The False Reality of the FMS

The Functional Movement Screen (FMS) is a popular screen used by coaches and sports medicine professionals as a screen for movement competency.  It is composed of 7 movements and scored on a 0-3 scale, where 0 = pain, 1 = couldn't perform the task, 2 = performed task with compensation, 3 = performed task correctly.

The scores from the 7 movements are combined into a final score out of 21.  The score is supposed to predict injury and performance and it is even suggested that scores under 14 predict a greater risk of injury.

The FMS claims to identify compensatory movement patterns that are indicative of increased injury risk and inefficient movement that causes reduced performance.

That's a pretty big claim and one the FMS has NOT lived up to.  

First and foremost, the FMS is supposed to be a SCREEN and unfortunately practitioners far out-reach the boundaries of a screen when applying the FMS.  The FMS places labels on people and their movement and with anything that places labels, we certainly hope there is some strong evidence that supports these labels.

This is tremendously important because when someone scores poorly on a test, they get told their chance of getting injured is high and their performance is decreased. This only implants fear and guarding in the client, rather than confidence and overall is a great way to build fear of movement and sport.  Coaches and those in sports medicine NEED to get beyond telling clients that because they score poorly on a test, they'll get injured - this isn't beneficial to anyone.

Again, the FMS is supposed to be used as a screen, NOT a diagnostic tool… it doesn't and should NOT be used to diagnose things.  Yet, I hear people all over, use the FMS to diagnose supposed dysfunction.

It is a baseline screen, and honestly only scratches the surface of what else needs to be assessed. I have heard of athletes who performed the FMS on them, and then get told rash diagnoses and/or put fear in the athlete basically saying that it's a miracle they can even make it through a day of school with all the dysfunction's they have.

"You shouldn't squat based on your OH Squat assessment; 

your core is sooo weak; you have tight hamstrings - you shouldn't sprint; 

you have an asymmetrical rotary stability score - you will get injured if you don't improve it"

Given all radical leaps in faith the FMS asserts, let's take a closer look at various aspects of the FMS and their claims

The FMS claims to identify compensatory movement patterns that are indicative of increased injury risk and inefficient movement that causes reduced performance.

This is the big one I'll address because it claims an awful lot, and as you'll see, without much scientific support.

In order for the FMS, or any screen for that matter, to be a valid indicator of injury or inefficient movement in sport, it is logical that the compensatory movement patterns that are tested during the screen must be the same or similar to those that are performed in sport - which the FMS does not (Beardsley)

• Dossa et al. (2014) studied junior level hockey players to see if the FMS could predict injuries throughout a season.  The researchers concluded the FMS could NOT be recommended as a screening tool for injury prevention.

• McCall et al. (2015) reviewed the scientific level of evidence of three of the most commonly-reported risk factors, screens, and injury prevention exercises in a previously published survey of 44 premier league soccer teams. The FMS was one of the identified screens. They assigned the FMS a grade D, where D = insufficient evidence to assign a specific recommendation.  

• Parchmann et al. (2011) studied the FMS to evaluate whether it was related to sport performance and found there were NO significant correlations between the higher FMS scores and on-field sports performance.

• Even the founders of the FMS did a literature review on the FMS and stated “the use of a total FMS score for predicting injury risk should be avoided, as the individual components of the test are not correlated with one another and are therefore not measuring the same underlying variable" (Cook et al. (2014)).

• Several researchers have assessed FMS scores on athletes of different ability levels to see if higher performing athletes scored higher on the FMS compared to lower level athletes.  They found there to be no difference between FMS scores and the level of the athlete.  This shows that the FMS does not and cannot predict performance. (Fox et al. 2013; Grygorowicz et al. 2013; & Loudon et al. 2014). 

• Lockie et al. (2015) found very little correlation between FMS scores and multidirectional speed and jumping tests in healthy male subjects. 

• In addition, many investigations have been performed to assess the correlations between sprinting, jumping, throwing and agility performances and FMS scores and most have found no relationship between any measure of athletic performance and FMS score (Okada et al. 2011; Parchman et al. 2011; Lockie et al. 2015b).

• When it comes to predicting injury, Dallinga et al. (2012) reviewed the literature in respect of the tests that could predict a greater risk of injury.  They reported that general joint laxity, the Star Excursion Balance test, age, a lower hamstring-to-quadriceps strength ratio, and a reduced hip abduction range of motion could all predict a higher risk of lower body injuries.                        To test an aspect of this injury prediction model, Paszkewicz et al. (2013) investigated the association between total FMS score and Beighton and Horan joint mobility index (BHJMI) in adolescent athletes. They found no correlation between total FMS score and BHJMI index.  We also know the FMS can't target any of the other aspects shown by Dallinga et al. (2012) as being predictive of injury. 

• A major flaw with the FMS is it's ability or lack of ability to distinguish between athletes. Shouldn't we assess individual variances between athletes in different sports?  A baseball player should definitely be assessed differently than a cross country runner or an offensive lineman in football.  Each one of these athletes will exhibit markedly different mechanical adaptations based on the demands of their sport and position.  Whose to say these adaptations are wrong or bad?  "Faulty" movement patterns do not always lead to pain or injury and in many cases these adaptations are what make athletes better performers in their sport.  Guess what, tissues positively adapt and get stronger based on the stresses placed on them… this is why a pitcher's arm will be very different from others - and this IS NOT a bad thing.  Poor posture does not mean its pathological nor does it mean that person will suffer from more musculoskeletal problems.  So can we please STOP TELLING ATHLETES THIS

The FMS Can Predict Injury

Short answer - NO IT DOESN'T

• Schneiders et al. (2011) looked to find normative values in the FMS with young athletes.  They evaluated the FMS based on the assumption that identifiable biomechanical deficits in fundamental movement patterns have the potential to limit performance and render the athlete susceptible to injury.  In this study, the researchers found that healthy individuals and previously injured individuals had the same scores.  So the FMS could not even detect differences in injured individuals compared to healthy ones.  This is of concern as past injury is a main risk factor of future injury. If FMS cannot detect any sign of recent injuries, it seems unlikely that it can detect future risk, let alone be used as a basis for a specific therapy.

