Monkey Method: Movement Essentials
The Ultimate Guide to Understanding and Fixing Technical Flaws in the Handstand, Muscle-up and Olympic Lifts
A New Online Educational Course for Athletes, Trainers and Therapists that will Revolutionize Your Ability to Assess, Correct and Optimize Your Favorite Exercises.
Tired of Mobility Problems?
Hi, I'm Dan and this is Dave. We're both doctors of physical therapy. We work every day getting people like yourself out of pain and back to training.
The Road to Mastery of the Olympic Lifts and Basic Gymnastics is Very Challenging.
Coaching and learning the lifts can be frustrating and a coach must have several tools in his or her toolbox in order to progress. Getting that first muscle-up or handstand can be just as difficult and mastering these movements even more so.
We see all sorts of issues that keep people from mastery. Some people can't get their arms overhead fully, others can't squat well. These basics are at the very foundation of performance. If we don't iron these elements out at the very start of our athletic careers we'll carry these compensations into our movements over time.
Trouble is, not everyone needs the same formula for success. Some people are inherently strong and need more technique. Some people are inherently mobile and need more strict strength. Others are grossly tight and need more mobility. Some people are in the middle and need a mix of all of these.
So, how do we cater toward all of these individuals?
If we want to successfully determine where we are as athletes or determine where our athletes are as coaches, we'll need a system to figure this out. As a community we've gotten very good at many things. We've gotten very good at coaching, both from a gymnastics and olympic lifting perspective. We have amazing coaches with years of experience creating champions. We also have coaches that are very adept with programming.
However, when it comes to a systematic assessment of someone's most basic movement inefficiencies we are lacking. When someone is lacking depth in their squat what should we do about it? Where is their issue coming from? When someone can't get into a deep dip position do you think they'll have trouble with strict muscle-ups?
Of course, but why can't they get into a deep dip? Is it a mobility issue? Is it a specific weakness? Do they need more cues, or a different exercise? If we continue pushing through these limitations will we cause injuries in our athletes? How do we begin figuring this all out?
Should we just shotgun a bunch of mobility and strength exercises at our athletes? Surely we aren't being efficient if we are. Can we even be sure that we're addressing the problem? There has to be a better way...
So Who are We and Why Should you Listen to Us?
Hi I'm Dan Pope,
I have a doctorate in physical therapy, am an orthopedic clinical specialist and a certified strength and conditioning specialist.
I have over 10 years of experience as a personal trainer and coach.
I've competed as a Division 1 athlete at Rutgers University as a polevaulter, won a state and national championship in the sport of strongman and have competed twice at the crossfit regionals.
I travel and speak nationally on the topics of rehabilitation and injury prevention.
I've worked with athletes from all levels ranging from your average Joe and Jane up to the professional, olympic and crossfit games level athlete.
I collaborate with some of the smartest therapists in the world to provide elite level care at Champion Physical Therapy and Performance in Boston MA.
Hey I'm Dave Tilley,
I have my doctorate in Physical Therapy, a board certification in Sports Physical Therapy, and also have my Certified Strength and Conditioning Certification. I spent 15 years as a gymnast, with 4 years competing collegiately on the Springfield College Men's team. I have also been coaching competitive gymnastics for 10 years.
I have been very fortunate to learn from and work with a huge range of athletes struggling with mobility issues. I have been able to help athletes ranging from recreational fitness all the way up to elite level gymnasts, professional athletes, Division 1 athletes, CrossFit Games competitors, and more. This has given me the opportunity to help with the rehabilitative process, all the way up through the competitive performance arena.
Announcing our solution to this problem
Monkey Method
Movement Essentials
Dr. Dan Pope and Dr. Dave Tilley have been lecturing at power monkey camp for the past several years in an attempt to help coaches and athletes learn how to assess movement and more accurately provide corrective interventions to improve technique. We’ve spent the past several years troubleshooting all of the above mentioned problems and have come up with a solution.
Dave and Dan have created a system geared toward breaking down movement problems in the olympic lifts, muscle-up and handstand. When you have an athlete standing in front of you that has trouble moving well, where should you begin? Should we use a cue? Do we need to do more mobility? If so which mobility exercise? Which joint is causing the problem? How many exercises do we need? How long do I need to spend mobilizing? Maybe they have both a strength and control issue? It's complicated.
