Holistic Corrective Exercise For Fitness Professionals

Having spent 3 years working with many physical therapists and over 10 years working along side many personal trainers it never ceased to amaze me that most ignore functional rehabilitation exercises for the shoulder in favor of less effective non-functional movements.

If you think about it there aren’t many daily movements we do like this (at least none I can think of) ==>

<== Or like the one on the left here…

Without training within functional movements that are a part of our everyday lives the carryover will be limited at best.

What’s worse is that the shoulder becomes susceptible to recurring injuries.

In a previous post I mentioned the 5 hidden dangers of  performing traditional rotator cuff rehabilitation exercises with resistance bands but today I’m going to talk about an effective shoulder rehabilitation exercise that most doctors, physical therapists and fitness professionals have permanently banned from their repertoire.

They’ll say you should NEVER do this exercise…

They’ll tell you it’ll injure your shoulders…

They’ll tell you it’s ‘taboo’…

HOGWASH!

As you’re about to see this exercise cannot be ‘bad’ for your shoulders as long as you follow the 3 simple tips I explain in the video. Read the rest of this entry »

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When it comes to assessing fitness clients there’s so many different methods it can make your head spin like Linda Blair on the movie ‘The Exorcist’

Imagine a client coming to see you with that going on!

Talk about bad alignment…

…Fortunately, strength coach and personal trainer Mike Robertson is here to help put it all together and get your head back on right in this interview where he shares the 3 critical keys to assessing your fitness clients as well as:

• The types of fitness assessments he uses with his clients

• What constitutes a comprehensive fitness assessment

• How to assess clients without overstepping your scope of practice

Read the rest of this entry »

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Well, quite a few of you took up my offer and grabbed the Advanced Kinetic Chain Assessment & Program Design Course.

To those of you who did I personally want to say thanks and I would love to hear your feedback on how the information from the course has helped you out.

So, I was hoping you could do me a quick favor and let me know.

And, for those of you who decided not to get the course I was hoping you could let me know why not.

Who knows, maybe I’ll give a few random prizes to some of you who are willing to take a minute to do this.

It’s super easy. Just leave me a comment below.

That’s it.

See?

Super easy!

I really would appreciate it.

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What is it about fitness assessments that’s got the fitness industry divided?

Some say fitness professionals should be taught to use specific assessments to help their clients overcome nagging injuries and achieve their goals.

Others say doing so is overstepping our boundaries and that we should leave these assessments to physical therapists and doctors.

Well, I won’t get too deep into why doctors and physical therapists should NOT be performing fitness testing but I will say that I get pretty ticked off whenever I hear or read this kind of nonsense.

Cardiovascular, trunk curl-ups, push-ups, sit and reach and body composition have become pretty standard in our industry for clients who fit the ‘apparently healthy’ label.

But, it’s rare to find clients that fit into this category.

The reality is that most clients may come to us with weight loss goals but are hampered by physical ailments resulting from muscle imbalances that keep them from doing a number of exercises and activities.

Sure, we can simply modify things but as you know modifications are less effective, don’t always work and disempowers trainers.

It’s important for us as fitness professionals to be more than symptom managers and tackle the causes of muscular imbalances.

Eliminate the causes and the symptoms will go away.

The first step is understanding how to identify those causes which is where most Personal Trainer certification programs fall short.

They either teach general fitness tests that aren’t specific for identifying muscle imbalances, are thrown together in the wrong sequences or based on simplistic assumptions of ‘tight’ and ‘weak’ muscles.

The truth is that a muscle may appear to be tight or weak without that actually being the case.

Stretching a muscle or muscle group that is assumed as ‘tight’ isn’t going to be harmful but it certainly isn’t going to be effective either.

And, if it ain’t effective it ain’t gonna produce results!

If we are using our expertise in human anatomy, physiology, kinesiology and biomechanics to create exercise programs to help our clients improve their lives then what’s the problem?

For example, here’s a simple kinetic chain assessment that’s commonly taught however I added in a few extra pieces of critical information you can use that will provide instant feedback about the entire kinetic chain. Read the rest of this entry »

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Last night I was thinking about the blessings I have in my personal and professional life.

In 2000 when I first began my career as a fitness professional I never imagined I would travel internationally as a Personal Training Skills Development Coach and Holistic Health Educator getting paid 3-figures per hour. Read the rest of this entry »

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How many times have you listened to your clients with knee injuries or lower back pain  tell you all about why they can’t do a simple functional movement like squatting because of their ‘bum knees’ or ‘bad back’?

I’ve seen this type of scenario also play out in physical therapy visits.

And, the typical response of most Personal Trainers and Physical Therapists is to modify the movement to avoid aggravating the injured area or eliminating the movement altogether.

The problem with this approach is that it just doesn’t benefit the client/patient in the long-run because Read the rest of this entry »

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There’s nothing more frustrating for a runner than running with knee pain that’s unexplained and you can’t pin-point anything that might be causing it.

It’s no fun when you’re laid out on the couch with ice packs on your knees popping ibuprofen like it’s candy.

Unfortunately, most runners go through one failed attempt after another to eliminate the pain such as visits to the doctor, rest, ice, pain relievers or (in some cases) surgery.

So, why do these methods fail miserably to eliminate knee pain when running?

Because they’re focused on Read the rest of this entry »

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If you’re a fitness or sports enthusiast then you’ve probably dealt (or still deal with) at least one of these common sport injury symptoms:

–>shoulder pain –>lower back pain –>knee pain

Most of the time you’re dealing with more than 1 of these areas. And, the longer they go on the worse it gets to the point where you end up with a growing list of these nagging injuries that resembles a friggin’ shopping list.