• Frost et al. (2013) questioned the ability of the FMS to assess dysfunction. They looked at 21 firefighters who initially performed a standard screen followed by a repeat screen 5 minutes later, but on the 2nd trial participants were given a verbal description of the grading criteria before performing each test. All firefighters improved their scores within minutes of being told what movement patterns were required - The average score improved from 14.1 ± 1.8 to 16.7 ± 1.9 points; remember in just 5-MINUTES.  Therefore, changes in FMS score may not be due to actual improvements in mechanical efficiency such as mobility, stability or coordination of an athlete but rather simply a knowledge of what the task requires.   This isn't the first time this outcome has been shown, as there are indications that subjects may deliberately alter their movement patterns during the FMS test in order to score higher (Teyhen (2012); Schultz (2013)).  This is supposed to be a reliable screen?

• To piggyback the last bullet point - The FMS sum score appears to be very reliable between raters (inter-rater) and within raters for a video of the same test (intra-rater). However as we just discussed, test-retest is less reliable, indicating that the same subjects may score differently on different occasions, despite there being no biomechanical changes made (Beardsley).

• Okada et al. (2011) studied the relationship between FMS scores and "core" strength on actual sport performance.  To keep beating a dead horse, it was found "core" strength and FMS scores are NOT strong predictors of sports performance… yet PT's continues to tell clients/athletes core strength and quality FMS scores are important for performance and pain.

• As I said earlier, it has been suggested that scores under 14 predict a greater risk of injury.  BUT, O'Connor et al. (2011) demonstrated that scores of 18 or more were more at risk for injury than those who scored less than 18 in 874 marine officers.  Scores above 14 are supposed to have decreased risk of injury, not the opposite, especially with a score so close to being perfect. 

These 7 Tests Predict Global Movement?

At the end of the day, it is a far stretch to think these 7 tests somehow can predict an athletes global movement, especially when the athlete is under load, speed, chaos, and fatigue.

Yet, some believe that these slow, safe, pre-planned, mostly static tests will predict dynamic movement.   It's one thing to do tests in a very controlled, passive type of environment compared to dynamic. I've seen a lot of good things in table assessments or FMS type screens, only to go to HELL under speed or load… Let this be clear, while these screens can have some benefit, they tend to have absolutely NO transfer to dynamic, reactive, and chaotic environments such as sport.

For example, what do we gain from the Overhead Squat (OHS)?

Let's be real here, using the OHS as an assessment of general movement ability, is like using a tennis serve to test coordination (Quote from Dr. Cobb of Z-Health).  The OHS is arguably the most complex version of a squat.  So instead of starting with a baseline test and a more basic squat version, we skip A-Y and go straight to Z. In addition, squatting while reaching overhead is not something that humans are designed to do. It is a skill, and anybody, the first time you ask them to perform something that is completely new to them will struggle.  Chances are, the faults you find in the OHS are due to a lack of performing this specific task as opposed to a lack of good general movement patterns.

Also, why are no other squat assessments used, such as adding a counter-weight (clarify mobility vs stability needs), taking a wide stance, letting toes track outward, using an asymmetrical stance, etc.

Nope, instead the FMS forces everybody to take a shoulder width stance with toes forward and discounts the fact that everybody's hip anatomy is different and to say that you need to be able to OHS with a shoulder-width stance, with toes forward is absurd… how are still on this? Take a look at the pictures below and tell me if these people should be judged on the same squatting scale given their vastly different anatomical structures.

It's like trying to fit a square peg into a round whole when we say you should be able to squat in this stance - to this depth and apply it to the whole population.

In Closing

This isn't to say that the FMS is useless, but let's be real, anybody with a grasp of anatomy and biomechanics can clearly see the gaps in reasoning in using solely the FMS as an assessment tool.

Now, the FMS and those who use it, do a wonderful job of marketing and "scaring" athletes/clients into thinking that because they scored poorly, they need additional training.  I mean, it's a beautiful system in a business sense, although as I've shown, it lacks support from research to do what it claims to do.

So a word of caution to athletes/clients/parents - usually those promoting the FMS have something to sell.  They'll show you where you're "lacking" and probably have some program that will "fix" these problems.

A word to coaches and professionals - come up with your own assessment that is based in science and evaluates the athlete not only statically, but dynamically and in a manner that is the same or similar to those that are performed in sport.  Also, please use tremendous caution when telling athletes/clients they are "broken" or dysfunctional or on their way to injury.  This is bad business and psychologically damaging to the athlete/client and only creates fear of movement.


Check out our Elite Performance Podcast for a little breakdown of what goes into our assessment process (Starting at 4:00-14:00min)




Go Get 'Em!


References:

       Beardsley - https://www.strengthandconditioningresearch.com/functional-movement-screen-fms/#CONT

       Cook, G., Burton, L., Hoogenboom, B. J., & Voight, M. (2014). Functional movement screening: the use of fundamental movements as an assessment of function-part 2. International journal of sports physical therapy, 9(4), 549-563
     
       Dallinga, J. M., Benjaminse, A., & Lemmink, K. A. (2012). Which Screening Tools Can Predict Injury to the Lower Extremities in Team Sports?. Sports medicine, 42(9), 791-815

       Dossa, K., Cashman, G., Howitt, S., West, B., & Murray, N. (2014). Can injury in major junior hockey players be predicted by a pre-season functional movement screen–a prospective cohort study. The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association, 58(4), 421.

       Fox, D., O’Malley, E., & Blake, C. (2014). Normative Data for the Functional Movement Screen™ in Male Gaelic Field Sports. Physical Therapy in Sport.

       Frost, D. M., Beach, T. A., Callaghan, J. P., & McGill, S. M. (2013b). FMS™ scores change with performers’ knowledge of the grading criteria-Are general whole-body movement screens capturing” dysfunction”? The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research.
       

       Grygorowicz, M., Piontek, T., & Dudzinski, W. (2013). Evaluation of Functional Limitations in Female Soccer Players and Their Relationship with Sports Level–A Cross Sectional Study. PloS one, 8(6), e66871

   
       Lederman E. The Myth of Core Stability. Journal of Bodyworks Movement Therapy. 2010 Jan;14(1):84–98.       

       Lockie, R. G., Schultz, A. B., Jordan, C. A., Callaghan, S. J., Jeffriess, M. D., & Luczo, T. M. (2015). Can selected functional movement screen assessments be used to identify movement deficiencies that could affect multidirectional speed and jump performance?. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 29(1), 195-205

       Loudon, J. K., Parkerson-Mitchell, A. J., Hildebrand, L. D., & Teague, C. (2014). Functional movement screen scores in a group of running athletes. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 28(4), 909-913

       McCall, A., Carling, C., Davison, M., Nedelec, M., Le Gall, F., Berthoin, S., & Dupont, G. (2015). Injury risk factors, screening tests and preventative strategies: a systematic review of the evidence that underpins the perceptions and practices of 44 football (soccer) teams from various premier leagues. British journal of sports medicine.

