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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Infrasternal Angle Treatment 101

I measured the infrasternal angle…..uhhh, now what?

No doubt you’ve heard a bazillion things about the infrasternal angle. You maybe even have been measuring them pretty consistently and know it’s a big deal.

You know what we don’t talk about though?

What the hell do you do about it?!?!?

You’ll find out in this post

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Assessing Compensatory Strategies

A deep dive into the practical application of respiratory mechanics When you deep dive into the biomechanics, it’s easy to get lost in the weeds. You are trying to figure out how the scapula moves just so, or what is the big toe doing during this part of the squat…yikes! While greater biomechanical understanding is necessary, it’s not the most important piece. You can never lose sight of how to help your clients. That is the highest priority. Practical application. Which is why I think you’ll love my feature on the Upper Left Performance Podcast. It’s just enough of the details of movement compensations, with heaps of practical application! Topics covered include: What are the two common compensatory strategies people can present with? How does body structure influence one’s ability to move Simple assessments for determining one’s compensatory strategy How to adapt one’s training to maximize movement quality Click here or the link below to tune in! Upper Left Performance #14 Zac Cupples  Image by pisauikan from Pixabay

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Pelvic Dynamics, Lower Back Weakness, and Finances – Movement Debrief Episode 103

Movement Debrief Episode 103 is in the books. Below is a copy of the video for your viewing pleasure, and audio if you can’t stand looking at me. Here is the set list: What are the inhaled and exhaled orientations of the pelvis? What movement strategies would you use to improve dynamics of each orientation? How often is each orientation found? Why might clients feel lower back weakness? Is there a time when you work on lower back strength? How do you educate clients who say they have lower back weakness? What are some of the key financial areas to focus on as a new grad? What are some good financial resources?

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Belly Breathing, Cramping, and Exhales – Movement Debrief Episode 77

Movement Debrief Episode 77 is in the books. Below is a copy of the video for your viewing pleasure, and audio if you can’t stand looking at me. Here is the set list: Why is belly breathing not beneficial? What should happen during “normal” respiratory mechanics? What happens when you belly breathe? Why would certain muscles (e.g. back, hamstrings, etc) cramp during breathing activities? What are the two ways I coach exhales? When indications would lead you to choosing a specific exhalation strategy?

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Breathing, Thoracic Spine, and When it’s Safe to Load – Movement Debrief Episode 63

Movement Debrief Episode 63 is in the books. Below is a copy of the video for your viewing pleasure, and audio if you can’t stand looking at me. Here is the set list: How should the ribcage move during normal respiratory mechanics? How should the abdominal wall expand during normal respiratory mechanics? How should breathing during variability-based activities be coached? What are normal compensatory thoracic spine presentations with narrow and wide infrasternal angles? How can someone present with different thoracic spine orientations despite these “normal” strategies? What can you do to improve thoracic spine mobility in these cases? Is it safe to load compensatory movement strategies? If you want to watch these live, add me on Facebook or Instagram. They air every Wednesday at 7pm CST. Enjoy! and the audio version…                  Here were the links I mentioned: Check out Human Matrix promo video below Below are some testimonials for the class Want to sign up? Click on the following locations below: Kansas City, KS on October 27-28th  Portland, OR on November 10-11  December 8th-9th, Charleston, SC (early bird ends November 11th) February 2nd-3rd, 2019, New Providence, NJ (early bird ends January 4th) Want to get a handout that explains normal respiratory mechanics? Click here, you’ll see pictures of the ribcage mechanics I mentioned Here is a link to the infrasternal angle debriefs Here is a link to the pumphandle debrief. Here’s a signup for my newsletter to get nearly 3 hours and 50 pages

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Learn Normal Respiratory Mechanics from the Human Matrix Manual

Do you… Have patients who hurt multiple areas and are unsure where to start? Have training clients who can’t perform the exercises you want to despite extensive coaching? Want to maximize your client’s movement capabilities better than ever before? Want to know why incorporating breathing into your skillset is exceedingly important? Then welcome to Human Matrix: The Code for Maximizing Health and Performance. A course where you will develop a thorough understanding of how to systemically view and affect movement. By entering the Matrix and affecting movement systemically, building up your client’s movement repertoire from the ground up better than ever before. What you’ll learn when you Enter the Human Matrix How to build a sound movement foundation to increase the exercise variations your clients and patients will be able to do. How to assess your client’s movement capabilities to make precise decisions for improving pain and movement quality. How to normalize range of motion of the entire body to both reduce pain and improve how your clients move with fewer exercises than you have ever needed before. How to effectively coach squatting, deadlifting, pushing, pulling, and more to build the fitness and resiliency of your clients. Course Outline Here is the schedule of this two day seminar: Day 1 9:30-10:30am: Model and Theory 10:45am-12:30pm: Axial Skeleton, Respiration, and Thorax Variability 12:30pm-1:30pm: Lunch 1:30pm-3:00pm:  Thorax Variability 3:15pm-4:45pm: Pelvic Variability 5-6:30pm: Systemic Variability Day 2 8:30am-10am: Systemic variability 10:15am-12:30pm: Power Establishment – Mastering fundamental movement patterns 12:30pm-1:30pm: Lunch 1:30pm-3:30pm: Power Establishment

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