosey goosey!

Don’t worry about the front leg glute. That will be activated because you are standing on it with more transferred weight. Pay attention to the rear leg.  Try the rotation without active glute contraction and then with contraction. Tell me what difference you feel? You feel much more powerful and stable right? Take a look at this picture below to see a representation of an end phase ‘hip whip.’ This is a high stability, loaded movement pattern. Top of the ‘food chain’ in the 4-stages of owning the whip you will see listed below.

Right Side Hip Whip

The glutes are really nice to look at I know, ( well some are) but the important thing in performance is how they function.  Can they activate? Can they sequence? You may need to spend time teaching clients how to disassociate the top and bottom of the body first and then move into locking in transitional patterns. Start with no load and then increase to resistance bands, and finally cables.

If you can master the power of the hips and glute you will unleash the secret weapon of performance. All things being considered you must own the ‘hip whip’ by progressing thru 4 stages.

1. Insure adequate mobility is on board in the hips. Particularly in extension and internal rotation. Look for asymmetries.

2. Fascial snags and glutei trigger points must be released and addressed because they will cause soft tissue extensibility dysfunction and loss of mobility.

3. Glutes must be activated in relationship to the calves and iliacus  Glutes are often inhibited and weak in relationship to facilitated calves and iliacus. Release the iliacus by manual pressure and foam roll the calves, followed immediately by supine hip bridges to activate the glutes. Be careful of doing the wrong thing to the psoas. It is often tight and weak, indicating a need for stretching then immediate strengthening. Simply stretching a tight and weak muscle is asking for TROUBLE!

4. Movement patterning and motor control. Gaining stability of the hips in static position, then proceeded by dynamic, and finally loaded high threshold movement so you can lock in the new mobility with neural control.

Precision of movement. Quality over quantity.  Better is better, more is not better. These are your guiding principles of power. Now go have fun whipping your hip!

Perry

Dr. Perry from stopchasingpain.com shares a brief section of his educational webinar done on behalf of Litecure Medical Lasers on how laser therapy can help TMJ pain. He also shares some of the unique treatment approaches and assessments he teaches other doctors who treat TMJ.

Dr. Perry from stopchasingpain.com shares a brief section of his educational webinar done on behalf of Litecure Medical Lasers on how laser therapy can help TMJ pain. He also shares some of the unique treatment approaches and assessments he teaches other doctors who treat TMJ.

What is a ‘Landmine?’ It’s not the kind you are thinking of! Nothing explodes. Except perhaps your metabolism and lean muscle. ‘Landimine’ is a ground-based rotational training device that works the entire body. You can perform single and double arm movements and other rotational exercises simply by inserting any Olympic-size bar into a pivoting sleeve at the units base. This form of movement and vector based training is the epitome of developing and refining coordination, power, stability, mobility, and metabolic durability. You will NOT see machine based training principles with this workout.

Ground rotational training is one of my all-time favorite workouts and is an essential component of my rehabilitation program. Yes, I said rehab program. This is not just for fitness professionals. It fits perfectly into the world of corrective exercise and movement based rehab. The landmine has a fundamental place in training and corrective exercise programming or may integrated into existing routines.

You will discover many things about your body movements when you begin using the landmine. Become ‘body aware’ and attuned to what your body is trying to communicate.

Just a few things you may notice during initial use of this training technique: (Self Assessment)

Note: These are MY OWN observations, and not necessarily included in the DVD.

1) Asymmetries: Can you move better on one side compared to other? If so, that is a signal you must be aware of in regards to potential injury or asymmetrical muscular development. Pay attention to how natural the movements feel from one side to the other. Strive for each side feeling the same.

2) Strength: Do you feel a more precise and stronger movement pattern in various positions? (Lying down, tall kneeling, seated, standing and offset scissor stance)

3) Power: Do velocity and range of motion differ from side to side. ‘Energy leaks’ of power will manifest quickly and you will ‘bleed’ endurance.

