Author: Zac Cupples

Why is My Left Shoulder Lower Than My Right? – Biomechanics and Treatment

Left vs right-handedness is only one reason your shoulders are asymmetrical Are you someone whose left shoulder sits lower than the right, and haven’t figured out why or what to do about it? The problem is that most lack understanding on how this asymmetry occurs, limiting the ability to design effective treatments. That changes with today’s post. Here, we will dive into the REAL reason the left shoulder may appear lower than the right (and no, it’s not because of handedness), and how to improve this postural strategy.

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Pullover Exercise Proper Form | Why EVERYONE Gets it WRONG

Textbook performance of every pullover exercise variation ever! The pullover can be an awesome move for CRUSHING the abs and enhancing shoulder mobility, assuming that your technique is on point. But if you do any of the following: Arch your back Pull the shoulders back Flare your ribs Then that’s a poor assumption. AKA YOU’RE DOING IT WRONG. But don’t worry, I got you covered.  Today’s post will go through pullover biomechanics (which will better inform you when and who should get this move), the coaching keys needed to crush the abs and loosen up the upper body, and how to fix common errors with this move. Check out the video and post below to learn about it.

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Diaphragmatic Breathing – IT’S NOT BELLY BREATHING

If you think belly breathing is useful, prepare to have your mind blown Many use diaphragmatic breathing for relaxation effects, improving mobility, and more, but if you are coaching it by breathing into your belly, I hate to break it to you… YOU’RE DOING IT WRONG! You see, coaching belly breathing contradicts normal biomechanics, and is likely counterproductive on many fronts. I’ll go through the specific beef I have with belly breathing, and provide you a better alternative.

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Ankle Pain with Squats FIXED | Case Study

If your ankle hurts during squats, prepare to have your mind blown! Does ankle pain during squatting require driving more ankle mobility? But what if you have a full squat? That is what we run into in today’s case study. Here, we assess the entire body to see all the factors that contribute to this particular client’s ankle problem, and devise a solution WITHOUT ANY ANKLE MOBILITY DRILLS.

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Side Plank Exercise – How to Get MORE ABS

Think side planks are easy? THINK AGAIN Side planks. People stop this awesome exercise too early because they either become “easy” or they end up causing elbow discomfort. What if you could solve both of these issues by beefing up your technique?  Don’t worry, you’ll be learning the finer technical side plank points that most people are missing, as well as when to best program this vastly underutilized exercise. 

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Ab Wheel | 3 Keys You Are MISSING

How to get more out of rollout variations than ever before Do your ab wheel rollouts suffer from ANY of the following: Abs aren’t working? Lower back is engaged? Too much loading on the shoulders? It’s WAY too easy? Then chances are that you’re missing at least one of three major keys needed during any type of rollout variation (yep, swiss ball, TRX, foam roller, walkouts, etc). Not only will I show you how to better perform rollouts, but we will also beef up your biomechanical knowledge of this move, upping your programming.

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Elevated Heels vs Toes – Which Should I Choose?

Foot position changes everything You might’ve been perusing the internet, witnessing a bunch of peeps elevate heels on this exercise, or elevate the toes on that exercise.  What gives? These strategies could be beneficial depending on your goals, but in order to know which is best, you MUST grasp the biomechanical underpinnings. I’ll teach you that today!

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FIX Posterior Pelvic Tilt with 2 Exercises

Posterior pelvic tilt…it’s not what you think it is There’s all this talk on how to “fix” your anterior pelvic tilt, but folks, there’s a portion of the population that presents with a posterior pelvic tilt. How do we help these individuals? The first step? Realizing it’s NOT ACTUALLY A POSTERIOR PELVIC TILT. I’ll show you not only what a posterior pelvic tilt actually is, but also how this biomechanical knowledge will improve your exercise selection for these individuals. (Don’t worry, I’ll show you my 2 favorite moves as well!) Check out the blog and video to learn more!

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Breathing In – DON’T FORCE IT!

Using breathing to get more mobile? Not with THAT inhale If you are someone who takes MASSIVE inhales to try and loosen up your ribcage, neck, or any other area, I have some news for you… That…don’t…work. I know! It seems counterintuitive. I’m tight in a given area, I need to force air in a given area, rinse and repeat. The problem is that our bodies don’t create more space in that manner. There are physical properties that require a different strategy needed to create an effective inhale, one that promotes taking your mobility gains to the next level. What strategy is that you might ask? Check out the video and post below to learn it!

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Posterior Pelvic Tilt Exercises – You’re Doing Them WRONG!

There’s a subtlety to properly executing a posterior pelvic tilt. You’ll learn it today Posteriorly tilting the pelvis aka tucking the hips is a common strategy we use to enhance hip mobility and get the pelvis in a good position to load the legs during various exercises. But are you someone who feels “the tuck” mostly in your abs, stretching your back, or working your quads? I hate to break it to you… You’re doing it wrong Surprisingly, the posterior tilt needs to be WAY more subtle than you think to get the biomechanical actions we oh so desire. Why so subtle? Don’t worry, I’ll explain EVERYTHING you ever needed to know about the posterior pelvic tilt. 

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STOP Bringing Ribs Down – Do THIS Instead

Why the ribs down cue doesn’t work and you should coaching exhaling differently There was a time when peeps (myself included) thought forcing ribs down was necessary to anchor the lower ribcage, allowing for enhanced mobility and improved trunk position. This time must now pass. It turns out, the ribs down cue DOES NOT help improve ribcage dynamics and core stability in the way we think it does. If you’ve ever felt cramping, back working/stretching, or have your lower belly pooch out, this is why. Is there an alternative, then? Uh, yeah fam. I’ve found coaching the exhale as you’ll see in the video below to be WAY BETTER. Check it out to learn more!

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Cash Pay Physical Therapy vs Insurance – WHAT WINS?

The stark difference between cash pay and insurance-based PT  Cash pay and insurance-based physical therapy are quite different, but how? I’m going to answer that for you today! I’ve spent the last 2 years in a cash pay physical therapy practice, having worked in insurance-based physical therapy for the first 8 years (aside from my stint in the NBA). All of these endeavors were as an employee. And today, my fam, you’re going to learn the differences I’ve noticed between each of these practice styles. Check out the video, blog, and podcast below to learn more! The tradeoffs between cash pay and insurance physical therapy Admittedly, my insurance-based physical therapy experiences were quite different than most outpatient orthopedic settings.  Aside from my orthopedic residency and in the NBA D-league, I’ve always worked in settings that provided patients one-on-one care, not the typical patient mill 5 patients per hour kinda BS. However, being able to work in these settings came at a cost: Pay was less compared to patient mills (My Chicago suburbs gig) Unsustainability due to the location’s insurance strength (Phoenix, AZ) caused the practice to go under The clinic was in a very rural area (I’ve known some major cities (Seattle, WA) that have great insurance benefits, but one-on-one care is more likely if you go rural) When you are a dude who wants to live in a major city and experience its amenities, that’s tough, yo! Conversely, the “sacrifices” so to speak, are a bit different in the

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