If we aren’t accurately assessing our athletes, then we’re just guessing. Chances are we aren’t being very accurate or efficient.
We created this product to help coaches and athletes learn how to assess their athletes and give them the most appropriate exercise to improve their technique. This way we can be much more efficient and helps our athletes progress optimally.
What are Others Saying About Monkey Method Movement Essentials?
We gave our product out as a special pre-release to a hand full of our good friends who are coaches and elite athletes themselves. Here is what they had to say about the product.
Dave Durante - 6x Team USA and 2008 Olympic Alternate Gymnastics, Power Monkey Fitness Co-Founder
Chad Vaughn - 2x Olympic (Olympic Weightlifting), 9 Time National Champion, American Record Holder in the Clean and Jerk and Snatch
Chris Hinshaw - Subject Matter Expert Crossit Aerobic Capacity
"This is Absolutely Genius"
Jason Leydon - Owner of Crossfit Milford, Coach of Several Crossfit Games Podium Placers and Teams
A Brief Look at What Movement Essentials is and What We Cover in the Product:
Monkey Method is a digital product in PDF format. Once downloaded you’ll have access to:
Ch. 1: Background Concepts
Importance of athlete individualization
Site of pain vs. site of problem
Understanding the difference between mobility vs control vs technique issues
What to do about pain and why understanding it is important
Ch. 2 Overhead Skills: Assessing and Correcting Handstand, Jerk, Tap, Swings, Kipping
What optimal technique looks like shown via 6 time team USA Dave Durante
How to assess overhead mobility and where to start intervening when athletes fail
The importance of rotator cuff and scapular care and how to implement it
The importance of strict pushing and pulling
Individual assessments for the thoracic spine, hip extension and the wrist
Video guidance for all of the exercises to improve overhead positioning
Ch. 3 Squatting, Bottom Positions of Olympic Lifts, Pistols
Mobility screen for the squat and pistol
Hip and knee anatomy applications
Finding the source of a poor squat (Hip vs. Ankle)
Mobility corrective exercises via video
Ch. 4: Front Rack
What are the most common limitations in a front rack?
What does a good front rack look like?
How do we screen the front rack to find where the problem lies
What happens when the front rack falls apart?
Corrective exercises to fix the front rack
Ch. 5: Muscle-ups and Dips
Why you should treat the bottom of the dip just like the bottom of a snatch
What a good muscle-up looks like shown by 6-time team USA Dave Durante
When do you have a flexibility problem and when do you have a strength and control issue?
Corrective exercises with video guidance
Ch. 6: Deadlift, Rowing, Snatch/Clean Bar Path, Toes To Bar
What ideal bar path looks like during the snatch
When someone’s low back rounds during a deadlift, why does this happen and why it’s important for finding the best correction
Why you may see athletes rounding their backs during rowing and what to do about it
How to teach athletes to hip hinge for optimal spinal position
Why the hamstrings might not be the only thing limiting your ability to touch your toes
Video demonstrations of the exercises to improve this
Ch. 7: Performance Complexes and Training Considerations
How to fit these exercises into a warm-up
How to make your mobility and correctives easy to implement
How to make your warm-up much more specific to the training for the day
How to be more efficient with mobility and correctives
How to apply these principles to a group training environment
Click on the video to the right to check out a preview of the course:
So Who is This Course For?
Athletes
One of the over reaching goals of this product was to help the every day athlete learn more about how they can troubleshoot their own mobility issues. We had you foremost in mind when creating this product.
Coaches and Trainers
Unfortunately there isn't much good continuing education out there for trainers who wish to learn more about systematically evaluating the main movements we see in the gym. We educate you fully on assessment so you can apply the specific intervention that gets your athletes the results they need.
Physical Therapists, Chiropractors and Physicians
Movement Essentials is exactly how we evaluate our patients on a daily basis. We'll give you the exact tools to learn how to learn how to get back to the movements your patients love and stay safe for the long haul.
Monkey Method: Movement Essentials
$149.99