4) Stabilization: How much control do you have during the start, concentric, eccentric and stopping positions? The landmine helps you own stability quickly. The ‘cheat factor’ is off the table when you abandon machine based linear training. Your core muscles will be in high demand for precision movement and control.

5) Endurance: Think you are in metabolic shape from doing endless hours of cardio machines and miles of running? Well, the landmine may humble you quickly. When you involve varying degrees of loads, velocities, vectors, and transitions you are engaging complete sequence patterns to initiate and reduce movement. This is the ‘secret weapon’ to enhanced metabolic activity and optimal endurance.

Let me begin by saying I love this type of training. If you want to make quick changes in performance, physique transformation and skill, this is the DVD for you. Bruce Lee once said, ‘Simplicity is the key to brilliance.‘ This a textbook collection of exercises based on this paradigm. Notice I said simple, I did not say EASY! The movements and exercises in this DVD will be callenging and it will take time to master before moving into progressions. However, this is where the FUN begins. Yes, FUN! These exercises are exhilarating and at the opposite end of the boring scale:)

They keep you ‘locked in’ to intensity and execution of movement. You can’t ‘lollygag’ (go through the motions with zero energy) your way through these moves! It takes focus and concentration. Not like sitting on a gym machine daydreaming about tomorrow or rethinking about your stressful day.

Why do I like this video so much?

1. Shawn Windle is a great coach. He explains thing simply and straight to the point.

2. Great cueing from Shawn. Telling and showing what to do in execution and common mistakes to avoid.

3. Regressions and progressions demonstrated so people of any skill level may workout.

4. One camera angle that encapsulates the movements

5. Exposes viewers to alternative workouts with minimal and inexpensive equipment. No more boring exercises for the ‘core’ or stabilization with stability balls and bosu balls. Feel the iron in your hand.

So let’s look at some of the movements.                                                                          (Starting Positions listed with my favorite exercise from each category)

Kneeling Position …requires high demand of core and hips.That’s a good thing!

Favorite:-Single Arm Press (SAP) with throw and catch…great for learning core control. Learning how to stop momentum.

Half Kneeling...magnifies stability requirements

Favorite: One Arm Press…think of it like a ‘Farmer’s Walk’ with high demand required for opposite side core engagement and lateral control.

Standing…progression that requires base support from leg and glutes.

Favorite:  Rotational Press. Wow, did I like this one. This move requires rotational control combined with powerful hip driving and glute contraction at the end. If you don’t feel it in your body after this one, you may be dead. lol

Split Stance...Great for alternate weight shift and learning to power off one hip.

Favorite: Lunge to Press…excellent maneuver. Opens up the front fascial line of support while learning to maintain integrity of extension. The pressing movement engages core and you learn cross body patterning of human locomotion with loads.

Lying Down...taking it to the ground is always my favorite. The ground is the great equalizer in movements. Does not matter how good you look here, you must own the core.

Favorite:  Crunch…Note, this is not an endorsement of crunching. Everyone has their own opinion on the value and validity of cruching. However, I can tell you that the crunch on this DVD is top of the food chain in working the abs. Sweet move here! You will be working muscles you never knew existed when trying to flex up of the floor with an Olympic bar over your head.

Seated: Don’t even think this comes close to being easy because you are sitting down. If anything, it gives a whole new appreciation in learning to ‘reverse shoulder rounding syndrome.’ Natural postural inclination of a weak core is to flex forward at the waist and round the shoulders. The Olympic bar acts to magnify this flexion pattern in an RNT (Reactive Neuromuscular Training) feed forward mechanism which actually helps you improve posture. RNT pulls you into dysfunction so you innately pull back into correct pattern alignment with minimal coaching.

Favorite: Twists: No more medicine ball. Taking on the Olympic Bar with fast and focused rotations. This one looks easy, but don’t let that fool ya. You feel the abs quick, fast and in a hurry.

 Who can benefit from purchasing this DVD?

