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The thoracic spine forms part of the axial skeleton, and is made up of thoracic vertebrae, the ribs, sternum and manubrium. Having adequate range of motion (ROM) in the thoracic spine is essential for healthy athletic movement. More specifically, the thoracic spine needs to extend, and rotate. Stiffness, or lack of ROM in these movements puts extra stress on other joints and areas of the body such as the shoulder and lower back, leading to injury. Here are 3 easy ways to improve your thoracic mobility: 1. Lacrosse Balls Using your SMAI lacrosse ball, place the ball between your shoulder...

The problem isn’t your program, your coach or your gym… it’s you. Regardless of your fitness goals/sport there is always a new and “sexy,” fitness program, training regime or nutrition craze to follow - the grass always appears to be greener on the other side. While you are chopping and changing from one thing to the next, searching for answers as to why you are not progressing at the rate you desire, you are missing the largest characteristic for success – consistency. Don’t feel bad, we’ve all fallen prey at one stage or another to thinking that our lack of...

As martial artists, as athletes, as motivated people, we refuse to be average. We fight against mediocrity. The problem is, in society, it is very easy to be mediocre. It's very easy to procrastinate, to settle, and to slip below our standards. Take martial arts training, for example: when you're training in martial arts, it can be very easy to punch a little lighter, to kick a little softer especially when you get tired. It’s easy to take a day off when you’re not feeling motivated. It’s easy to complain when things get tough. Here are three things to keep...

Many people might think the role of the strength and conditioning coach is to program workouts both in the weight room and on the field, to make athletes bigger, stronger and faster. What many people don’t realise is probably the most important role of a strength and conditioning coach: to ensure athletes can increase performance but avoid injury!! Many legitimate/traditional or “proper” sports use strength and conditioning to build better bodies for their sport OUTSIDE of their sport. What I am getting at here is that their sport is not in the weight room. The problem in training for CrossFit...

When was the last time that you woke up and you felt energetic, energized, excited? Think about it, when we were kids, it was so much easier to have abundant energy. However, when you look at most adults, they’re tired, fatigued or low in energy. I noticed that I’d got to a point where I was waking up and feeling sluggish. I wanted to get up and train, but my energy levels weren’t there. I had to use will power to do so. Will power is a muscle, and it can't last long. You burn out. Furthermore, by the end...