       Okada, T., Huxel, K. C., & Nesser, T. W. (2011). Relationship between core stability, functional movement, and performance. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 25(1), 252-261
    
       O’Connor, F. G., Deuster, P. A., Davis, J., Pappas, C. G., & Knapik, J. J. (2011). Functional movement screening: predicting injuries in officer candidates. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 43(12), 2224-30.

       Parchmann, C. J., & McBride, J. M. (2011). Relationship between functional movement screen and athletic performance. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 25(12), 3378-3384.
  
       Paszkewicz, J. R., & Cailee Welch McCarty, D. (2013). Comparison of Functional and Static Evaluation Tools Among Adolescent Athletes. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research.

       Schneiders, A. G., Davidsson, Å., Hörman, E. & Sullivan, S. J. (2011). Functional movement screenTM normative values in a young, active population. International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy, 6(2),75.

        Shultz, R., Anderson, S. C., Matheson, G. O., Marcello, B., & Besier, T. (2013). Test-Retest and Interrater Reliability of the Functional Movement Screen. Journal of athletic training, 48(3), 331-336

       Teyhen, D. S., Shaffer, S. W., Lorenson, C. L., Halfpap, J. P., Donofry, D. F., Walker, M. J., & Childs, J. D. (2012). The Functional Movement Screen: a reliability study. The Journal of Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy, 42(6), 530-40

       Unsgaard-Tøndel M, Fladmark AM, Salvesen O, Vasseljen O. Motor Control Exercises, Sling Exercises, and General Exercises for Patients With Chronic Low Back Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial With 1-Year Follow-up. Phys Ther. 2010 Jul.

High Speed Hammies

The hamstring complex is a hot topic in sports performance today, as it seems hamstring issues are plaguing the health of sport teams left and right.

A hamstring injury can now assure an athlete is out for at least 3-5 weeks and compound that with knowing a past hamstring injury is the biggest contributor to a future hamstring injury. Given the severity and re-occurrence of these injuries, everybody is after the magic pill to prevent an incident from occurring.  Unfortunately, like the risk of throwing a baseball 95mph, the nature of high velocity sprinting is very demanding on the hamstrings and it's a fine line between lightening speed and a hamstring injury….


Come and see the rest of this article I recently wrote for Joel Smith of Just Fly Sports.  Joel is a master when it comes to speed and jumping and this article has been very well received by his readers.

Go check it out NOW!

http://www.just-fly-sports.com/high-speed-hamstrings/

Triple Extension

There is a fascination in the Strength and Conditioning world with triple extension.  For those not familiar - triple extension is extension of 3 joints - ankle, knee, and hip.

In fact, achieving triple extension has become, many cases, the main priority in exercise selection.

Why has triple extension become just a prized possession when training athletes?

Well it has been proposed as a key in athlete performance, mainly imho, because when you look at still pictures of jumping or accelerating or sprinting coaches perceive the key performance indicator behind these movements is triple extension.

Go into Google and type in Triple Extension and here are the top images...

As you can see, Olympic lifting is very closely associated with triple extension and hence why it is thought to be a valuable training tool.

BUT, BUT what if I told you triple extension is far overrated?  What if triple extension occurs FAR FAR LESS than what you've been told?  What if I told you triple extension has only a small amount to do with athletic success?

For many it would be blasphmaomy, but let's take a deeper look at triple extension.

First, let's take a look at these picture and tell me if triple extension is occurring…

Top-End Speed = NO TRIPLE EXTENSION

Acceleration = NO TRIPLE EXTENSION

When it comes to sprinting, triple extension does NOT occur.  During top-end sprinting neither full hip, knee, or ankle extension occurs.

In fact, the more extension one gets, the slower they will run.  In order to maximize speed, less active ankle, knee, and hip extension occur, and the sooner flexion in these joints occur during and immediately after Ground Contact, the better.

Understand this, during top-end speed, the athlete is only on the ground for .07-.13seconds, this is no where near enough time for someone to fully extend each joint, and the more they try to, the slower they would run.  The best sprinters have less hip and knee extension at toe-off

If an athlete tried to triple extend, they would create excessive backside mechanics which leads to long, inefficient GCT, and further lead to poor flight positioning of the swing leg which would finally result of the swing leg contacting the ground out in front of the body, rather than closer to the COM.  It's a deadly cycle.

During acceleration, athletes MAY triple extend during their first 1-2 steps, but after that - triple extension DOES NOT occur.  Same as top-end speed, their simply isn't enough time on the ground, and extension power should be put forth during ground preparation and during the 1st half of GCT - the goal during ground contact is to get off the ground as quickly as possible.

Let's take a look at some great charts by James Wild (@wildy_jj)

The below chart shows that full hip extension doesn't occur during the 1st 3-steps, and this is amplified in team sport athletes - who are less technically proficient as sprinters.

This chart shows knee extension during the 1st 3-steps, again full knee extension is no where to be found.

This chart shows ankle extension, again the less ankle extension, the better the performance.  

When it comes to the vertical jump, Chang et al. (2015) demonstrated that vertical jump performance was not dictated by triple extension.  Instead, successful performance in the vertical jump could be described by knee and ankle extension, not hip extension.

In fact, I think triple flexion is on the same level of triple extension.  Flexion angles of the hip, knee, and ankle are vitally important for sprinting speed.  Ankle dorsiflexion is a must during sprinting, COD, and braking actions.  Hip flexion is a must to allow the body to produce maximal forces during sprinting, acceleration, and jumping.  Triple flexion allows the body to create a ton of stored elastic energy to be reproduced during extension phases.  Triple flexion is the loading, coiling, and absorbing - extension is uncoiling and expression.

This chart shows the LESS ankle dorsiflexion range equals faster speeds… in normal english, this means the less the ankle deforms at GCT the better - so coming into GCT with MORE FLEXION can help allow less deformation, better utilization of stored elastic energy, and shorter GCTs.

At the end of the day, triple extension plays a role in athletic performance, but let's be clear - it's a lot less important than most claim.

Being able to produce extension forces IS very important, but they are not necessarily end range of motion extension forces. 

So the moral of the story is this - if you're choosing your exercises/programming based on achieving triple extension, take another look because that is a poor reason to include or exclude certain exercises.

Got Get 'Em!

References

Chang, E., Norcross, M. F., Johnson, S. T., Kitagawa, T., & Hoffman, M. (2015). Relationships between explosive and maximal triple extensor muscle performance and vertical jump height. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 29(2), 545-551.