1) Personal Trainers: Take your tool box to a new level with exercises that deliver results. Separate yourself from other trainers. Don’t be just like everyone else. Uniqueness combined with fun training that delivers results is what you will get.

2) Strength Coaches: Well, build strength obviously. Build a foundation of stability, mobility, endurance, durability and body awareness. This is a mandatory tool for your programming.

3) Health Professionals: A rehab tool like no other! Don’t think this can be used in rehab? Think again! Part of your job is to restore health and teach clients how to prevent injury. What better way to prepare them for ‘real world’ activities than to use a tool in a safe, supervised environment to teach them  proper movement. Progressing to active care using inexpensive functional equipment is the foundation for success.

4) YOU: Anyone can use this program. Invest in yourself. When people ask how you got so lean, toned, and strong you can say I ‘Landmined.’

I highly recommend this video for your collection. So click below and get on the fast track of movement. Your clients are waiting!

PURCHASE DVD HERE!

See my previous article on the Joint by Joint Theory on this link:

JOINT BY JOINT ARTICLE in Advance PT Magazine

Each joint has a dominance of either (mobility or stability) depending on their role in the kinetic chain. In a perfect movement world (there is no such thing by the way); joints would maintain their given role in the system. Mobility dominant joints would maintain mobility, and stability dominant joints would do their thing. However, the wear and tear of just getting through stressful days, trauma, injuries, intensive workouts, poor posture, and the never-ending ilk of other bad karma the body has to compensate for just to survive makes this impossible.

Your brain and nervous system have one primary purpose, SURVIVAL AT ALL COSTS! This system is the Master Controller that manipulates everything in your body down to the smallest micron in attempt to maintain balance or what we call ‘homeostasis.’ It must adapt to its environment 24/7 to maintain control, and it does not care how it accomplishes this task. Your body is trying the best it can at every moment to protect you from injury or harm. Sadly, the body’s ‘best’ is not necessarily the right choice for the long term.

Unfortunately, the body typically compensates in a short term ‘rescue mode’ dysfunctional pattern that your brain and nervous system then hard wire into long term dysfunction. That dysfunction rears it’s ugly head later and puts a hurt on you when least expected with an alarm signal called PAIN! Hence, a possible underlying answer as to why a simple sneeze can destroy your back and bring you to your knees wincing in pain. The survival mechanism is not concerned about the future, it is only concerned with the here at now. The present! It deals with the current painful episode and worries about the repercussions later. So, in essence, your abnormal functional movement compensations will become your new normal! Until you teach it otherwise! How is that for a brain twister thought?

Ok, back to the neck!. According to the Joint theory your upper cervical spine (neck) comprised of the skull (occiput) and first cervical C1 (Atlas) and second Cervical C2 (Atlas) bones should be more mobile than stable. Lots of rotation happening up there. Or should be happening up there. Your lower cervical spine (the remaining 5 bones in the neck) should be more stable than mobile. BUT, most individuals have a neck where this pattern is reversed. This reversal contributes to poor movement and likely future injury and pain. When pain or tightness bites down on you, the first instinct is to fix the painful area. And rightly so! It is damaged and in need of help. So we may try to stretch, move, rack/crack and try everything possible to alleviate tension and stress in the lower neck while neglecting the upper neck. My question is, why is it damaged?

The secret is to increase mobility in the upper neck, so the lower neck can rest and recover. The lower neck is probably just hurting from too much work! It’s moving all the time because the upper neck is asleep at the wheel and not doing its fair share of movement. They are slackers!

Two primary factors decrease mobility; the first is soft tissue tightness in (muscle, fascia) also known in the therapy world as TED ‘Tissue Extensibility Dysfunction.’ A tongue twister way to say tightness! The second is JMD ‘Joint Mobility Dysfunction’ In other words, bones are stuck and not moving well. These typically go hand in hand with what I call the 1…2 punch. I always take care of both dysfunctions. JMD conditions if significant may require a healthcare professional trained in joint manipulation therapy to restore proper motion. Basically, that means, they move the joints for ya!

