At Phoenix Fitness and Training we utilize the Functional Movement Screen to identify these functional limitations and asymmetries. It is our goal to create programs based around these scores that help to correct movement pattern deficiencies before they become injuries.

From time to time, we have a physical therapist come in and do some injury assessments for the Phoenix crew. His discussions almost never happen without the mention of a lack of mobility as a primary cause of an injury and usually the first line of attack to solving the problem.

The broken record that we all play in our heads is that we know that we should stretch and take care of our bodies. We know that strength training will help us be better runners and triathletes. We read 5 Facebook posts per day about the 8 best core exercises and the 5 critical stretches for every runner. If you have been to a Physical Therapist, you have a file full of exercises that have been prescribed to you. And yet, we all know countless stories of missed training and races due to getting derailed because of injury.

In a nut shell, stretching and getting your body to move well isn’t sexy. As runners, we can stand around all day and gain appreciation for your 800 meter split times during your Yassos. We can Facebook till we are blue in the face about our race time and place and get bunches of likes in validation. But sitting around over a beer with your training friends and discussing how you completely nailed the workout of 4 X calf stretch for 30 seconds each and ramped right into 4 X soleus stretch for another round with no rest just won’t get the “oohs” and “aahs” that you are expecting. Stretching makes for bad story telling.

Quite the opposite happens. The only time that flexibility makes the front of the conversation is when people talk about how bad they are at it. It has become a bizarre badge of honor and the makings of a co-dependent relationship. Brag about how inflexible you are, go out and run devastatingly hard workouts that make your body move with dramatic compensation, get hurt, fall into a deep depression because you can’t exercise, heal and repeat the process.

As we age, losing mobility and muscle mass is a part of the process for many. The number one reason for a decrease in running pace as we get older isn’t fitness, but it is from a decrease in stride length.

Athletes and fitness enthusiasts alike can benefit from Functional Movement Screening before getting too far into a training plan. Our bodies move because of habits that turn into unconscious neuromuscular patterns which can sometimes be problematic. In the face of training stress, bad movement patterns can cause compensation in other muscles that are not meant to take the burden of certain movements. This is the typical root of most injuries.

Our screening process can be combined with a corrective exercise program that is 6 weeks in duration. We screen at the beginning of the 1st session and then assign corrective exercises to be done almost daily. As the weeks go on, the exercises progress appropriately in order to solicit neuromuscular changes and new patterns of healthy movement. We screen again at the end of 6 weeks to see and assess where to go from there.

Be a complete athlete. Do what it takes to make sure that you are ready to be a part of the lifestyle that you so dearly love.
We offer free functional movement screenings to help assess where your body may be compensating for faulty movement patterns. Contact us if you are interested in finding out where to work on better mobility as you move forward with whatever race or non-race fitness goal you are pursuing.

We screen and set up a corrective exercise program, including meeting weekly for 30 or 60 minutes. Call for details. 317-496-3615