Wanna Throw Cheddar? Then Get Stronger!

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Overhead actions dominate many sports; everything from pitchers, quarterbacks, volleyball players, tennis, swimming, to handball players, they all have huge requirements for OH actions.  With all of these actions, the major goal is to increase the velocity of the implement used - we want to increase throwing velocity, throwing distance, serving power, stroke power, and spiking power - Overall we want to increase the high stinky cheddar!

Well how do you improve OH power and velocity?  

Previous research has reported that high-velocity throwing begins at the lower body (1).  OH power is driven through leg/hip movements and this power progresses up through the torso/core, to the shoulder and finally through the arm where it gets put to work on the given implement.  A stronger and more stable lumbopelvic-hip complex contributes to higher rotational velocity (3).

Roach and Liebermann indicated that 90% of the work for throwing power is generated at the hips (1).

Yes, 90%!

Look at anybody who thrives in an OH sport and they'll have a solid lower half.

It makes you wonder why we see all these special devices, bands, and weighted balls designed to improve throwing velocity, when the reality is that the best way to improve throwing velocity is to improve your lower half.  Trying to increase throwing velocity by focusing on strengthening the shoulder or arm is akin to putting new tires on a car - it will look good and give some performance benefits but if the engine isn't there, it really doesn't matter.

We love to use med balls and some of the devices mentioned above to develop and cement the rotational sequencing, but it's important to understand they are just a small tool and are not as effective for increasing throwing power as strength training.

In fact a study from way back in 1994 showed this; medicine ball training alone had a neutral effect on throwing velocity, while a strength training group produced a significant increase in pitching velocity (4).  This is not to say strengthening the shoulder or the use of certain devices isn't warranted, they have a time and place, but they shouldn't be the vocal point in training programs and unfortunately that's exactly what we often see in many OH training programs.

As many can attest, we feel the best approach is a combination of different tools, but first and foremost is a good base of strength.  With this base is place, the other tools can be more effective and transfer to sport to greater degree. 

What's even more interesting about developing the lower body is that Lehman et al found that power in the frontal plane (lateral movements) correlated most to throwing velocity; more so than vertical jump, sprinting speed, and vertical med ball power (2).  

What's this all mean?

It means that throwing velocity is specific and training demands needs to follow suit.  Traditional squat, deadlift, clean, snatch, and bench alone don't cut it.  Training elements need to be in place to focus on frontal plane movements and developing power in this manner.

When I first read this study a year ago, I decided to study many of my athletes on these same tests.  Specifically, I evaluated unilateral lateral jump and throwing velocity.  After compiling 25 samples, I found the same result - those athletes with the longest lateral jump, threw the hardest.  The graph below shows the obvious trend; you not only need great power and strength in the lower body and hips, but it also has to be specific to lateral movements.  

X-Axis = Lateral Bound; Y-Axis = Throwing Velocity

How to Throw Cheddar?

First and foremost, get strong and powerful, especially in the frontal and transverse plane.  This means applying many of the tools used below.  If you haven't seen some of these or performed drills in this manner, then you're short-changing your ability to throw that high stinky cheese.  Take a look.

Finally in terms of OH training, we really hammer away at hip and pelvis stability and control.  Burkhart et al demonstrated that poor gluteus medius strength and control can effect "up the stream" and place increased stress on the shoulder.  These researchers reported that approximately 44% of athletes presented with SLAP (superior labral anterior-posterior) tears also exhibited gluteus medius weakness (5).  Another interesting study showed that pitchers showed lower glute and hip strength/control compared to position players (6).  This may contribute to explain why pitchers tend to have greater occurrence of arm injury when volume is equated.

Weak glutes and hips will not only effect leg drive and force put through the body, but it also effects position and mechanics through different OH movements.  When we look at pitchers, during balance point, if the hip on the grounded leg sinks or sags it will effect the whole delivery.  We need a strong and stable base in this hip and this means working on glute medius strength through band walks, clams, or side lying leg raises.  We also like to work this stability in the specific manner it is seen in many OH athletes, demonstrated by the drill below.  The band forces the abductors to be highly active to stabilize this position. 

Bring in the Closer

With all the OH athletes we work with, increasing OH power is key and when athletes go through our program that emphasized frontal plane movements, they can tell the difference.  A big squat and deadlift is great, but if that doesn't specifically transfer to lateral and rotational movement, then it's all for not.  We get great feedback from our athletes who feel the transfer of strength, power, and speed during OH movements because of our approach.

So if you want to throw cheddar, get strong laterally and see the results!

Go Get 'Em!


References

1. Roach and Liebermann.  Upper body contributions to power generation during rapid, overhand throwing in humans.  Journal of Experimental Biology, 2014

2. Lehman, G et al.  Correlation of Throwing Velocity to the Results of Lower-Body Field Tests in Male College Baseball Players.  Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research: April 2013 - Volume 27 - Issue 4 - p 902-908

3. Saeterbakken, A et al.  Effect of Core Stability Training on Throwing Velocity in Female Handball Players.  Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research: March 2011 - Volume 25 - Issue 3 - pp 712-718

4.  Newton, R; McEvoy, K.  Baseball Throwing Velocity: A Comparison of Medicine Ball Training and Weight Training. Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research: August 1994

5. Burkhart SS, Morgan CD, Kibler WB. Shoulder injuries in overhead athletes. The “dead arm” revisited. Clin Sports Med 2000;19(1):125-158.

6. Laudner, Kevin G., et al. "Functional hip characteristics of baseball pitchers and position players." The American journal of sports medicine 38.2 (2010): 383-387.

Hip Dissociation

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When we walk, jog, jump, kick, swim, bike, or sprint, our hips have to perform two very different movements. One side of the hip is going through flexion while the other side is going through extension. This is what I call hip dissociation—the separation of the two legs and their movements at the hip joint.

When you sprint, each leg cycle consists of one leg dynamically performing hip flexion (knee drive) while the opposite leg simultaneously performs dynamic hip extension (leg extending toward the ground). The two legs are performing separate and simultaneous actions at the hip joint. When we train, we typically perform movements where both sides of the hips are performing the same movements. In typical squats, deadlifts, Romanian deadlifts, kettlebell swings, glute ham raises, and hip thrusts, the legs and hips are working together on the same movement in the same plane.

Yuri Verkhoshansky (quit possibly the smartest coach ever!) was the first coach to realize these two opposite movements and he tried to implement a way to train them. He came up with some pretty innovative exercises to train both of these simultaneous movements. However, for some reason, they never really stuck, and you’d be hard pressed to find any program that trains this quality.

