I was approached today by a potential client who is training for the Omaha Fire Department. Extremely honored for the opportunity! This also brings up an important point…
What goals are you trying to accomplish in 2012?
Do you have a plan of action?
Does your plan of action take into account where you are starting from, what skills you need to attain to accomplish this goal?
Does this plan take into account your movement and performance baseline?
Does this plan determine your strengths to maintain and your weaknesses to improve on?
Does this plan allow for changes or modifications to be made due to things that may come up? How does the plan determine when to make modification?
Here is my 2012 gift to you…. Anyone in the area who is interested in getting a proper PLAN OF ACTION towards their upcoming 2012 goals is invited to come in and get a Fitness Consultation and Functional Movement Screen at NO CHARGE ($87 value). Just click the link below to get registered and we will sign you up for your consult and screen. No strings attached. This is a great way for you to understand every aspect detailed above whether you chose to train at home, at another gym, through another trainer, or through SG Human Performance. What do you have to lose?
Hello everyone. Hope all of you are doing very well out there.
Today I am providing my product review for the DVD of Applying the FMS Model by Gray Cook. Nikki and I were fortunate to experience this workshop first hand at the Chicago Perform Better Summit last summer (2011) as we both were given the honor of providing FMS screens for Brett and Gray during the workshop.
Applying the FMS Model is a great DVD for any individual wanting to learn more about applications of how to use the FMS model in their profession. The DVD provides the actual workshop itself with its presentation slides and demonstrations of the FMS screen itself as well as analysis of the screen results.
Gray includes vital information on:
Understanding what the FMS scores mean for the particular individual
Individuals activities/sports/work
Limitations/Injury History
How to remove negatives
Applying proper correctives
Programming for that particular individual (provides great examples: weightlifter, runner, kettlebell enthusiast, older individual +50, younger individual -25, and an ex-athlete)
This is some pretty fantastic stuff as this type of material has not yet been covered in any other DVD or Workbook. This is one of the main reasons why Gray and Brett decided to do the workshop in the first place, to provide a demonstration to interested people and to provide both FMS Certified and Non-FMS Certified individuals an understanding of application.
Here is a breakdown on what you receive:
4-disc DVD set—nearly 4 hours, plus bonus material Filmed live at a Perform Better Summit Workshop Disk One
Introduction
Standard Operating Procedures
Movement Matters
Squat Discussion
Stabilization and Repatterning
Our Movement History
Disk Two
Functional Movement Screen Review
Scoring the Screens
Filters and Key Points
Live Screens
Scoring Criteria
Programming the Results
Disk Three
Screen Results Analysis
Order of Screen Priority
Hip Hinge and Deadlift Strategies
Movement Motor Learning
Movement Principles
Self-Limiting Exercise
Disk Four
Extra corrective strategies footage Full lecture in MP3 audio format for listening in your car or on your portable device A 61-page typeset transcript of the lecture
Movement Principles excerpt from the Movement book
FMS scoring criteria and verbal instructions Presentation slides PDF
Video clips from Gray’s Powerpoint presentation
Self-limiting activities chart
On Target Publications did a fantastic job with this DVD. It includes everything. The PDF of the presentation slides, charts, scoring criteria and verbal instructions for the FMS, as well as a full MP3 of the lecture so you can listen off of your ipod or even in the car. LOVE THAT!
In the workshop Gray does a fantastic job of explaining the finer points of why it is important to have a movement screen for any active individual. These points can be used by the FMS professional towards convincing the importance of using the FMS in many different domains (Examples: sports teams, gyms, bootcamps, risk management for different active careers and etc.)
This DVD and workbook can be used in so many different ways:
Provide the Certified FMS Professional a valuable resource tool to enhance their current practice
Provide professionals who are interested in getting FMS certified a taste of everything the FMS entails
Provides all professionals a tool to present to their superiors, co-workers, and/or potential clients (examples: head coaches, athletic directors, strength coaches, athletic trainers, wellness coordinators, corporate wellness committees and etc.) which gives a vivid explanation of the whole FMS process and its applications and benefits. Use this in your arsenal when you are trying to establish its importance within your setting. How nice is it to ask someone to watch this video when they are interested in learning more about the FMS and its benefits?
For more information and to see more of the sample videos click HERE.
Hello everyone. Hope you are training smart, plus taking care of yourself and the ones around you.
I want to start a discussion about achieving your 1/2 bodyweight press requirement for RKC Level 2. From reading the RKC Forum and through speaking with individuals who have trained for RKC Level 2. It seems the most common reoccurring theme for males were issues achieving the 1/2 bodyweight press requirement.
It seems that those who did not pass Level 2 certification could not achieve their 1/2 bw press and those who cancelled attending RKC Level 2 usually did due to some type of injury from training to achieve the 1/2 bw press.
I trained successfully for RKC Level 1 by performing Enter the Kettlebell Rite of Passage program of pressing ladders. The ROP is a fantastic program for building a solid foundation for swings, cleans, and presses. This was especially successful for building up my strength and endurance to achieve 5 double kb presses with a significant amount of weight (one of the requirements for passing RKC Level 1).
When I signed up for RKC Level 2 in August, I planned out all the requirements on a piece of paper and listed them from what would be the most challenging to achieve and that I felt I had a decent grasp upon. I did this to determine how I would program my workouts to achieve all the RKC Level 2 requirements. At the top of the list was the 1/2 bw press.
I decided to take a different approach to this requirement and not do the ROP clean and press ladders. Instead I planned on doing a few different things to see if I could achieve this goal.
Complete a Functional movement screen (every 4-6 weeks) to make sure that I am symmetrical and that my programming is taking me on the correct course (my baseline).
Use bottoms up kb cleans, walks, squats, and pressing (self limiting exercises) to accomplish the proper alignment and technique to accomplish the press.
Train for the press, pull up, and pistol by performing sets of 1 repetition. Since that is what the requirement stated, I am going to train accordingly.
I brought up this plan of action to my mentor, Master RKC David Whitley, and he suggested an alternate route, the bent press. As we were sitting there discussing my goals, he stated that the bent press is a way to achieve the type of mobility and stability necessary to achieve the 1/2 bw press. Plus you get the opportunity to get heavy loads above your head and then train the pressing pattern eccentrically. I was very intrigued by this idea and was willing to give it a try, but I had one problem. I had no idea how to properly bent press. David worked with me about a year before on my BP and I failed miserably. At the time I did not have the type of mobility to achieve such a lift.
So David spent the next 45 minutes with me bodyweight patterning the bent press. It was quite the learning experience and I cannot say enough of how fortunate I am to learn from the best. David sent me home with some points of the bent press and told me “to practice”. So for the next 10 weeks I made it a priority to improve my bent press to really see if it would have a carry over to the 1/2 bw press. My previous heaviest kb press was the 36kg at RKC Level 1 (my performance baseline) so with the bent press I began with a 24kg to see if I could get the movement down. The movement felt akward, and uncomfortable. But in my experience that could necessarily mean that I am learning so I kept with it. I got a lot of positive feedback just by videoing myself performing the bent press and then seeing the movement in my mind.
My 10 minute workouts throughout the day would go something like this:
Bent press 1/1 followed by single arm swing 5/5
I would review the video I did on my technique during my rest period
I would play out the proper movement in my mind, maybe even go through the motions with just bodyweight
Rinse and repeat
Once I felt I was no longer learning during my practice sessions, I would stop and do other things and then come back to the movement later that day or the next workout. As I progressed within the movement, the 24kg no longer gave me the type of feedback that I needed to progress so I moved up in weight to the 28kg. In not much time at all I progressed onto the 32kg bent press followed by single arm swings with the 32kg.
I still continued to video myself and occasionally sent the video onto David for some feedback. I always tried to keep learning during this movement. I learned along the way that if I achieved a new weight with the bent press that this new achievement did not mean that it was my new practice weight. I needed to keep learning during practice and when my practice kb was no longer giving me the feedback I needed, then and only then, would I move up.
2 weeks ago I bent press the 44kg for 1 repetition on each side. 2 days later just to measure progress I was able to strict press the 40kg for the first time ever. I was also able to bottoms up press the 24kg. This is the type of progression I was looking for. I am going up on my press weight and am not suffering from any shoulder/neck issues currently. As a matter of fact, my shoulder mobility now is the most symmetrical it has ever been.
Some finer points I want to emphasize if you are planning on trying this method:
Get your FMS screen: In my opinion there is a minimum requirement of mobility and stability to begin practicing the bent press. When I tried it before and was so bad at it, I had not yet achieved that minimum standard and it was only when I got more symmetrical that the learning experience could include
The bent press is a SKILL just like all other lifts: You need to get expert instruction and be willing to practice the skill. It will be uncomfortable (but not painful!), it will be difficult, but you need to communicate with your body and keep making progress. Stop the practice session when you are no longer making progress.
So my experiment is not yet done but I will continue to work on it and report on my progress. As a matter of fact, after another one on one coaching session with the Iron Tamer himself, I achieved the 48kg bent press. I still have some work to do but I know I am on the proper path as I have my baseline (my FMS score) and my strength continues to increase.
Would love to get some feedback from other individuals as how they achieved their press requirement for Level 2. I am not saying that this is the only way to train for it, but it has worked very well for me and is something to consider especially if you have suffered from shoulder and neck issues in the past.
Hello everyone. Wanted to see if I could get the word out to everyone who is interested in learning more about how we use the Functional Movement Screen to enhance our programming and clients success in the group setting.
As many of you may know, we specialize in group kettlebell classes but also include bodyweight exercises, TRX Training, battling ropes and other drills (ALOT of self limiting exercises).
Basically our Foundation here at SG Human Performance (its even in our mission statement) is using the Functional Movement Screen.
FMS provides us the following:
Establishes rapport with new and existing clients
Determines programming success
Boosts Metabolism (YES, hard to believe I know, but its so true)
Improves exercise technique
Assesses client progress
So I am opening up my blog for ANYONE to ask their questions about how to use the FMS to enhance themselves as a fitness professional and also to enhance their rehabilitation or fitness business. Please post a comment to this blog with your question and I will do my best to answer it.
If you don’t believe me (or want more information) check into Alwyn Cosgroves “Ultimate Guide to Fat Loss Programming” and how he uses the FMS in his Fat Loss Programming in both Semi Private and Group Training.
