7 very common movement issues, and how to work on them

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This is one of two introductions to two manuals of mine. (More on those below.) The first introduction is here.

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1) Excessive neck extension

Rather than the neck stay straight,

It tends to extend:

Example

A common instance where this would happen is when raising the arm.

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Possible associated issues

• Neck pain
• Headaches
• Shoulder pain

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2) Lack of overhead shoulder range of motion

Rather than the arms getting completely overhead,

They will stop short:

This can be due to pain or restriction.

Example

It’s common to think someone has full overhead range of motion at first glance.

However, if you look closer, it’s typical to see the person is actually getting their arm range of motion by extending their lower back. That is, leaning backwards.

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Possible associated issues

• Neck pain
• Shoulder pain
• Lower back pain
  

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3) Twisting the lower back

The lower back prefers to be pretty sturdy. However, it’s common for it to rotate / twist excessively.

Examples

When doing a Bird Dog, rather than the lower back stay nice and straight and flat,

It will twist:

Next, when doing a Side Lying Leg Lift the lower back will scrunch / tilt / rotate.

Where ideally it would stay straight:

Videos going over these two scenarios:

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Possible associated issues

• Lower back pain
• Sciatica
• Piriformis syndrome

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4) Excessive extension at the lower back

(Because the lower back is so often an issue, we’ll go over it again in a different way.)

Rather than the lower back stay in a neutral position, it tends to extend too much (that lordosis you’ve been hearing all about):

Example

When doing a leg curl, it’s common for the lower back to extend too much:

Where ideally it would not move:

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Possible issues associated

• Lower back pain
• Sciatic
• Piriformis syndrome
• Hip pain

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5) Lack of hip flexion

Rather than the hip be able to fully flex, it tends to gravitate towards extension.

Example

During something requiring a great deal of hip flexion, it’s common to see a limitation. Take a Child’s Pose for instance. Rather than the person be able to get their butt to their heels,

There will be some space:

Also, you may see one hip more limited than the other. If you look at the person from their backside, you may see one hip higher than the other:

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A Bird Dog also fits in here. When the leg goes back, it’s common for people to lift the leg into more extension than necessary:

Possible issues associated

• Hip pain
• Lower back pain
• Knee pain

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6) Too much twisting at the knee

Rather than the knee stay in a good, straight alignment, it tends to turn inwards too much:

Example

When standing up and down out of a chair, or while squatting, the knee(s) will turn inward:

Rather than be in line with the feet:

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Possible issues associated

• Knee pain
• Hip pain
• Foot pain

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7) Over-pronation

Rather than the feet stay straight, they tend to turn out.

Example

Anything requiring a good deal of push off from the ankle is a good example. Rather than the feet stay straight during something like a heel raise,

They’ll slowly evert (over-pronate):

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Possible associated issues

• Foot pain
• Knee pain
• Hip pain

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I’ve put together two manuals aimed at working on the above. The first one is 7 Ways To Improve Your Posture And Movement Throughout The Day. This manual contains seven different changes you can make to your daily life. It moves from head to toe, giving a cue to correct each particular issue, and, using a ton of pictures, details some common scenarios to be on the lookout for.

It’s eight bucks, and you can get it here: 

The next one is 7 Exercises To Improve Your Posture And Movement. This one is a bit more involved. This manual contains seven exercises aimed at correcting issues from head to toe. The exercises work down the body.

• One exercise for the neck area
• One for the shoulders
• One for the upper back
• One for the lower back
• One for the hips
• One for the knees
• One for the feet

While each exercise is directed at a certain area, all the exercises will be working on more than one area at the same time. That way there’s some more bang for your buck.

For each exercise, there is the following:

• Proper exercise set-up
• Common errors
• Video going over proper form and common errors, with voiceovers from me
• Cues to think about during the exercise
• How to modify if you run into issues, such as the exercise is too hard or causes pain
• Why this exercise helps common posture and movement issues

There are a ton of pictures in this. It’s very much in the vain of “Do this, not that. Avoid that, embrace this.” I wrote this using virtually zero anatomy language. No special knowledge or vocabulary is required. It’s meant to be something you can immediately implement.

There are some tricks of the trade within the above as well. For example, if you’re someone who has trouble kneeling, how can you make kneeling more tolerable?

None of the exercises require any special equipment. If you have a home that has walls and something to sit on, you’re good to go.

I also put together two spreadsheets to go with this manual. One of the most common questions I get is, “How often per week should I do this exercise? How many sets, reps, etc?” The spreadsheets each contain a basic, sample program, answering these questions.

One is for those who want to work on a few things every day of the week, but don’t want it to take up a lot of time each day. The other sheet is for those who would rather work on some things a few days per week. (Where, inevitably, things will take a bit longer each of those days.)

They also contain a “Form Notes” tab containing all the exercises, with video links, as well as the cues you want to think about. This way it’s all in the spreadsheet, and you don’t have to go back and forth between the manual and the sheet.

What this manual is not: A specific program dedicated to correcting one dysfunction, or tailored to fulfill an entire individual’s needs. That’s what something like this is for.

This manual is ideal for those who would perhaps like to learn a few new exercises, have a general template to follow, get an idea for how many sets and reps they should do for corrective exercises, learn a few different ways to move, loosen up a bit, could go for a few new exercises to mesh with your current program, etc. A specific type of person that comes to mind: If you’re that person who does a program of bench, squat, deadlift, row, where you catch yourself routinely thinking, “I really should be doing some other exercises,” this could be a great complement.

The manual is twelve bucks, and you can get it here:

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For both manuals, after purchasing you’ll see a “Complete Purchase” button. Click that and you’ll be redirected to a page with a password and link. Click the link; enter the password; you’re good to go.

You will also receive an email receipt for your purchase, and, just in case, another email containing the aforementioned password and link. (This email may take a minute or two to come through after the receipt.)

Your email is not automatically added to any list or anything like that. You have to voluntarily opt-in in order to be added to my list, so don’t worry about it.

If you need anything, my email is b-reddy@hotmail.com

$12:

$8: 

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