This is a picture of me at Crossfit Uppsala, performing a movement screen. It’s a throwback to 11 years ago. It brings back happy memories of travelling around Europe, meeting and helping great people.
I love the science of the body, and I mean……all of it.
When I look at this picture, it now reflects an element of assessment that I no longer do. As coaches, we have to evolve and move forward. By expanding our knowledge, we expand our skill set.
Back then, I was a coach who was known for “biomechanics” (possibly still am) by training people to do “more functional movements”, doing functional rehab by looking at foot pronation and supination, and doing tasks like single leg balance reaches. Looking back, I think I paid more attention to detail in people doing basic movements correctly.
When I think about what this type of training did, it was simply dynamic balance and helping someone to be more stable on a single leg.
Did this help people? Yes.
Did it correct some pain and injury problems? Yes.
Did it improve performance? By making them pain-free, maybe, but really, knowing what I know now, visual, qualitative improvements in motor control could be seen.
However, it was immeasurable in its transfer to actual increased sporting performance. Now, looking at it, there isn’t enough stimulus to create any adaptation to the tissue vital for increasing meaningful performance. Foot pronation during a single-leg balance task has no dynamic correspondence to the requirements of sprinting, running and doing high-speed tasks.
This balance exercise probably improved a person’s dynamic hip stability, helping reduce/remove knee pain. But it does develop the physical qualities required for high-level, high-impact sporting movements.
Therefore, a massive part of the training process was missing…..more in Part 2!
RESOURCES AND NEXT STEPS
If you’re looking for more support and guidance, here are some valuable resources: