It's Tricky

...an old Run DMC Song, and my theme for today's blog.
Both Tracy Fober and Vern Gambetta recently made references to this article in the NY Times a few days ago:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/25/arts/dance/25palsy.html?_r=1&em=&pagewanted=all

It brings up an interesting point that Vern always drives home regarding function:

ITS MORE THAN JUST AN EXERCISE!

Of course I always give examples of remedial exercises to address specific issues, like my recent one on the pec minor stretch. However, it would be silly to believe that repeating any one stretch (even my own) would be a panacea. Rather than master the stretch its more important to understand the steps that came before it. Where were the hips in relation to the shoulder, what were my drivers? The article brought me back to my days when I worked with physically disabled students; where neuro pathways were destroyed & you needed to create new ones.

If the pec minor is ornery, there are also other issues going on. Inability to load the front side & some weak anti gravity muscles always go hand in hand. If you understand this, you can integrate this theme into the athlete's repertoire, rather than just coming up with a few ancillary exercises.