Join Rob and I as we continue on in our quest to educate the masses on performance, injury prevention and rehabilitation.  Today we go deep into the joint by joint approach for the upper body:

For last podcast covering the lower body and lumbar spine click HERE:

[0:58] Our thoughts on the crossfit games

[6:18] Smolov program, very popular but is it a good idea? (I meant to say low-bar)

[9:40] introducing our topic for the day

[10:54] Rob loves the thoracic spine

[14:37] T-spine exercises Dan likes and why mobility is not enough

[17:10] A neat trick to target the t-spine better

[17:50] Dan goes way too far in depth about the shoulder blade

[18:50] The most evil position for your shoulder

[21:54] The AC joint as a big player in shoulder health

[23:45] Pec minor as a major problem causer and a great stretch for therapists

[24:50] Shoutout to Chris Johnson – Click the link for his page

[28:22] What the heck do I do with my gleno-humeral joint?

[29:30] The dreaded GIRD and why we need to fix it

[30:20] How a lack of shoulder range of motion will damage the shoulder during dips and muscle-ups

[34:10] Lower cervical spine – Rob schools me on the neck

[37:05] SUB occipital muscles, I apologize

[37:30] To pack or not pack the neck? Insight from Jonathan Fass and Bret Contreras on the Strength of Evidence Podcast

[38:50] Any easy take-away for the neck

[41:00] How can I tell if I have a mobility issue or stability issue?

[43:50] Breaking down the kipping-pullup from a stability and mobility perspective

[49:25] Recent articles from JAMA about stone loading and low back pain

[50:00] Our favorite exercises for each joint

Enjoy,

Dan Pope

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First off, I want to say that I’m not against kipping pull-ups.  If you are a competitive crossfit athlete then they are going to be a staple part of your program.  I’m ok with that.  I do kipping pull-ups regularly.  Go ahead, make fun of me!  I also do plenty of strict pullups, weighted pullups and other rowing variations.

That being said, if you have absolutely no desire to be competitive with crossfit, it may be helpful to stick with good old traditional pullups and their variations.  This way you won’t run into any potential complications from the movement.  However, the kip is an all around fun movement to learn and it’s been a large part of gymnastics movements for years.

There’s a lot of controversy out there with kipping pull-ups.  I wrote an article on the subject over a year ago and it has easily been the most popular article I’ve ever written.  I originally attempted to delve into the literature to find some answers to the age old question of why kipping pull-ups are dangerous, and how we can fix it.  Since then I’m a year smarter, have put a lot more thought into it and believe I’ve got some greater insight to share.  These are the reasons I believe kipping pull-ups get a bad rap.

Note:  There are several ideas that float around in the crossfit world to try and prevent shoulder injuries.  My goal was to try and inject some research and critical thinking into the mix and really get after the root of the problem.  I’ve been reading a ton of shoulder research lately and am super excited to share.  I’ll try to balance out the nerd in me with the meathead side and make the information a bit more reader friendly.   …read more