You might be thinking that I’m advocating switching bilateral exercises for single-leg movements, but in reality, almost all single leg work doesn’t attack this hip dissociation fully. Take a single-leg squat. One leg is performing the squat, so it’s going through hip flexion and subsequent hip extension. But the other leg is just statically staying put, not going through any range of movement. It’s performing a low intensity, isometric contraction at an almost neutral position.

While split squats, lunges, and RFESS do stress the opposite actions of extension and flexion in each leg, they don’t stress full range of motion or dynamic movement in the back leg. Think about it—the hips are in two different positions, but the back leg doesn’t go through a full range of motion, dynamic movement, or resistance, which is seen in actual movements. Most of these movements consist of one leg performing the movement while the other doesn’t move and contracts isometrically or performs only a small range of motion without any resistance.

The purpose of hip dissociation exercises is to stress, load, and mimic these movement patterns. Instead of training these qualities separately, you kill two birds with one stone. Not only that, but as Pavel Tsatsouline has been known to say, you’re “greasing the groove.” You’re teaching this separation and developing this movement pattern while in the weight room.

On top of the added mechanics and loading of a specific movement pattern, you also get a great contralateral core stabilization exercise. These movements won’t only stress your hips, but they present contralateral forces on the body in which the torso will be forced to stabilize. Your torso will be forced to act as an anti-rotator to keep the body positioned.
So overall, these exercises:

• Provide simultaneous strengthening of hip extension and flexion
• Develop hip and leg coordination and dissociation
• Develop sprint/jumping mechanics
• Allow you to engrave this very important movement pattern
• Stress contralateral core stabilization
• Allow loading from all different planes, vectors, and positions

Again, I’m not advocating that you drop bilateral movements in favor of these exercises. I firmly believe that the big, bilateral exercises should be at the base of a training program. What I’m saying is that maybe you should throw these in for accessory/auxiliary work, during a warm up, or in between sets.

I’m not claiming that these movements will change the way you train, but they could be of great use if you train athletes who need great movement skills. Experiment with them and see if you find some carryover into your movements. Hell, if Dr. Verkhoshansky thought to train these qualities, that right there is enough for me to think that they must be important. So let’s get to the good stuff and see what I’m talking about.

Glute bridge with isometric hip flexor:

I like to start with this progression because it helps to learn how to create simultaneous tension of hip flexion and hip extension in a more controlled, static position rather than jumping right into dynamic movements.

Band-resisted leg “scissors”:

We pick up the speed of the movement a little bit. But again, it’s still in a controlled state to engrain and stabilize the movement pattern.

Isometric glute bridge with hip flexion:

Hip extension stays under tension, and we pick up the velocity of hip flexion. This is really going to stress the posterior muscle sling to stay stable.

Single-leg glute bridge with hip flexion:

Now we fully piece together dynamic flexion and extension. An easy way to load hip extension is to use chains, sand bags, or dumbbells/kettlebells.

Single-leg hip thrust with hip flexion:

Now we progress to a greater range of motion, which will require more coordination and allow for more velocity. You can always add chains, sand bags, or dumbbells/kettlebells to the hips to further load hip extension.

Step-up with hip flexion:

Now, we move up to our feet to load more vertically rather than horizontally like in the previous movements. I find that a band is the best way to load the back leg (hip flexion), but ankle weights are another option. Adding a vest or increasing the speed or box height of the step-up will enhance the hip extension portion.

Reverse lunge with hip flexion:

Finally, another option is to use a reverse lunge into hip flexion. This hybrid loads both the horizontal and vertical vectors. Make sure the band has tension on the reverse lunge aspect. Otherwise, the band has a tendency to slip off the foot (or you could always wrap it around your ankle a couple of times to keep it tight). Again, using a vest is an easy way to load the reverse lunge.

Conclusion

There you have it—hip dissociation. I really feel that these exercises have a lot of bang for your buck and do have a place in a program (at least in mine). I really like using these during my warm up for activation or between sets or as auxiliary exercises.

As always, Go Get ‘Em!

Training for Golf

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We have put a lot time researching and piecing together the information we are presenting and feel this information is extremely beneficial for golfers of all levels. Last week we talked about how we approach our training for baseball/softball players, but what's nice is there is a lot of carryover and similarities between the two sports.

They both live in the transverse plane and need adequate rotational training principles. In that same regard they both require very similar mobility and stability demands, so the training aspects are very similar.

One major difference between the two is usually the population we work with. With my baseball athletes it's typically youth through college athletes; while the golfers we work with are typically between ages 35-60. While many of the principles are the same, how we approach this population and how aggressive we train will differ.

So let's take a quick look at 3 strategies for approaching training for golf.

1. Earn the Right to Rotate – This is something that we really try to emphasize to everybody, and it's not everybody has earned the right to go golfing. This may sound tough to choke down for many, but it's the simple truth. The golf swing is a very fast, intense, and explosive movement that requires tremendous amounts of mobility, stability, and strength. If a person cannot exhibit set standards of these qualities, they should NOT be golfing. Instead they should spend time (usually 3-4 weeks) making sure they bring up these levels of achievement before they begin golfing again. If a person golfs but isn't able to exhibit these baseline standards; it's not whether they'll get hurt, it's when will they get hurt. It's a progression, and people need to earn the physical right to golf because if they don't they're putting their body at risk.

2. Physical Restrictions WILL Effect Your Golf Game – This may seem obvious, but when we look at golfers this tends NOT to be applied. Golfers are usually quick to see a Golf Pro, Swing Coach, or watch a Pro's technique, but all of this might be a wasted effort if they have physical limitations. No matter how much technique work you do, or how much you work on your swing mechanics, if you lack thing such as hip internal/external rotation, thoracic extension and rotation, core stability, shoulder rotation, or overall strength and control, it won't matter – you physically don't meet the standards of what you're trying to accomplish. It's easy to understand why most Pro's now have Strength and Performance coaches who work personally with them. They can help attack these restrictions, imbalances, asymmetries and allow the body to meet the demands of the golf swing. Strength training is now the norm for serious golfers, and it's effect on one's golf game is immense.