***Please consult your healthcare professional if any condition worsens with conservative self intervention or lasts longer than 72-hourwith rest.

The self stretch video below is very effective at reducing soft tissue restrictions and opening up that restricted joint with slight a distraction (separation) pressure. You can often experience dramatic positive impact on reducing neck pain, headaches, tension, and tightness in the neck with this simple maneuver. I teach it to all of my clients.

Here are some key bullet points to explain how to do the maneuver correctly and with precision. The video will demonstrate precisely what to do.

DO NOT apply too much pressure on the head. More is not better. Better is better!

DO NOT hold your breath.

DO NOT continue to stretch if you feel discomfort or pain that goes beyond 20-seconds

DO NOT perform more than the recommended sets and hold times.

DO perform 3 sets of 20 second holds.

DO maintain precision of movement with ‘forward and upward’ pressure on the back of the head. It is not a push forward movement only. Think about someone lifting your head off your spine.

DO follow the 20-seconds rule. Some stretches (like this one) may initially cause discomfort or pain. HOWEVER, it should fade or disappear within 20-seconds. If it does, proceed to do all 3 sets. If it does not, STOP the stretch. It is not the stretch for you.

(IT IS NOT RECOMMENDED FOR ANOTHER PERSON TO PUSH ON THE NECK)                Hence the word ‘self’

See video below and try it out. See how it feels. You might just be surprised at how much this little maneuver helps you. Effective little sucker I can tell ya that. The simplest ones usually are in my experience. It’s just the understanding and learning you should look at this area for relief. Not every stretch works for every person or condition. But, you must try it to discover that answer for yourself!

If you like it and it works for you, share it with others. Help someone else feel better. That is what it’s all about!! And remember, don’t be tricked and deceived by the site of ‘perceived pain.’ In other words, don’t get ‘PUNKED’ by pain. It’s a tricky little sucker that loves to make you chase after the wrong things. More aptly put, STOP CHASING PAIN. Locate the ‘source’ and fix function!

Dr. Perry shows you how to isolate and self stretch the upper neck at the base of the head. This area is usually very tight and stiff with restricted range of motion leading to headaches and overall neck pain. Most people move and stretch the lower neck, but the upper neck is the secret to relieving tension. Learn how to help yourself with this easy and effective maneuver. Discomfort or pain should begin to fade in 20-seconds!

Dr. Perry shows you how to isolate and self stretch the upper neck at the base of the head. This area is usually very tight and stiff with restricted range of motion leading to headaches and overall neck pain. Most people move and stretch the lower neck, but the upper neck is the secret to relieving tension. Learn how to help yourself with this easy and effective maneuver. Discomfort or pain should begin to fade in 20-seconds!

Dr. Craig Liebenson’s New DVD Series

Perry Nickelston, DC, FMS, SFMA

What can I say? Dr. Liebenson is an icon in the world of chiropractic and rehabilitation. He is a pioneer in the field of understanding movement dysfunction and corrective exercise strategies to alleviate pain. His primary mission is to help people and restore their quality of life. He is a true giver in every sense of the word by teaching, sharing, and educating clinicians on his techniques. Needless to say, I really, really like the guy! Lol He is not only a trusted mentor, but a dear friend as well who has been an inspiration in helping me become a better doctor. It is my honor and privilege to review his latest contribution to the world. An impressive 3-Disc DVD Series which includes:

1. Functional Performance Training DVD

2. Core Stability Training DVD

3. Flexibility, Yoga Training and Ergonomic Postural Advice DVD

Triple Threat of Knowledge

I see people suffering in pain everyday at my Pain Laser Center. They are searching for answers. Searching for hope. Searching for an alternative to traditional therapies that are grossly inadequate. They come to me for help. By learning from experts like Dr. Liebenson I am able to provide my clients with a system that is based on sound principles that deliver maximum results. This DVD collection has been an invaluable asset in my goal of teaching clients how to move better to feel better. It’s all in how you move!

