T Nation

Program for Magnificent Mobility

Powerlifting
#1

Hi,

I bought the magnificent mobility DVD. I am not complaining as it is exactly what it claimed to be and the movements do seem to be very useful. But, in addition to a list of 30 discrete exercises I really would like a couple of suggested routines/programs that intelligently combines ordered subsets of these into sensible “mobility workouts”.

I am very interested in trying to apply the DVD for daily “mobility workouts” as opposed to only my warm up sessions.
I think I recall the intro suggesting doing 8-10 of the exercises each time… what 8-10 in what order? Specifcally, in my case ( like probably most everyone else with the DVD ) I want to be able to squat lower, more upright, w/ less tail bone curvature at bottom. Basically, I’d be pretty dam happy if I could do textbook ATG squats with even 135!

I also want to improve form in deadlift.

What would be a suggested intelligent daily program using the exercises presented to focus on that?

Of course I realize I could stop whining and experiment to come up with the workouts myself etc etc… but thinking i’d be spending a lot of time re-inventing the wheel if others have already done this.

Thanks,
-Phil

#2

Well, I started off doing the easy drills for a few weeks. Then, I started incorporating some of the mediums. I had to stay with a couple of the easy ones since I noticed some lack of mobility with them.

Once they got to where I was happy, I moved up the scale again. There were also a few that I had no problem doing from the get go so I took those out rather quickly.

The great part of this DVD is that it teaches you what the drills are for an you can tailor it to your own needs.

#3

No suprise but I center my dynamic stretches around the muscle groups that I intend to work. The “MM” video does a great job of highlighting what muscles are getting activated with each stretch.

So, if I was going to squat, I would probably choose a couple spinal flossing exercises (maybe an easy and a medium difficulty), I’d hit the calves, stretch the hip flexors, maybe some toy soldiers, some side lunges, leg whips, and of course the squat stretch. And I pretty much always throw in the side steps with a mini band on any lower body movement.

Probably what you need to do for a while is browse through the exercises once or twice a week until you become familiar with each stretch and what muscle it works.

#4

After watching the dvd once, I went through it again and wrote down all the exercises I wanted to do in the order they came on the dvd, generally from easiest to hardest. I just chose the ones i thought would benefit me most. i ended up with 15 of the dynamic stretching exercises and then the three static stretching ones that are reccomended. my whole warmup takes about 10 minutes and gets me sweating and loose. i use it before i lift weights or do any type of sport. i also use it as an active recovery workout. it mostly focuses on incresing body temperature and reinforcing proper movement paterns and glute activation. i can post my routine if you want.

tyler

#5

Hey Phil,

If you check out the MM thread on the Author’s Locker Room, you’ll see several sample routines we’ve outlined. If you have any questions at all, you can post them on that thread and Mike and I will take care of you.

And, as others have mentioned, part of the fun is picking and choosing for yourself based on what you find to be needed the most. Have fun with it!

Good luck!

EC