Health is achieved in the long term..

Long term health and fitness are the result of little things done consistently over time. I have always loved to lift heavy, jump, sprint and compete. But the other side of the coin (the penance we pay for being active) is the unsexy stuff. The little modifications and alternating stuff that we make to our accessory work and off day recovery work. Today, I lift heavy three days per week and use my three other days to condition and restore movement options.

This stuff doesn't have to be slow, boring or feel like rehab. It has actually helped me to fall in love with training once again because I can focus on exploring movement again without feeling guilty for not touching a barbell or worrying about load.

Everything has it's place and here are some things I played around with today:

1. Low to high crawl

2. FFE Split squat hold w/weight shift

3. Alternating bear push ups w/feet on wall

4. Retro step rows

Egg Rolls For Back Pain

As someone constantly battling compression, rolling and lots of it has become a staple in my programming- for both myself and clients. You may sleep on your back with your legs straight, squat heavy and/or just stand with your feet on the ground a lot.

All of these activities nutate the sacrum and leads us to hang out in a deadlift or hinge bias more than we would probably care to. This is why I like to knock out 15-20 reps of the egg roll at least once per hour. I find that many peeps are too stiff to access this position initially and require an elevated roll hold before progressing in to rolling itself.

For those who are nutated or tipped forward on one side (usually the left), I like the single knee to chest egg roll and/or side to side egg roll with more reps performed toward the left Directions for this drill are pretty simple- Inhale while tipping back and exhale while tipping forward.

Enjoy and stay moving my friends!

Why are you deadlifting when it hurts to stand?

Getting older has caused me to think differently about fitness. Not because I don't want to be jacked or have a six pack. But because you can have both of those things and feel like shit all the time. Sort of like a race car that can blow past the competition but can't idle for five minutes without breaking down.

Show me someone that can control lying down, sitting and standing for the long periods of time we humans spend inactive and that is someone prepared for the real demands of the new millennium. I think about someone who is a shape shifter that can manipulate their position without having to get up and walk around or move to the floor to do breathing resets. This person can spend hours in a given stance because they understand their body and can adjust as needed.

This person can also squat, deadlift and bench WAYYY better because they haven't fried their body during the day. Is this ideal? Absolutely not. But it is making the best of the reality of our digital lives. Here are a few examples of shape changes based upon common restrictions I see in working with clients.