Dr. Liebenson’s DVD series is high quality with easy to follow exercise selections. There are clear camera angles with ideal distance for optimal learning. The audio is impeccable since Dr. Liebenson has chosen to voice over the videos by adding an audio track separately. This makes his explanations and instructions easy to follow and understand. So many DVD’s are published on the market that have low quality sound and bad camera angles. Not these DVD’s. No expense spared here.

The Chapter selections are easy to navigate and are divided into subsections so you can select a specific exercise you want to do. The overlay music is relaxing and smoothing. Not a distraction at all. Very easy to remain focused on the exercise and what Dr. Liebenson is saying. You have the option of purchasing the videos individually or as a set, which I highly recommend. They complement each other nicely and the levels of learning are integrated so you can continue from one DVD to the other.

Dr. Liebenson builds a solid fundamental foundation of movement and expands exercises in difficulty and challenge level based on your individual needs. Exercises are broken down into easier options for the novice and more challenging exercises for athletes or advanced users.

Functional Performance Training DVD

This DVD helps to re-educate your body. Dr. Liebenson reviews exercise basics and fundamentals so you can ‘own’ the movements. The section on ABC’s of Long Term Athletic Development was very enlightening. You learn principles of pushing, pulling, rotations and reaching as they relate to movement.

The end of the DVD  covers Advanced Performance Training, agility and plyometrics (which can be very difficult to master unless you have a skilled coach like Dr. Liebenson). He also has an informative section on speed development which is built on functional power. Overall an excellent DVD to get you primed for functional movement training.

Core Stability Training DVD

This DVD is jam packed with awesome information. There is so much here to learn regarding the true techniques of core training. Core training is a popular buzzword now in the weight loss and fitness industry. Due to that popularity there inherently arrives a plethora of misinformation. Dr. Liebenson sets the record straight on the truth about Core Training.

I thoroughly enjoyed the first section on ‘Health Club Tips’ teaching you how to perform popular machine based training correctly. My pain relief clinics are located inside fitness centers and I constantly see people doing gym equipment exercises wrong. They are setting themselves up for injury and are not maximizing movement for metabolic fat burning.

Dr. Liebenson covers ‘Abdominal Bracing’ which is a SECRET WEAPON to core stability and injury recovery. This section teaches my all time favorite movement, ‘The Dead Bug.” You have to see it and then you will know what I mean! There are sections devoted to quadraped patterns, side bridges, The Superman, hamstring curls and bridges, and the McGill Abdominal Curl Up.

Section 6 on the Dying Bug is worth the entire price of the DVD in my opinion. This exercise alone can transform your body. Plus it’s the coolest name ever. Lol Section 14 is on the Shoulder/Upper Back Training which is critical to muscle balance and alleviating common pain complaints in the head and trapezius region. The ending track has a good example of a fully functional core routine that you can perform. It teaches you the thought process behind designing your own program.

Flexibility, Yoga Training and Ergonomic Postural Advice DVD

Besides having a really cool title, this DVD integrates many strategies for overall body balance. The Yoga and Respiration section is priceless in teaching proper breathing for a fundamentally optimized core. You learn assessments and techniques for maximizing diaphragmatic breathing required for relaxation and core control. Ergonomics sections demonstrate little tricks you can do at work for alleviating tension and soreness. There is an extensive section on learning to hinge with your hips for stability and reducing the risk of lower back injury.

Balance tactics are covered in detail to ensure proper stability and asymmetry from one side of the body to the other. You will find this section rather challenging. However, implementing balance training can make fast improvements in how you feel and move. Get more active with a Dynamic Warmup section showing you various ways to get your heart pumping and body moving.

The Brugger Postural Correction exercise is a gem.  Stretching and mid-back postural corrections are included since this is a common area for abnormal postural referred pain. The DVD ends with another complete sample core functional routine that helps tie everything together.