3. Sequence is of Utmost Importance – All rotational movements require this specific pattern – hips, torso, shoulders, arms, club/implement. It doesn't matter if we're talking about golf, baseball, discus, or tennis – this sequence is what separates the best from the rest. Now the part that most golfers might not like to hear is that swinging a golf club is NOT the best way to learn and cement this pattern. The swing is just too fast and complex for it to be the best way to learn proper sequencing. This is where a strength/performance coach comes in. In a training setting we can breakdown the rotational movement into simpler parts, we can slow it down, we can manipulate body position, we can add resistance, and then piece is back together with the club in the hand. All of these tools allow us to better develop and learn how to pattern the rotational sequence far more effectively than just trying with a golf club alone.

Overall what we work to accomplish, as with any athlete, is attack specific mobility that golf demands; then add stability on those patterns/movements; and finally add strength, power, and speed. We do this with appropriate progressions, fundamental training methods, and programming for the unique needs of each golfer based on their assessment and evaluation. This allows us to get the best possible results and give the biggest benefit for our golfers.

For more info check out our Prezi slides we use when presenting.


Go Get 'Em!

Teaching the Hip Hinge

This was previously posted on EliteFts, you can check it out here

Everyone who has been serious about moving around heavy weights, knows what the hip hinge is.  Hinging at the hip puts our posterior chain muscles in a position of advantage so we can work the shit out of them.  This movement is key in developing strong and powerful hamstrings and glutes which will carry over to improved athletic movement.

The hip hinge is not a squatting movement and being able to separate these two patterns is very important.  Hip hinging is emphasized in deadlifts, RDL's, Olympic lifts, swings, and even in some upper body rowing and scapular stabilization movements.

Anybody who has ever tried to teach, or for that case tried to learn the hip hinge, knows just how hard it can be for people to pick up.  Most people do not know how to separate the squatting movement from this hinging movement, and if you're like me, this results in urges to rip your hair out and scream until your lungs are sore.

First and foremost, we need to accept that the hinge is a basic movement that all athletes need to be able to master.  As athletes develop they learn to run, land, jump, skip, squat, push-up, tumble, and change directions, among others.  We need to make it a priority to learn the hip hinge, as this will set up athletes for success and safety in the long run. 

Just like the name states, the hip hinge, put simply, is your hip acting as a hinge for your lower and upper bodies. 

Sounds pretty easy, right?

Having worked with athletes ranging from 9 years old to college seniors, I can tell it's anything but. 

It's incredible to see how difficult it can be, for all levels of athletes, to perform this movement.  For all of us with a ton of experience using hinging exercises, we often take for granted how "easy" it is to hinge. 

So what do we do when someone can't hinge?  We cue the hell out of them!

"Push your hips back, keep your back flat/neutral, don't let your knee track forward - press them back, pull your chest forward, created horizontal separation from your hips and shoulders, etc"

We cue these athletes until we're blue in the face, and the athlete just does not get it.

It is very hard for unexperienced athletes to exhibit the correct body position and motor pattern of the hinge.  They don't have the connection of how their body moves, operates, and feels in this kind of movement setting. 

So they tend to either flex (round) their spine, flex their neck, use a squatting patten, and not get their posterior chain involved. 

Why do they do this? 

Because it is easier for them to do so.  Heck we as well trained professionals round our backs when picking up things off the ground because it is easier than keeping a flat/neutral spine.  They also lack the ability to perform a proper hip hinge because they lack, strength, mobility, stability, and like we touched on, don't have proper education of their body to perform these movements.

While it is dificult to teach, it is also essential that we take the time and effort to ingrain this movement in young athletes as it is so important for later in their lives.  Below I give my favorite progression to teach the hip hinge, and have been using these with good success. 

It takes proper progression, adequate reps, and being patience for it to become permanent.  We would all like to fly through these progressions and start adding some weight so we can really load the p-chain, but we need to slow down and perfect this movement first.

Dowel RDL

The dowel RDL involves the athlete holding a dowel behind their back.  We place the hands behind the small of the neck and the small of the back. 

The dowel must make contact with the athletes butt, upper back, and head.  This needs to be emphasized!  The athlete is instructed to maintain all three points of contact throughout the entire movement.  Because the dowel must remain in contact with those three points, the hip hinge movement will come naturally. 

This is great because it gives the athlete self-feedback and they develop the knowledge of how to self-correct their movement.  For example if the dowel loses contact with their butt, then the are flexing their spine.  They then teach themselves how to fix that, and really learn on their own how to perform the movement correctly. 

We will stay with this progression for as long as we feel they need work.  I will throw this exercise into our warm-up, rest periods, and in our cool-downs as a way to get lots of reps to instill this pattern. 

Here are the mistakes you are looking for when using the dowel RDL.  Dowel coming off the butt means spinal flexion, dowel coming off the back means squatting to much, dowel coming off the head means cervical flexion.



 Dowel Extension w/ Wall Touch

The next progression we make is called Dowel Extension w/ Wall Touche.  We now have the athlete hold the dowel behind their backs, but parallel to the ground. 

We externally rotate their arms so their palms are facing down.  This automatically get them in scapular retraction and makes it difficult for them to round their thoracic spine.  From there we set them up 8-10 inches from a wall and tell them to keep the dowel pressed up against the wall.

We que them to touch the wall with their butt and pack their neck.  This forces them to press their butt back and because they are in external rotation, it keeps their spine neutral.

 Good Morning w/ Wall Touch

The next progression involves a good morning with a wall touch.  The good morning, again externally rotates the shoulders and promotes a big chest and flat back. 

But this progression makes it easier for the athlete to flex their spine.  So we use it as a check mark.  If they have learned to retract their scaps, pack their neck, and maintain a neutral spine, they will show it here.  If not, we know we need to keep working on the earlier progressions.

 Snatch Grip RDL

We then move to the snatch grip RDL.  The load is now put anteriorly, and now their arms are not externally rotated or pulled behind their body to assist in correct positioning. 

To help this we take a snatch grip to naturally pull their pack their scaps and assist in better positioning.  This is the true test to see if they have mastered the hip hinge.  Often we will see relapses in technique here, and now we have to take a step back and keep working on Good Mornings or earlier progressions.

KB Swings w/ Object Between the Legs

Finally if the RDL is mastered, we start loading it.  We now have established proper technique, motor control, and strength in the hinge movement.

So what's next?

Time to progress to dynamic hip hinging!

This could be Olympic variations, dynamic deadlifts, but my favorite to start with is the swing. 

The swing is a dynamic hinge movement that allows for greater speeds to overload the eccentric portion and really stress the SSC for great dynamic hip power. 

When first learning the swing I like to start with a progression that involves placing an object betwen the athletes legs.  This prevents a squatty swing, and overall fixes a while mess of technique errors that commonly occur in the swing. 

Depending on the height of the athlete, we want the object to come up to the tibial tuberosity (object in video is too low).  So this could be a cone, yoga block, medicine ball, whatever works for you.  In the video I use a dumbell, but I would recommend using something like a cone or yoga block, so if the athlete hits it, their won't be any chance of injury or damage to equipment.

A whole other article could be written on swing technique, but for the sake of time, here is our technique overview

Great advice from Dan John
   Attack your zipper/crotch on the downswing, it is active not passive
   Snap your hips and glutes to drive the weight back up
   After hips and glutes drive weight out of the hole, the torso should be tight and stable like in a plank
   Don't let the weight come above shoulder level
   It is a RDL, but with more speed

After finishing all of these progressions the athlete will be very proficient in the hip hinge.  They can now safely move on to higher loads and greater speeds of movements. 

This is a great basis for learning olympic lifts, deadlifts, good mornings, and RDL's.  If you work with youth athletes or even higher level athletes that can't hip hinge, this progression is key.  The hip hinge technique will allow these athletes to progress to later exercises that will build the foundation of their lower body strength, especially the glutes and hamstrings. 

So grab a dowel and get to teaching.  Until next time Go Get 'Em!


Like, Dislike, Agree, Disagree, WORLD CHANGING, or a big turd; whatever you feel, leave a comment below and let me know!

Rotational Sequencing and Power - Part 2

If you missed part 1

Continuing on from part 1, we're now going to focus on the steps to develop correct rotational sequencing and power.

Jason Glass puts it perfectly when he says, "You have to earn the right to rotate".

Dynmaic rotational movements are highly coordinated and technical movements, and they require great deals of strength, stability, mobility, and coordination.

You would never take a new athlete and throw them in the squat rack with 2x their body weight. 

Instead you'd progress them and groove the squat pattern until they show proper mechanics, strength, mobility, and stability.

Just as so, an athlete needs to exhibit proper stability and mobility before they can move on to dynamic rotational movements. 

If you do not have the proper stabilization and strength in a static position, than performing dynamic rotational movements will just lead to dysfunction, improper sequencing, and increased risk of injury.   

The same goes for adequate mobility.  Rotational movements require a great deal of mobility especially in the thoracic spine, internal/external hip rotators, and ankles. 

Just like having limited stability can create issues; a lack of mobility will not allow the athlete to reach their maximum power, sequencing, and again will increased risk of injury. 

So to earn the right to rotate, it is important that we as coaches make sure we evaluate our athletes to ensure they possess adequate levels of stability and mobility.

Mobility

When testing and evaluating mobility, it is important to make sure there are no major limitations or differences between sides of the body.  The athlete should exhibit adequate levels of ROM in the major joints, and through total body movements. 

If there is a lack of mobility or ROM in a certain joint or side of the body, you know you must plan to attack that area with proper mobility drills.

Thoracic Spine - Athletes need to have adequate rotation and extension in the thoracic spine.  When looking at ROM, the T-spine should be able to get 30 degrees or more of rotation, and the athlete should be able to get proper extension from the T-spine without stealing it from the lumbar spine.

Make sure to use mobility movements that keep the lumbar spine fixed, so selecting an exercise that "locks" the lumbar spine down ensures it will not be involved with thoracic spine movements.

Hips - The hips are a very mobile joint, so you must evaluate it in many different movements and angles.  Flexion (120+ degress), extension (15+ degrees), adduction, and abduction are important, but even more important for rotational athletes is internal and external rotation. 

With rotation occuring in the transverse plane, internal and external mobility and strength become very important.  Here is an article on hip internal rotation, and here is one on glute medius mobility (largely external rotation).

As an athlete loads during rotational movements, the rear hip goes through internal rotation and front hip external rotation.  As the athlete starts to un-coil the rear hip now goes through powerful external rotation and the front hip absorbs into internal rotation.  If there are extreme limitations or restrictions into either of these movements you will see compensation patterns arise, spinal rotation instead of hip rotation, and loss of power.

Also, just as in overhead throwing, if the tissues surrounding the hip aren't kept healthy and happy, they can get beat up from these movements.  So, if we have a rotational athlete, ensuring we are getting adequate time spent on soft-tissue and mobility of the internal and external rotators is extremely important.

Ankles- The ankles are just like the hips, a very mobile joint.  The ankles require a great deal of dorsiflexion, plantarflexion, inversion, and eversion. 

Kneel next to a wall, with one foot 4 inches away from ithe wall.  Keeping the heel on the ground, press the knee towards the wall.  If the athlete cannot touch the wall, the athlete lacks dorsiflexion (A large percentage of people lack dorsiflexion).  They are probably compensating linear movements because of this lack of dorsiflexion and are not getting proper foot and ankle function.

The athlete should also have atleast 20 degrees of inversion and 5 degrees of eversion.  As we will go into later, many rotational movements (and most movements overall) require movement around the ankle joint to help transfer force or transfer rotatation to allow better positions.   

Many great improvements are seen when athletes take off their shoes.  I'm not recommending going straight in to a barefoot badass, I'm hinting at do warm-ups and select exercises barefoot to help improve the function on you feet and ankles.

Stability

The athlete also needs to show proper stability and strength in not only the transverse plane, but also the frontal and sagittal planes.  Here are some exercises athletes need to show proper stability before they should progress to higher velocities or resistance of rotational movements.

Bird-Dog - This is actually a test from the FMS, called rotary stability (see rotary = rotation! You need this).  You are looking to see if the athlete can maintain correct posture and stability while performing this exercise. 

If they consistantly wobble, sway, or lose position, then they need work on improving their bodies stability.  This opposite arm-leg movement stresses the fascia lines of our body in a very rotational way.  Test both sides, and note any differences.



Push-Up w/ Arm Reach - Like the Bird-Dog, except now the athlete has smaller areas of contact with the ground, thus stressing more need for stability. 

From side or behind views we should not see a major shift in body position.  They athlete should look the same as they do in the starting position.  Again test both sides and note any differences.



Inverted Bridge w/ Arm Reach - The previous two tests assessed anterior stability and the anterior muscle slings.  The Inverted Bridge w/ Arm Reach will test posterior stability and the posterior muscle sling.

Set up a bar or rings about 4.5 to 5 feet in the air.  Grab the bar and assume a lifted bridge position, so that your stomach is flat like a table.  Make sure the athletes takes a shoulder width apart grip, and sets their body, core tight - glutes squeezed - shoulders pulled back, for the movement. 

