How to Tell the Difference Between Mobility, Technical and Strength Issues When Someone Has Poor Technique
In the last few article we’ve been discussing reasons why technique falls apart. In my mind, technique generally falls apart for 3 major reasons:
- Mobility Deficits
- Technique (lack of coaching and cueing)
- Strength Deficits
So now that we know that all 3 of these can lead to poor exercise technique, how can we tell which is to blame? As a coach you generally don’t have a ton of time to make a decision when you see an athlete in front of you who can’t reach depth in squat or is having trouble getting their arms fully overhead during a jerk.
More importantly, we don’t want to assume they may have a mobility issue and then shotgun a bunch of mobility exercises to the athlete in hopes that will clean things up. We must be more efficient and effective then that.
So how can we distinguish between mobility, technique and strength issues when technique falls apart during squats, deadlifts, presses and olympic lifts?
I made a short video to help you quickly decide whether an athlete is dealing with either a mobility, technical or strength issue. Check it out:
There you have it, a few quick tips for distinguishing between mobility, technical and strength deficits. Knowing this is vital because it leads us to the correct intervention to help these folks. Otherwise we’re just guessing and potentially wasting our (and the athlete’s) time.
If you enjoyed this short clip then I wanted to let you know it’s part of a much longer webinar series included with subscription into my Fitness Pain Free Insiders Online Mentoring Program:
“Essential Coaches Series – What Every Coach Needs to Know About Pain and Injury”
I created this series because coaches and personal trainers everywhere are working with athletes in pain every day of the week. This series will tell you exactly what to do (and what not to do) with these athletes so they can continue working towards their goals and prevent injuries in the long haul.
- 7 Reasons Why Athletes Get Hurt in the Gym and What to do About It
- Evidence Based Guide to Mobility Prescription
- What is Pain and What You Need to Know When Dealing with Athletes in Pain
- How to Modify Exercises for Athletes with Knee, Lower Back, Shoulder and Hip Pain
- Plus 30+ hours of webinars about all things fitness and rehabilitation
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My mobility is limited by my technique, which lacks strength,
Dan Pope DPT, OCS, CSCS, CF L1
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