The short and sweet of it is, this series is a MUST HAVE! Investing in yourself and your education is a win-win combination. Dr. Liebenson is sharing techniques learned in the trenches over the course of his distinguished career and these exercises are selected because THEY WORK! When it comes to corrective and functional exercise more is not better, better is better! It’s about precision of movement and quality over quantity. When you move better, you feel better.

This DVD series will teach you how to move better, without the risk of getting hurt. These are not your traditional hum drum boring exercises you have seen before. These are unique and effective. You will notice a positive change in your body with this program. Stay focused and don’t get discouraged. It takes time to master movements. But when you do, oh my you will feel incredible. That is a good thing! What are you waiting for? Buy them NOW! Click below to purchase them on AMAZON.

BUY NOW!!

A heartfelt and personal thank you to Dr. Liebenson for sharing his DVD’s with me. Amazing piece of work my friend, and keep it coming!

patient testimonial about the great results they got by combining deep tissue laser with Inner Core sequencing and movement patterning. Months of suffering in pain gone in just a few visits.

Ok here we go. Buckle up!

____________________________________________

The awesomely spectacular and cool Laree Draper posted a link to some short clips of speakers at the Perform Better Summit. COOLIO! Join her blog ASAP!

PERFORM BETTER SPEAKERS

Very cool video of a workout routine that I use to get lean. Ginastica Natural

GINASTICA NATURAL

Many people think that body weight training is simply too easy. WRONG! It is actually way more challenging than weight training. Why? Vectors and gravity! People who think this way have most likely never trained in a real way with their own body weight. Do a set of crunches on the ab machine then do a set of bear crawls up and down a hill. Bet I know which one kicked your ass more and you probably don’t want to do it again cause it was really hard.

BEAR CRAWL VIDEO

“Animals have highly functional conditioned muscles, most human beings have what you might call counterfeit muscle (assuming of course, that they have any muscle at all). Counterfeit muscles may look great, but they are not functional. Much like counterfeit money, they look good at first, but are not worth anything in the long run. Counterfeit muscles are the exact opposite of what animal’s posses.”-David Nordmark (So true)

“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.”-Thomas Jefferson

Great talk from TED on how the brain is all about movement. I really enjoyed this presentation.

BRAIN AND MOVEMENT

‎”Many healthcare providers continue to employ a ‘one trick’ approach with LBP patients and assume LBP is a homogenous condition. For example, some use only spinal manipulation, others only ultrasound on every LBP patient.”-Thistle (Don’t be a one trick pony! Integrate and treat every back pain client uniquely based on their history. No cookie cutter programs) that part was me.

“It is well established that most imaging findings, particularly degenerative changes, correlate poorly with clinical presentation (many people still fail to grasp this concept). Despite this, radiographic and advanced imaging is routinely ordered for many LBP patients in primary care settings.”-Shawn Thistle (My take: Imaging is just a tool for helping you dig deeper into what is going on with the person.)

“Education is what remains after one has forgotten everything he learned in school.”-Einstein (Got that right)

“We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”-Einstein

4-hours of Gray Cook talking or 4 years in school? I picked up more real world applicable knowledge in the 4 hours and saved 50K. Lol how do I know? I did the school route already. Here is a link to purchase his new DVD

GRAY COOK DVD

“A habit is making that; a habit is breaking that.”-Gray Cook (Grays new DVD will be available for purchase on my website this weekend. Get one! Santa says you should have a functional Christmas)

Want referrals? Treat clients like family. The family you like, not the ones that drive you crazy. Just wanted to put that small caveat in there. Lol

Just a thought. But when you see me to help your knee pain and everyone else on the planet has looked at the knee and you are not feeling any better. Guess where I am NOT gonna look? I will give ya one guess. Just sayin’

“The stability of the whole is guaranteed by the instability of its parts.”-Karin Meienburg (Great quote. Another way to verbalize the concept of self limiting exercise)

Stability is not about strength. It is about balance, coordination, timing and symmetry. Or as I like to call it ‘sequencing.’ That’s why if I get a big powerful athlete down on the ground I suspect has a fundamental stability dysfunction and ask him to roll he can’t move. He can’t power thru and cheat with strength. It is all about stability and sequencing. The ground is the great equalizer.

