In both the Clinic and Exercise branches of Range of Motion I see very common and repeated patterns of muscle weakness and under-activity. These patterns are indicative of both lack of physical activity and a poor balance to exercise programming.
Untreated, these imbalances lead to musculo-skeletal injury, pain, dysfunction and loss of physical performance.
To remedy the most common deficiencies, I reveal the top eight:
Working from the feet and moving upwards:
Muscles involved in:
Keeping the patella (kneecap) tracking medially: Vastus Medialis.
Why are they important?
- They keep the patella aligned. Malalignment causes maltracking of the patella and can lead to pain and damage to cartilage.
What's a good way to fix them?
- Full depth squats with good technique (breaking back through the hips not forward through the knees).
- Theraband Knee Locks
Muscles involved in:
Hip Flexion: Psoas, Rectus Femoris.
Why are they important?
- They help to stop the pelvis from 'tucking under' (posterior pelvic tilt) during squat and deadlift based movements.
What's a good way to fix them?
- Learn to activate the muscles by performing anterior Pelvic Tilts and Neutral Pelvis Practice, and use this technique during movement.
Muscles involved in:
Laterally Rotating and abducting the femur: Gluteus Medius.
Why are they important?
- They prevent maltracking of the patella and lower limb musculature imbalance. Also play a role in stabilising the pelvis, reducing injury to the lower back and increasing power production.
What's a good way to fix them?
- Gluteus Medius Squats (I never prescribe any isolation exercises for the hips - it's like trying to get better at a clean and jerk by doing lateral raises).
Muscles involved in:
Extending the hip: Gluteals and hamstrings.
Why are they important?
- The posterior chain of muscles is the most important muscle group in creating all effective athletic and functional movement patterns.
What's a good way to fix them?
- Deadlifts.
- Eccentric Hamstring Lower.
Muscles involved in:
Stabilising the spine under load: Muscles of the torso, including those of the abdominal wall, hips, lower and mid back.
Why are they important?
- Neutral spine is the single most important element of complex movement for injury prevention and performance enhancement.
What's a good way to fix them?
- Heavy deadlifts with faultless technique.
Muscles involved in:
Stabilising the Scapulae: Traps, serratus anterior, rhomboids.
Why are they important?
- They create stability through the scapulae to more efficiently create strong and safe movement.
What's a good way to fix them?
Muscles involved in:
Elevating the Scapula: Upper trapezius, levator scapulae.
Why are they important?
- An elevated 'active shoulder' during overhead movements builds strength and reduces injury.
What's a good way to fix them?
- Overhead Shrugs
- Overhead exercise with faultless technique.
Muscles involved in:
Pulling the arms backwards (horizontal abduction): Posterior deltoids.
Why are they important?
- We spend most of our day with a 'frontal fixation', bent over a keyboard, trolley, child, steering wheel or chopping board. We need these muscles to keep our posture sound.
What's a good way to fix them?
Give these a whirl. If you suffer from pain or movement dysfunction, get in touch with Range of Motion to arrange a consultation.
Dan Williams
DIRECTOR - Range of Motion
Accredited Exercise Physiologist
Accredited Exercise Scientist
Level One CrossFit Coach
Dan Williams
