AN ATHLETES GUIDE

TO CHRONIC KNEE
PAIN, PART I
theories and solutions for patellar
tendonitis, jumpers knee, and patellar
tracking problems

DISCLAIMER
The author will not be held responsible for any issue (be it
injuries, pains, aches, equipment misuse, animal fertilization, or
other) that results from reading this eBook. Its purpose is strictly
informational and legal action cannot be taken against the author
for any reason on account of this written work.
Although the author admittedly bases the medical industry,
understand that he is not legally authorized to replace your
physician as a clearance prior to engaging to physical activity, nor
is he authorized to recommend anything that overrides your
physician. Be sure to get clearance from the appropriate
professional personnel prior to becoming physically active or
engaging in a rigorous exercise regimen.
My name has been cleared.

LEGALESE
All rights reserved. No part of this eBook may be reproduced (by
any means) without the expressed written permission of Anthony
Mychal. By purchasing this eBook, you (the buyer) understand
that is not meant to be shared or distributed to anyone outside of
yourself. Respect goes a long way in creating friendships, and I
like friends.

Anthony Mychal 2012

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A BRIEF THANKS
First, I want to thank you for reading this. Unfortunately,
without other crippled athletes I have no audience. Dont forget
about this guide. Print it, highlight in it, write in the margins, take
notes, and make it a personal experience. Knee pain is clever,
and youll repeat the process whether its when you become a
nine-to-fiver, or when you play basketball seven days a week.
Youre always vulnerable.
Second, remember me. My thanks are given in a reliable
contact. Send me love mail, hate mail, questions, casual things,
whatever. I always answer.
anthony.mychal@gmail.com
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I have learned from many people in my decade of travels.
First, a nod goes to James Smith and Buddy Morris, formerly at
the University of Pittsburgh. They survived my company for 500+
hours and not only taught me physical preparation, but also the
art of coaching.
Second, I want to thank: Nate Green, Alex Vasquez, Chris
Korfist, Kelly Baggett, James Smitty Smith, Dan John, John
Romaniello, Bret Contreras, JC Deen, Zach Even-Esh, Roger
Lawson II, and Mark Rippetoe. They are quality guys that gave
their individual time to answer my petty. I will never forget their
time and kindness.
Third, I want to thank Jon Call, AKA Jujimufu, from Tricks
Tutorials. He was my sole motivator and role model back when I
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was an out of shape teenager. I cant thank him enough for all he
has done for me, both directly and indirectly.
Fourth, and most importantly, I want to thank my family and
my girlfriend Katie. Without your support, I wouldnt be writing
this. Thanks for being open minded enough to let me grow into
what I am. I love you all.
Onward and upward

Anthony Mychal 2012

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter One Autobiography...9
Chapter Two Pain....12
Chapter Three Theories21
Chapter Four The Real Reason.25
Chapter Five Considerations.31
Chapter Six Soft Tissue.33
Chapter Seven Tracking..40
Chapter Eight Weight Distribution53
Chapter Nine Forefoot..57
Chapter Ten Femoral Control..70
Chapter Eleven Stretching and Mobility 92
Chapter Twelve Stuff You Should Be Doing ...101
Chapter Thirteen Rehabilitation..104
Chapter Fourteen The Program...109
Chapter Fifteen Q&A123
Book Two...127

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PREFACE
THE SPAWNING
My written experience with knee pain started when I made a
fitness blog. I was a lifetime sufferer, and after rehab my
confidence was climbing alongside my health.
The Bees Knees was finalized in five articles, detailing
easy ways for athletes to stop knee pain. But my blog wasnt
popular, so the information just sat in cyberspace. School work
forced me to neglect my blog, and I forgot I had ever written the
articles. Life went on.
A few loose thank you e-mails trickled to my inbox from The
Bees Knees, months later. This was encouraging enough for
me to want to read the originals.
I was embarrassed at what I found.
Perhaps it was my novice writing style or how much I had
grown since then, but my only chance for redemption was to
rewrite them, the way they deserved to be written. Im wondering
if Ill say the same about this eBook in a years time.
IS IT FOR ME?
Ignorance rules the fitness industry. One side of the bridge
houses Ph.D.s with no experience outside of a Petri dish athletic
environment. The other side, personal trainers that found their
credentials after an eight hour weekend workshop.