Ok so I feel like giving you a glimpse inside my thought process. I have one mission. Help people and share with you parts of how I do it. You come to me with patella tendinitis that nobody has helped. Ok first thing, patella tendinitis ui a symptom not a diagnosis. Why? How did you get it? Look at muscle sequencing and patterning from foot to head. So many possibilities. What’s one? A prior shoulder injury that weakens your glenohumeral stabilizers, so now your global movers take over. Fascia gets stretched, you lose stability, you get locked down in the t-spine. Lats tie into glute fascia. Head goes forward due to lack if t-spine motion. Deep neck flexors inhibited, Psoas goes facilitated or inhibited. Can be either! Now lower quadrant reacts to hop flexion and tissue extensibility in the hip. You alter mechanics of hip flexion and patella now tracks wrong or timing is off. Your diaphragm is restricted effecting IAP and fascia attachment to QL and Psoas. So can your shoulder feed the dysfunctional pattern to cause knee pain. You bet your ass it can! And this is just one possibility. Lesson: Look at everything.

What's under the hood?

Nice car. However, what’s under the hood? Do you have a red warning light on your dashboard too? Pretty much don’t matter what the outside looks like except for vanity. Same for the human body. Outside may be nice, hot, shiny and pristine. However, what ya got underneath? Is your foot on the brake and gas at the same time? If you have a red warning light on your dash (pain), looks mean nothing. You still have to pull over to the side of the road and see what’s wrong. Ferrari or Prius? All needs servicing and maintenance for performance. If you can’t pass my basic fundamental function evaluation, there is trouble on the way. Lift your hood once and awhile. So to speak. lol

Doc, can you give me some exercises to help my lower back? Actually no I can’t. Why? Because it is YOUR lower back and I don’t know why it is hurting. Your back deserves unique exercises based on YOU. There are many things that can cause back pain and to assume a generic exercise plan will fix it is like taking someone else’s medication. Just because it worked for them does not mean it will work for you. Oh it might help for a short time if you are lucky, but you may also be making it worse in the long run. Let me see how you move and then I can tell you what you need. And it just might be about taking exercises away to get better and not simply adding more. Hummmmmm

The same movement dysfunction and Fascial connection compensation mechanism that is responsible for shoulder injury can contribute to knee injury. How? Look at the Fascial lines and see how they all interconnect. Weakness or dysfunction in central movers and stabilizers will feed the dysfunction. Psoas, QL, Lats, and diaphragm to name a few. So while it initially seems like they are totally unrelated areas and conditions, if you understand the compensation mechanism and amazing ability for the body to adapt and survive you realize anything is possible. Every person adapts in THEIR own way, so there is no cookie cutter patern. Stepping outside of your paradigm to see it is the challenge. Take a course in MAT, DNS, SFMA or NKT to really just touch the tip of understanding how and what the body does to survive.

Synergist, antagonist, facilitation, inhibition, neural adaptation, compensation, dysfunction. survival. These are all the terms that come into play when you want to know how weak glutes can contribute to lower extremity problems. Then ya got joints thrown into the mix and reactive core stabilizers to consider. Just one possible muscle that can be a factor. Sequencing is key. Regional Interdependence 101. The moment you just look at the lower extremity as the cause, you just got Punked! Lol

I champion an out of the box thinking clinical paradigm when I evaluate clients. Following the norm is usually the reason new clients come to me in pain. I need to open up my paradigm beyond conventional wisdom. Even when it looks and sounds crazy. I have found crazy usually works. Lol

Also one last thought. Join me in wishing my dear friend Ben Bruno a speedy recovery from his knee scope. Those are never fun! Heal quick brother. Check out his blog for awesome link related content and the famous ‘Reads of the Week.’