Friday, December 29, 2006

Another side of Need...

What do you need to "work on"? Most every trainee will work on what they want - not what they need. And what most people need is to address their weaknesses.

So I will list some common needs that most people igonore.

Need #1 - Some sort of reliable screening process to assess asymmetries and restrictions.
Mechanics have "screening" procedures they use to "assess" your vehicle, Eye doctors, Dentists, Othopedics, etc... all have screening procedures they use to assess you. Why not approach your training the same way. Your body will be very good at hiding certain restrictions and asymmetries so you need a screening process to find these and a strategy to address them.
My two recommendations - The Functional Movement Screen and Athletic Body in Balance by Gray Cook and Z-health by Dr. Cobb.

Need #2 - Some sort of mobility/flexibility strategy. Face it - you don't stretch enough and you can't move with freedom and ease. The goal of training should be to be a more efficient animal. And that means being able to move well.
My recommendations - Yoga!, Super Joints by Pavel, Relax Into Stretch by Pavel, Strength Stretching by Pavel, Steve Maxwell's Joint Mobility DVD, and again Z-health by Dr. Cobb.

Need #3 - Breath work. Unless you are currently working on your breathing you need to be working on it. Pranayama is the yoga term for breath work and it should be an integral part of your routine.
My recommendation - Yoga that focuses on breathing, Tai Chi, Qiqong are top of the list.

Need #4 - Strength work that is focused on addressing your weaknesses. Based off of your screening you should be able to indentify your areas of weakness - work on them! It may not be cool to do a single leg deadlift with a reactive neuromuscular valgus stress but it will strengthen your glute medius. Achieving thoracic mobility could be the answer to many shoulder problems. There are many examples of "rehabish" type of exercises that you probably "need" to be doing.
My recommendation - Go to www.functionalmovement.com and look at the Corrective exercise DVDs by Gray Cook, also the Secrets of the Shoulder DVD by Gray Cook and Brett Jones.

"A chain is only as strong as it's weakest link" - or " the weakest link rules the chain" - What you need to be working on is your weakest link.

3 comments:

Scott Shetler said...

Brett,

The Cook's Functional Movement Screen is awesome. I presented at an NSCA conference in GA this past Oct and two trainers down here have been using it at their business. They presented that day as well and demonstrated the tests used in the screen and how to score. Of course for all the dirt on where to go after the assessment they said to buy the product! LOL! It seems like a smart investment and an excellent form of assessment, something I am planning on adding into my program very soon. Currently I have been implementing the primal movement pattern form of assessment (Chek) and qualifying clients/athletes based on the level of ascending/descending in the different movement patterns.

Point is movement screenings are essential and unfortunately most only use bodyfat, BP and recovery heart rate when performing assessments.

Cooks stuff looks awesome, can't wait to learn more.

Great blog!

Scott

Anonymous said...

Brett, I've enjoyed reading your blog. I want to add to #3, breath work, this is one I've been working on and found a lot of benefit. In addition to those mentioned, z-health does address breathing and so does CST. I've found both to be very informative and applicable. I haven't looked into Cook's stuff too much but it cant hurt. Hope all is going well and happy holidays.

Brett Jones said...

Thanks everyone - Need is a difficult thing to address but essential to personal development.

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