Remove one hand from the bar, and reach towards the opposite shoulder, just as you did in the push-up.  The athlete should be able to maintain position without major shifts or swings.  Test both sides and note any differences.



Glute March - The Glute March will also test the posterior components of the body, with more emphasis through the glutes.  We need this stability and strength throught our glutes because the glutes are the engine that fuel our powerful hip movements. 

The athlete starts in a glute bridge position, the athlete then "marches" in place, alternating between lifting legs.  This will show any weaknesses throughout the glutes and lumbopelvic-hip complex.  Notice any differences between sides as usual.

Cable Chops and Lifts  - Finally we move to Cable/Band Chops and Lifts.  This is a great way to move from static stabilization to more of a dynamic stabilization.  The core and hip stability are challenged to transfer the weight thoughout this movement.  Use both tall kneeling and half kneeling variations to challenge unilateral stability and strength.

Stay tall throughout this whole movement; think about not becoming "shorter".  Also keep your hips and pelvis square, and let your shoulders and arms move the weight throughout the range of motion.  Keeping your torso square allows the force to be transfered through your core and hips onto your arms.






Like we touched on at the beginning, athletes need to master these stabilization and mobility exercises before we throw them into dynamics and loaded rotational movements.

If they do not possess these qualitites before starting dynamic rotational movements, then we are setting them up to added dysfunction on improper movement patterns, injury, lessend performance, and oh did I mention injury! 

It never pays to rush into exercises because they are cool and fun.  Take the proper progression and steps to set your athletes up for the long run.



Part 3 will dive into adding speed to rotation, really the meat and potatoes of what we think of when improving rotational abilities.  


Until then Go Get 'Em!

Rotational Sequencing and Power - Part 1

We watch many different athletes, sports, and activities and don't always realized the connections many of these have to each other. Take a look at these athletes and see what they have in common.

 

Not only do these athletes make these movements look so smooth and effortless, but their movements are very similar despite the major differences in their sport. 

So what is it do they have in common?

Rotation!  Rotational movements occur in just about every sport we play.  Except for just plane old linear movements like sprinting or jogging, every other sport we participate in requires a great deal of roational sequencing and power. 

Say you're playing football, it's 3rd and 3, late in the 4th quarter and you're on defense.  The offense runs an outside zone play and you take an angle to cut off the running back at the 1st down marker. 

You collison the running back with your head in behind of him (come one, get your head in front!), just shy of the 1st down marker.  He has momentum and so do you, but who's gonna win?  Well it comes down to a number of things, but a big one being your rotational strength and power. 

Who's gonna win this battle!?

The one with more rotational power! 

See when you collide, the running backs momentum creates a high force in the transverse plane of your body.  You must counter this force with high rotational force opposite of where he is going. 

Unless you have adequate rotational strength and power, the offense will move the sticks and win the game.  But if your training regime exposes you to proper rotational training, you'll make the tackle, save the day, and get asked out by the best looking girl in school!

So to make sure you get asked out my the hottest girl in school, you need to make sure you get to working on your rotational power.  I mean it's been studied that if you have lots of roational strength, you get asked out by better looking girls...it's science. 

What is Rotational Movement

Rotational movements take place in the transverse plane.  The transverse plane involves movements around a fixed axis.  For most movements this fixed axis is our spine, and we rotate and move around the spine to create a rotational force. 

Rotational movements involve a specific series of movements and motions that allow us to transfer the highest amount of forces.  This proper sequencing is very critical in high performance. 

In fact a study was done by the Titleist Performance Institute showed that the biggest difference between professional golfers from amateur golfers was their ability to develop roational speed and proper sequencing. 

The development of higher rotational speeds is a pretty obvious difference as higher rotational speeds = further distance on shot.  This is would be similar to the main difference between NFL receivers and non-NFL receivers is speed. 

But the sequencing is a little surprising.  The professional golfer showed a smooth, efficient sequence from muscle group to group throughout their swing, while the amateurs showed a sloppy, incorrect pattern of sequencing. 

Many would think that the rotational sequence of hitting a golf ball would pretty consistant among all people, but that's not the case.  Just like many other techniques, correct rotation patterns needs to be taught and learned. Rotational sequencing is an important skill to be learned and is essential for increasing ones rotational speed and power. 

How Rotational Movement Works

Thomas Meyer's book Anatomy Trains has been a huge influence in the development of myofascial understanding and training.  It is a must for anybody studying kinesiology.  In it Thomas shows how the body is intertwined with connective tissues, and these tissues cross over the two halves of the body to create a crossed connection, very useful for rotational movements. 

As you can see from the picture below your myofascial lines cross over the body to create significant connections from opposite sides of the body.  Just one of the many outcomes from these findings is many times problems in a shoulder are caused or could be improved by focusing on the opposite hip or ankle.

Not only that, but we something called Muscle Slings, that also cross over the body.  Jason Glass is in the forefront of rotational biomechanics and training.  He has discussed how we have posterior and anterior muscle slings. 

The posterior sling run from the lats (and really starts up at the posterior shoulder) - thoracolumbar fascia - glutes

The anterior sling run from the external obliques - internal obliques - adductor complex. 

Muscle slings play a key role in developing and transfering rotational forces.  They help to load and unwind forces and because of their design and attachment points, they are perfect for rotational movements.

           Anterior Muscle Sling                                                         Posterior Muscle Sling

These slings are also responsible for specific actions and movements during rotational exercises.  Here they can be seen 

The Anterior Sling - Flexion and Rotation

The Posterior Sling - Extension and Rotation 

To go along with this, each sling as a particular role in loading and unwinding forces.  The majority of loading falls upon the extension patterns, so the posterior sling.  The majority of unwinding falls upon the flexion patterns, so the anterior sling. 

Picture a golf swing.  The backswing is the loading portion, and the posterior muscle sling loads up the body for the downswing.  Then during the downswing, the anterior sling takes over and unwinds the force built up by the posterior sling to bring the club through the ball.

Not only that, these slings are also involved in decelerating rotational movements.  So when you're slowing down and stopping say a pitch, swing, or discus throw, your muscle slings will work to decelerate these motions safely.

Now that you know what goes into rotational movements, we also need to know a proper progression on how to create this rotation and the requirements/skills athletes need before starting an intense rotational program. 

In the next part of this series we will go into the stability and mobility requirements/progressions needed to safely and effectively perform high speed and high load rotational movements.  Until then Go Get 'Em!

Like, Dislike, Agree, Disagree, WORLD CHANGING, or a big turd; whatever you feel, leave a comment below and let me know!