They usually arise out of the blue for no apparent reason and you can’t pin-point anything specific that could’ve caused the problem.

And, it’s frustrating as HELL to deal with.

Especially when you reduce or avoid those activities that make the problem worse. Then after a period of rest you feel better and start to resume your normal sports activities again only to have that same old injury rear its ugly head once again.

And you know how frustrating it is when your doctor doesn’t have any answers other than advising you not to do anything that aggravates the pain which is fine…

…if you’re alright giving up all your favorite activities and laying on the couch watching soap operas for the rest of your life

Why is it that the exact methods so many sports injury sufferers are being prescribed are failing miserably to provide a real long-term solution?

Because the symptoms of most sports related injuries are often improperly interpreted.

I’ll give you a typical example that happens in most physical rehabilitation clinics. Read the rest of this entry »

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Years ago I suffered from enough injuries that would’ve resembled a grocery list if I wrote them all down.

First, there was the shoulder subluxation that happened as a teenager while I was doing dumbbell bench presses on my home weight bench.

There I was holding the dumbbells at the top of the movement, panting from fatigue and my arms were shaking quite a bit.

Then, it happened…I felt a pop in my left shoulder and I went so weak that the head of the dumbbell came crashing down toward my head as if I had a bulls-eye the size of the Target logo on my face.

Luckily, it somehow missed. But, every now and then when I’d move a certain way my shoulder would pop out and back into the socket.

It made me fearful of working out or lifting anything remotely challenging.

Then came the right elbow and shoulder pain I experienced during my college years while practicing with the baseball team. I tried to push through it, but eventually it got bad enough that I had to quit the team and end my dream of becoming a pro baseball player.

Then in 2000 another injury to my right shoulder happened while doing a warm-up set of behind the neck shoulder presses. I had such poor shoulder mobility back then but didn’t realize it.

Halfway into my warm-up I felt a sharp, intense pain shoot through my arm while holding the barbell overhead. Again I lost all strength and the bar came crashing down with 95 pounds which this time did not miss my head.

THUD!

And, my shoulder problems were just the beginning. It didn’t take long before I started experiencing lower back pain on my left sacroiliac joint.

At the time it seemed as if the two were completely random. And, it took some time before I discovered how they were directly related.

If you know someone (perhaps yourself) with a shoulder injury it’s highly likely they also have low back pain.

Is it just a coincidence or is there a link between the two?

If you think the latter is true then you’re right…

…Not only that, but back problems can also cause shoulder problems too.

Watch the video below where I explain how the 2 are directly related and a simple solution to fix shoulder and low back pain:

So, what do you think? Let me know about it.

If you’re looking for a more in-depth program to rehab your rotator cuff injury then go check out the Effective Rotator Cuff Exercises program by exercise kinesiologist Rick Kaselj. Rick has done his research on this and put together a solid program.

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The rules of Personal Training have changed so much over the years.

Most of our clients don’t fit the ‘apparently healthy’ model and yet most Personal Training courses fail to acknowledge this and do not provide trainers with the skills NEEDED to assess and identify the most effective way to get these clients past their physical limitations that are keeping them from realizing their fitness goals.

Instead, Personal Trainers are becoming ‘symptom managers’ by avoiding exercises and activities which is limiting what can be done with many clients.

And, it’s no wonder why Personal Trainers are looked upon in a negative light by most of the general public.

If we as fitness professionals expect to gain the respect and recognition we deserve it’s just not enough to take clients through workouts.

The most successful Personal Trainers today understand that Personal Training is an art and a skill requiring more than body composition, cardiovascular and general ‘gym exercise’ assessments.

They possess the skills needed to identify muscle imbalances and how to use that information to design fitness programs that address the primary areas of emphasis to help their clients restore proper mobility, joint stability and strength to overcome the physical obstacles and achieve the impossible.

And, that is what today’s podcast is about. What it means and what needs to be done to redefine the art of Personal Training.

You can listen to it on my blog or download it and burn it to a CD to listen in your car or in between training clients.

You can listen now or download it HERE:

The rules of <strong>Personal Training</strong> have changed so much over the years.

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Most of our clients don’t fit the ‘apparently healthy’ model and yet most Personal Training courses fail to acknowledge this and do not provide trainers with the skills <strong>NEEDED</strong> to assess and identify the most effective way to get these clients past their physical limitations that are keeping them from realizing their fitness goals.

Instead,  Personal Trainers are becoming <em>’symptom managers’</em> by avoiding exercises  and activities which is limiting what can be done with many clients.

And, it’s no wonder why Personal Trainers are looked upon in a negative light by most of the general public.

If  we as fitness professionals expect to gain the <strong>respect and recognition  we deserve</strong> it’s just not enough to take clients through workouts.

The  most successful Personal Trainers today understand that <strong>Personal  Training is an art and a skill</strong> requiring more than body composition,  cardiovascular and general ‘gym exercise’ assessments.

They  possess the <a href=”http://1.kyates00.pay.clickbank.net”>skills needed to identify muscle imbalances</a> and how to use  that information to design fitness programs that address the primary  areas of emphasis to help their clients restore proper mobility, joint  stability and strength to overcome the physical obstacles and achieve  the impossible.

And, that is what today’s podcast is about. What it means and what needs to be done to <strong>redefine the art of Personal Training</strong>.

You can listen to it on my blog or download it and burn it to a CD to listen in your car or in between training clients.

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