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Its best to look at people that have done what you want to
do. Dont search the weak to find strength. Dont listen to the
small to get big. Experience is better than science because the
two highways havent merged. As Timothy Ferriss alluded to in
his newest book, The Four Hour Body, doctors could learn about
steroids if they chatted with bodybuilders.
This text isnt about shoulder health, how to cut hair, or
giving a woman a fifteen minute orgasm (with the success of The
Four Hour Body I should reconsider). Its for people that live
feeling twenty years older than their age. Its for athletes with
tendonitis and tracking problems. Its for people with knees that
make more noise than the rocking chair in the corner of the living
room. Its for the athlete that looks to the sky for a semblance of
health. Its for you.
Experts say you need medicine, surgery, or expensive
physical therapy. I hate medicine, I dont like cutting flesh, and
Im poor. I looked for another way.

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ON FEMORAL CONTROL

In April 2011, Kelly Baggett released an article entitled, Do

the Hip Flexors Really Deserve to be Ignored? At that time, I
was revising this Guide for the fourth time, and what Baggett
described as femoral control summarized my theory.
The definition given from his website is, the muscles that
attach on the upper thigh bone from up around the waist (the
psoas and glutes) should be fully in control of the thigh bone,
rather than those that attach lower, such as the TFL.
Kellys article was about training the hip flexors, but the
concept is the same. In respect to knee pain, the muscle of our
hip (psoas and glutes) should power lower body movement. They
are specialized muscles with limited functions hip extension or
hip flexion. When our hip fails, the quadriceps and hamstrings
take on more responsibility. They are the bodys failsafe because
they can also flex and extend the hip. But they are weaker and
smaller. They arent capable of handling high volumes and loads
like the glutes and psoas. The glutes are the largest muscle in
the body, and its not a coincidence. Its expected to be a
powerhouse.
Yet we live funky lives. Our high volume of sitting and other
habits make the smaller muscles work in place of the bigger
muscles. This stresses structures more than what they are
capable of, resulting in pain. Its like continuously working
overtime without extra pay. Eventually the workers strike.

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What follows in this text isnt all encompassing, because I

picked a simpler path. Often times, authors jam information and
pictures into their work because we associate bigger with better.
Youre not going to find detailed anatomy here because you can
just step over to Google for that.
A 200 page book may seem more informative than the 100
page book, but its rarely the case. The 100 page book has an
advantage in that each concept, idea, and sentence has to be
refined, clearer, and more useful. Writing a 200 page novel isnt
difficult. What is, however, is condensing those 200 pages to 100
pages by eliminating the unnecessary.

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CHAPTER ONE AUTOBIOGRAPHY

HISTORY = FUTURE
At 21 years old, I could have a conversation with my knee
and enjoy a beer at the same time. My problems started way
before that though. When I was a kid, my knees clicked on
command. My mother warned of permanent problems to frighten
me.
I grew, and my problems shrunk. But my left knee still
clicked, and after a season of basketball I ended up in the
doctors office with a broken finger and achy knees.
He did his special teststwisting, bending, and turning
waiting for me to wince. I didnt. He asked for my activity history,
which was pretty loaded. I played basketball six days a week and
I was a closet acrobat. My problems werent shocking to him.
Telling your doctor that you do backflips in your backyard wont
end well.
My knees were overused and my finger was beyond repair.
At least, thats what he told me. I was given pills and told to rest.
Turns out he was right about my finger. My knees, not so much.
Years later, I fell in love with barbell weight training. Legs
were my strong point, and I squatted often (to stave off upper
body embarrassment) using what most call an olympic squat
high bar position, close stance, and deep. My knees would hurt,
just like they did in high school. I didnt think they could be fixed.
After all, they were just overused, right? What was I supposed to
do? Not walk?
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I mingled around the fitness industry and became obsessed

with fitness, strength, and health. My favorite book was Starting
Strength by Mark Rippetoe and Lon Kilgore. After reading the
squat chapter, my high bar squat transformed into the low bar
squat described in the book.
An injury forced me to start back at the beginning, so I ran
the Starting Strength program as written. After work one day, I
prepared for my workout three sets of five, at 335. During my
first work set, my right knee popped as instability radiated through
my leg. My knee always made noise, but it was never this audible
and the feeling wasnt the same. Normally, when my knee felt
stiff I could make it click to relieve pressure. But I couldnt. My
superhero clicking powers were gone. And thats when I learned
the difference between a click and a pop.
I guessed that my meniscus was partially torn. I feared the
doctor because I feared surgery. No news was better than bad
news.
The healing process was a struggle. The pain was above
the tolerable level I seesawed with through my teens. I ended up
going to a sports medicine doctor. My hopes were low, but my
psyche was so unstable that I needed reassurance.
My appointment was more of the same that I encountered
four years backx-rays, tests, and recollection. My knee
described my problem better than I could, because I had severe
crepitus.
Surprisingly, my meniscus was healthy, but I was diagnosed
with patellar tracking problems and patellar tendonitis. Instead of
going to physical therapy (he said I didnt need to because my
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quadriceps were well muscled), he gave me some exercises and

a knee brace.
My medical expenses were adding up fast. My insurance
didnt cover the $50 brace, which broke when I tried to put it on.
Add the two $25 co-pays from my other visits, and thats how you
blow $100 on knee pain.
Knee Tip #1
Swallow your pride and make sure your pain isnt a serious
medical problem. Check with your insurance company and make
sure this wont cost more than a co-pay. You also want to be
wary of anything the doctor tries to give you, like a brace. These
are considered luxuries, not covered under insurance.

