One of the most frequent questions I receive from athletes is what my favorite soft tissue mobilization tools are. I’ve got a few below that I’ll share, but first, you need to know this about all soft tissue tools. I don’t believe ANY soft tissue tool (or hands-on technique) create actual mechanical changes in the soft tissue. For example, people...

Training With Shoulder Pain Shoulder pain is the most common complaint I treat in the CrossFitters, Olympic lifters, and powerlifters that I treat in my physical therapy clinic. Often these athletes have completed stop training shoulder based movements due to their pain, but the following exercises are my go-to movements for training with shoulder pain. For more complete assistance in helping...

We all have training biases that ultimately can lead to muscle imbalances. If left unchecked, these imbalances can impact performance and lead to an increased risk of injury. I asked nine of the best rehab and fitness professionals I know to share what they use as “the best exercises to address muscular imbalances”. The Yoak Shown here are Yoak Pushups, but...

Most people don’t think of the upper body when performing a back squat.  It’s generally thought of as a lower body strength training movement.  But if you don’t have certain pre-requisites of squat upper body mobility, it can lead to shoulder, low back, and lower body issues. In order to get yourself under the bar in the proper position during...

The bird dog, traditionally programmed for people who either are doing some low back rehab or trying to work on some spinal stability, can be one tough exercise. Rotary stability, glute activation, anterior core control, scapular stability, and lower trap development. Very few athletes, coaches, and clinicians understand how valuable the bird dog can be beyond simply a rehab exercise....

The muscle-up is a CrossFit skill that often takes athletes a long time to develop and perfect. I’ve previously published two articles (1 and 2) to help you create a framework for developing this movement. The drills give you a great progression to get your first muscle-up. BUT THERE IS ONE PROBLEM… WHAT IF YOU DON’T HAVE PROPER MUSCLE-UP MOBILITY?...

Weightlifting Mobility Needs As much as any other sport, Olympic weightlifting requires incredible mobility if an athlete is to perform the lifts with proper technique and lift maximum weights. Without enough mobility, athletes will lack full depth and positioning, as well as expose themselves to potential injuries. Olympic weightlifting mobility Thoracic Spine A mobile thoracic spine is crucial to the...

If you’re an Olympic weightlifter, a cross fitter, powerlifter, fitness athlete in general, something that you do probably every single workout is a hip hinge pattern. Really being able to perfect that movement pattern is going to go a long way toward your performance and your long-term health. Hip Hinge Video Transcript By the hip hinge pattern, what do I...

STOP STATIC STRETCHING TO IMPROVE HIP MOBILITY The fitness world has come a long way in our understanding of the importance mobility work has on athletic performance. Mobility tools and drills are becoming commonplace in gyms, CrossFit boxes, and on the playing field. Unfortunately, most athletes performing these hip mobility drills have yet to figure out that much of their mobility...