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Injury Prevention

Mike Rants: Corrective Exercise

Originally published at FLzine.com If I hear the term “corrective exercise” used in a disparaging sense one more time, I’m going to take up sword swallowing as a part time hobby. I guess I get fed up with the term because people try to use it in a negative fashion to bash my colleagues or […]

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Yoga is Overrated

Originally published at FigureAthlete.com Yoga is Overrated by Mike Robertson Yoga is overrated. Yep, you heard that right. I don’t care what your GP, best friend’s niece, or US magazine told you. It just isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Is it bad? Absolutely not. In fact, I’ve done yoga myself in the past […]

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Fun with Ad Libs

Fun with Ad Libs Today, we’re going to do a little bit different blog.  Today, we’re going to do an ad lib. Do you remember those things were you inserted a verb, adjective, noun, etc. to see what kind of crazy sentence it would make?  Let’s give it a shot.  Here’s a typical conversation that […]

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April 9th, 2009

Robertson Training Systems Newsletter 5.08 In This Issue: – Mike hatez teh squatz!!!! Mike hatez teh squatz!!! Yes, the title is somewhat in jest, but I hope you will enjoy the quick turn-around on the newsletters! Yesterday, an article ran on T-Nation titled Mythbusters.  Essentially, this was a 15 minute conversation I had with Nate […]

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Q&A: Passive Knee Stability

Mike – I’ve torn my ACL; what are the repercussions if I don’t get it repaired? Thanks! When we talk about the role of the ACL, we have to discuss the difference between the active and passive stabilizers which surround your knee. Passive stabilizers don’t contract, yet restrict motion and keep your joint “tight.”  These […]

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Why do you keep getting injured?

Do you ever wonder why you continue to get injured when training? Now I’m sure you expect me to go on some sort of diatribe about muscle imbalances, poor posture, poor mobility, etc.  And while those are all valid reasons, that’s not what I want to talk about today. Two of the most common reasons […]

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Training Tips: The Grind

Seeing as how it’s St. Paddy’s day, AND I have a wedding to attend (which explains the pinstripes pants and dress shoes), we’re going to keep things relatively simple today. When you take time off from training, you need to ease back into low rep, high intensity training.  You can’t go straight from high rep […]

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Simple tips to squat deeper

One question I get all the time is, “My back tucks under when I squat – is this ok?  And how can I fix it?” To answer the first question, no, it’s not ok.  This tucking, buttwinking, or whatever you want to call it puts the spine under repetitive flexion.  Do it long enough and […]

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Facts and Fallacies of Corrective Exercise

This article originally ran on T-Nation.com. Corrective exercise is the new “functional training.” Functional training started out with the best intentions. Well-meaning physical therapists got their clients off the leg extension machines and had them do exercises that mimicked everyday life. Somewhere along the line, though, it turned into people balancing on wobble boards, doing […]

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Old-School Article of the Week

Okay, it’s not really all that “old-school” seeing as it just got published a few months ago, but I’ve gotten a lot of questions about the lower traps lately. Top Priority for Lower Traps The lower traps are critical for upwardly rotating the scapulae, as well as scapular depression and posterior tilt.  If they aren’t […]

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Mobility-Stability Continuum

Originally posted at www.t-nation.com Mobility and stability go together like peanut butter and jelly… spandex and cardio… Eric Cressey and Tony Gentilcore. Over the past few years, gentlemen much smarter than myself have been discussing the importance of mobility and stability at length. Stuart McGill, Mike Boyle, Gray Cook, Bill Hartman, and Eric Cobb all […]

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Shoulder The Load

Originally posted at www.t-nation.com Since I’ve started writing for the T-Nation, I’ve gotten 100’s of e-mails asking me varying questions about the rotator cuff and its many somewhat magical qualities. While it may not be as cool as big quads or a great set of guns, a well-developed rotator cuff is sexy in its own, […]

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Heal that Hunchback!

Originally Posted at www.t-nation.com Correcting Kyphosis Have you ever been mistaken for a malformed Parisian who lives in a Cathedral and rings bells? If so, you could suffer from kyphosis. Kyphosis is defined as an exaggerated forward curving of the thoracic portion of the vertebral column. In lay terms it’s been called “hunchback” or “slumped […]

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Vixen Liftin’: The Comprehensive Program

Originally Posted at www.figureathlete.com I’m asked all the time about a solid training program for women. What does it look like? Should women train differently than their grunting, crotch-scratchin’ counterparts? The fact of the matter is that women don’t need to train all that differently from men with regards to sets, reps, etc. Generally, women […]

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Make the Posterior Chain Your Strongest Link

Originally Posted on www.figureathlete.com Well-developed glutes and hamstrings are a focal point for most women’s bodies. Whether the goal is to win a figure competition, to look great in a bikini, or to make the other girls at the gym jealous, a solid program will get you there faster and more effectively. And, believe it […]

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