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CHAPTER TWO PAIN

MEDICAL BABBLE
Youve read everything the internet has to offer. You know
the anatomy of the knee inside and out. Youre 100% confident in
saying you know what your problem is.
Youre wrong.
You need to see the inside. This requires a doctor
appointment, so schedule one. X-Rays are better than your
eyeball, but not as good as a MRI or CT-Scan. See what your
insurance covers so you dont screw yourself financially. And
before you go, have a diagnosis ready for the doctor. Telling
them what you think is wrong will give them an idea of not only
where the pain is, but also what youre going through.
INJURIES
Injuries can occur for many reasons. When it comes to knee
pain that can be fixed without surgery, youre looking for an achy
pain that fades in and out with no origin. The pain is chronic,
meaning it has been occurring over a long time. Typical overuse
problems fall into this category. What starts as knee pain
becomes pain left of the knee cap, which becomes, I need a
cane. Although this sounds depressing, chronic injuries dont
require the needles, knives, and Novocain.
But acute injuries surely do. They affect the deep structures
that stabilize the joint, are usually severe, and can be traced back
to one moment in time. Snapping or popping noises are signs,
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especially after one particular incident. Fall off of a ladder and

hear a pop? Yeah, you have problems far beyond my control.
PATELLAR TENDONITIS (JUMPERS KNEE)
A Google search of, patellar tendonitis, gets around 48,600
hits. Jumpers knee, about 148,000. Most people get the two
confused, but its one of those the same but different situations.
Patellar tendonitis is an acute inflammation of the patellar
tendon, the strong rectangular band that connects the knee cap to
the shin. Its not much of an injury, just a temporary problem. On
the other hand, jumpers knee is a chronic condition. The tendon
is no longer inflamed, and its technically not tendonitis, but rather
tendinosis or tendinopathy, which means the tissue is degrading.
If youre going to play a game of hoops it will shake out like this:
Patellar Tendonitis no problems before or during game, but
some soreness, pain, or flare ups after.
Patellar Tendonosis you have to warm up an extra 20 minutes
so your knees feel good, and even then youre playing through
pain.
With tendonitis, pan usually nestles below the knee cap in
the tendon itself. With tendonosis, however, its common for the
pain to creep above the kneecap. Regardless, it all happens in
the same band of tissue that forms from the rectus femoris and
the convergence of the quadriceps.
Most resources say both conditions are caused from
overuse, and cured by rest-ice-compression-elevation (RICE),
quadriceps exercises, stretching, and painkillers.

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If it were only that easy.

PATELLAR TRACKING
Sometimes your kneecap gets pulled in a direction that
displaces it from its normal groove. Because of this, it doesnt
glide where it is supposed to. The body responds with a lot of
pain, and a lot of noise (usually crepitus). Dont confuse tracking
problems with a true dislocation. Your steering wheel may be
misaligned, but your tire didnt fall off.
PATELLOFEMORAL PAIN
Tendonitis and tracking problems are a small portion of a
category called patellofemoral pain, which translates to pain
around the kneecap.
Chondromalacia, an irritation of the knees cartilage, is
another common problem. Once again, Google consultation
reports symptoms of pain in or around the knee and treatment by
strengthening exercises, RICE, and pain killers. Its sad to say,
but the name is arbitrary when it comes to patellofemoral pain.
Treatment is the same.
INTERNAL ANATOMY
Your knee is a hinge joint. It flexes (foot to butt) and extends
(kicking a ball). Its a stable joint with limited range of motion
(ROM), unlike your shoulder. Movement outside of flexion and
extension is problematic.
There are structures to prevent rotation and lateral
movement. The lateral-collateral ligament (LCL) and medialcollateral ligament (MCL) run from the side of your leg (femur) to
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the side of your shin (tibia). They prevent your knee from
collapsing inward or outward.
Under your leg and above your shin, the anterior-cruciate
ligament (ACL) and posterior-cruciate ligament (PCL) form an X,
to keep your shin from moving back and forth under your upper
leg.
Lastly, there are menisci. They are like Dr. Scholls Gel
Insoles, so your bones dont crash into each other. One outside
(lateral), one inside (medial).
And thats the fastest anatomy course youll ever take.

