How to Move with Less Tension

In order to move more, you have to be able to both create and reduce tension. But what if you have someone who is tense AF? When they move, they tighten EVERYTHING? Check this video to learn what to do. Ways to get people to move without tension Folks who are SUPER TENSE when they move often benefit from manual therapy, foam rollers, and things of that nature. Think of using these strategies as an “assisted” way to get them to move. Movement-wise, you want to get these peeps to move with as little tension as possible. These folks benefit from very slow segmental rolling strategies. In order to complete these rolls, you have to move with as little tension as possible. The lower body roll is a great starting point: But if you are feeling frisky, try the upper body roll. It…is…brutal: Even doing things where they are moving individual joints as slow and with low tension as possible. Breathing-wise, focusing on nasal breathing that is silent, easy, and effortless can be a great way to reduce tension in these individuals.

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When to Combine Pronation and External Rotation

Although external rotation and supination are paired, so too with internal rotation and pronation, sometimes you must drive pronation and external rotation. This need is especially common if you see a twist through the knee joint. In today’s post, we dive into when you have to do that. Steps for combining pronation with external rotation With these types of folks who present with hip external rotation loss and inability to pronate the foot, you have to untwist these folks. The first line of defense if you have manual skills is to perform manual therapy of the foot. I would look at restoring the following movements: Ankle dorsiflexion Calcaneal eversion First ray manipulations Cuboid manipulations If you don’t have manual skills, wedging the calcaneus laterally to drive eversion can work. You can also perform offset exercises, such as an offset wall squat, to drive rotation and further external rotation: Be mindful as you drive these motions, often people can cheat calcaneal eversion by plantarflexing the first ray even further!

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Calling All Haters

It’s UBER important to seek out counterpoints to your thoughts. Not only will this help fill any gaps in your knowledge, but it’ll also help both parties get closer to the truth. But there is a tactful way to do this and a less tactful way. We go over the tactful way in this video, and why I’m having a hard time finding detractors who truly grasp the way I approach my movement model. So if you disagree with me, hop on Office Hours, and let’s talk about it! Watch this video to learn more! A better way to criticize I’m not one to criticize peeps much on the internet, mainly because there is not much to learn for either party unless a conversation is had. And uh, fam, those social media fights we get in are NOT conversations. I’m talking good ole’ back and forth dialogue. The goal of any critical discussion should be for both parties to get closer to the truth. In order to do that, the person who it providing the critique ought to be able to steel man the other person’s point of view. What is steel manning? I’m glad you asked! Steel manning basically involves summarizing the key points of a person’s argument in teh strongest manner possible. You want to be able to understand the other person’s process so well that they say: “daumn fam I wish I would’ve said it that way.” From there, you can then poke any logical holes that

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The Best Position for the Stack – A Case Report

Many times if you don’t get the result you are looking for movement-wise, it is often related to losing the stack (and not talking to Zac). How do you know where the failure occurred? That’s exactly what we sift through in this video. In it, we walk through a failed case, and look at where tweaks could be made to improve the outcome. Watch it to learn more! Looking at each component of the stack In this case of a person with shoulder pain, we look at some of the big limitations this person had: Decreased shoulder internal rotation biliaterally Decreased left shoulder external rotation Narrow infrasternal angle From here, you then need to look at each piece of the stack to determine how to design the activity with the best possible chance of success. What are those components? I’M GLAD YOU ASKED!! Here are the pieces we focus on for the stack in order of importance (though fam, you need to build it all!): Pelvic positioning Full exhale Pause and inhale with ab tension and relaxed upper thorax Reach without crunching Now based on what we need to maximize this person’s movement options, we can then engineer exercises with a high probability of increasing available movement. The keys we need to respect are restoring external rotation before internal rotation, respecting their anthropometric structure, and address asymmetry (shoulder rotation limitations indicate this person has a right rotation bias). Therefore, we can engineer activities that can create high odds for success:

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Fixing Radial Nerve Pain in Weight Bearing

Ever get pain going down the outside of your arm when you are weight-bearing? Numbness, tingling, the whole shebang? If you notice issues that resemble this, you are likely dealing with radial nerve sensitivity. In order to make the radial nerve less sensitive, you need to increase movement, space, and bloodflow to the nerve. How do you do that? Watch this video below! Reducing strain on the radial nerve Nerves need three pieces to be healthy: Movement Space Bloodflow In order to maximize radial nerve excursion, we have to look at the maximally lengthened position of the nerve, which is as follows: Wrist flexion and ulnar deviation Forearm pronation Elbow extension Humeral internal rotation Humeral abduction Scapular depression Contralateral cervical sidebending You can check the test for this below in this video: When you take a look at these motions, do you notice a common theme of where you need to drive motion? If I want to create space around the nerve (or day I say….EXPANSION), you need to drive what? Internal Rotation And if you need internal rotation, you gotta put air where? Anterior Chest Wall So the first line of defense to maximize nerve excursion, you have to maximize anterior thorax expansion and internal rotation. If you do that, you’ll maximize space around the nerve, which can reduce sensitivity. But fam, that may not be enough! You may also have to restore the mobility of the nerve. The neurodynamics. Basically, you can start with moving the nerve along

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Improving Hip and Shoulder Internal Rotation WITHOUT STRETCHING!

Having shoulder and hip internal rotation is kind of a big deal. What if you could get it as quickly as possible without a single stretch? That’s exactly what we did in this case. I work with someone who is unfamiliar with my techniques, and in 3 moves (1 of them a failure), we were able to increase shoulder and hip internal rotation. Watch the video below to learn what we did. Case overview The “patient” is my nephew, Brad. He’s a football player and wrestler who is just a stiff bro. No pain. Objective findings Brad’s main initial findings were the following: Test Left Right Infrasternal angle narrow Shoulder flexion 155 155 Shoulder external rotation 95 95 Shoulder Internal rotation 90 50 Hip flexion 95 95 Hip external rotation 60 60 Hip internal rotation 10 10 Straight leg raise 65 65 Intervention selection Given the findings above, are major keys to focus on were making the infrasternal angle dynamic and restoring internal rotation. Brad appears to be a classic narrow infrasternal angle. Lewit tilt I chose this move because the 90 degree angle at the hips biases internal rotation. The supine position promotes lateral ribcage expansion, which is great for narrow infrasternal angles. If you want a super in-depth reasoning for this move, check out this post. After performing this move, B’s test results were as follows (improvements are bolded): Test Left Right Infrasternal angle narrow Shoulder flexion 155 155 Shoulder external rotation 95 95 Shoulder Internal rotation 90

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Tips on Breathing Mechanics

If your breathing is whack, learn these tricks from Zac Coaching the breathing mechanics needed to improve movement options can be tough. Especially with all the various compensatory strategies. These issues get even worse if you don’t fully grasp the mechanics. Moreover, what if your supreme clientele think they have to be breathing this wild and crazy way 20,000 times per day? We answer all these in more in today’s debrief. If you feel like you haven’t maximized your ability to coach and apply breathing, this post is a must. Check out Movement Debrief Episode 154 below to learn more! Watch the video below for your viewing pleasure. Or listen to my sultry voice on the podcast version:  If you want to watch these live, add me on Instagram. Show notes Check out Human Matrix promo video below:  Below are some testimonials for the class:  Want to sign up? Click on the following locations below: August 14th-15th, 2021, Ann Arbor, MI (Early bird ends July 18th at 11:55 pm!) September 25th-26th, 2021, Wyckoff, NJ (Early bird ends August 22nd at 11:55 pm) October 23rd-24th, Philadelphia, PA (Early bird ends September 26th at 11:55pm) November 6th-7th, 2021, Charlotte, NC (Early bird ends October 3rd at 11:55 pm) November 20th-21st, 2021 – Colorado Springs, CO (Early bird ends October 22nd at 11:55 pm) December 4th-5th, 2021 – Las Vegas, NV (Early bird ends November 5th at 11:55 pm) Or check out this little teaser for Human Matrix home study. Best part is if you attend the live course you’ll get

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Does the Mute Nasal Dilator Help with Sleep? | Unboxing the Mute

Do you snore, sleep terribly, or have a BUNCH of neck tension?

You’ve tried it all, right?

Uhh, maybe not FAM.

The ability to nasal breathe is related to all three of the above mentioned issues, but for many, the nose can be difficult to breathe through.

I am someone who has nasal valve collapse, and that has been the major struggle for me.

The Mute, supposedly, can help maintain the shape of the nasal airway, helping you breathe like a boss through your nose.

Or can it?

We find out with my 6-week trial of wearing the Mute while I sleep, work out, and more!

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Troubleshooting the Stack

Can’t talk to me? Then fine-tune your stack, fam! The stack is one of the foundational components needed for A TON of movements and for restoring movement, but what if you are struggle bus with this concept? What if you can’t get a full exhale or get the expansion you need? Or maybe you don’t even know where in the ribcage we should even see movement! Don’t worry fam, ya boy big Z has you covered. If you want to beef up your stack, and your conversation with Zac, then check out Movement Debrief Episode 153 below! Watch the video below for your viewing pleasure. Or listen to my sultry voice on the podcast version:  If you want to watch these live, add me on Instagram. Show notes Check out Human Matrix promo video below:  Below are some testimonials for the class:  Want to sign up? Click on the following locations below: August 14th-15th, 2021, Ann Arbor, MI (Early bird ends July 18th at 11:55 pm!) September 25th-26th, 2021, Wyckoff, NJ (Early bird ends August 22nd at 11:55 pm) October 23rd-24th, Philadelphia, PA (Early bird ends September 26th at 11:55pm) November 6th-7th, 2021, Charlotte, NC (Early bird ends October 3rd at 11:55 pm) November 20th-21st, 2021 – Colorado Springs, CO (Early bird ends October 22nd at 11:55 pm) December 4th-5th, 2021 – Las Vegas, NV (Early bird ends November 5th at 11:55 pm) Or check out this little teaser for Human Matrix home study. Best part is if you attend the live course you’ll get this bad boy

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