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INJURY MECHANISMS
As you will read in future chapters, the knee tracks over the
second toe. Inward collapses are most common and more severe
than outward collapses, with the former likely involving the MCL,
ACL, PCL, or meniscus. Be nice to your doctor if this happens;
youll be visiting frequently.

Left Inward collapse / Center Perfect alignment / Right Outward collapse

CASE STUDIES
A few of my friends were willing to share their experiences
with knee problems. Click on the name if its hyperlinked. Notice
how most examples are traced back to a specific incident, which
hints to internal injury.
TylerFM
This happened to my knee a while ago and the bone is now
sticking out next to my knee. Also, it is unaligned which has
caused me back problems. The doctors couldn't find anything
wrong and it still hurts.
Waza
This is how I nearly tore my meniscus. As you can see in the
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video, it doesn't look that bad. That's what I thought, so I just kept
on tricking. Three months later, it was suddenly unbearable to
walk, so I saw a physical therapist and that's when all the shit
started. I was out of tricking for a month and a bit.
Seiji
Pole vaulting accident when I landed funny on one leg. My knee
made a loud, deep, popping sound and suddenly I was in a lot of
pain. About a minute later I got up and walked away to go get
some ice for it because I knew something was severely wrong. I
would occasionally feel instability by moving my knee a certain
way, it felt like the accident happening again except without pain.
It didn't swell noticeably until about 4 hours later, but the real
swelling happened when I went to sleep. The next day, I couldn't
see my kneecap anymore and my ROM (range of motion) was
terrible. X rays showed nothing, so an MRI was ordered which
revealed an ACL rupture. The orthopedist made sure of it by a
positive anterior drawer test. It tore off of the femur, so now it just
sits on top of my tibia doing nothing.
I honestly don't know how it happened; I didn't land any differently
than I had before.

Mads
I had a gymnastics accident about 2 years ago. My right knee
dislocated, tearing my acl, pcl, lcl and a muscle. The tibia slid
about an inch up on the femur, crushing my main artery and
causing some nerve damage. My first surgery was a bypass later
that night, just to get the blood stream back in my leg. They also
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had to perform a fasciotomy because the injury caused me to get

compartment syndrome. About 2 weeks later they transplanted a
new acl, and reconstructed my lcl. Because of the bypass they
didn't want to replace the pcl. Then one year later at a different
hospital they transplanted a new pcl, and reconstructed my lcl
again using some of my hamstring from the left leg.
As of today, I got 4 screws for my acl and pcl, and two metal
anchors for my lcl, and a total of 165 stitches. I'm still in
rehabilitation, and I've gotten most of my (slow) strength back, but
still missing a lot of the explosive power. My knee makes a lot of
cracking and popping sounds and is a little bit "looser" than my
good knee.
Yuri
When I was younger I had a couple occasions where I twisted
my left knee, felt a pop and it hurt a bit the next day or two.
However, I was usually ok after a little time off though I do wish I
was smarter back then.
A little over a year ago, I landed on my right leg onto a mat with
the knee straight and my body still twisting. I heard a pop and got
a weird feeling in my leg and got worried. This was the morning of
the first day of working a gymnastics camp so already the rest of
the week was going to be shitty. The weird thing was that I was
ok for the next few hours. Though the knee felt a bit off, I still had
full ROM and was able to squat all the way down and straighten
the leg. That evening is when it set in. It started to swell (it felt a
lot more swollen than it looked) and I lost ROM in it. It hurt to
move the knee to a position other than slightly bent. I could not
fully straighten or bend the knee and there was a good amount of
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pain with it. I drove to sporting goods store after work and
hobbled in to buy a knee brace. That night I lathered up in theragesic and hoped for the best.
The knee brace helped a lot, and I spent the next few days
walking in a half-limp, slowly working up my ROM. It took about
two weeks to get full ROM back in the knee, and I did about a
month (maybe 6 weeks) or so of rehab. Might have been overkill,
but I had to be sure. I did lots of glute and hamstring work in the
rehab and it helped a lot as well as made my ass more defined. I
never went to the doctor, but my diagnosis was a torn LCL. The
knee is fine today, no damage done.
Knee Tip #2
As a general rule, internal damage will require heavy medical
assistance. Other small problems like patellar tendonitis/jumpers
knee and patellar tracking problems can be fixed without
tremendous intervention.
A BOOK OF PREVENTION?
I know youre thinking about it, especially after the horror
stories: can this book fully prevent injuries?
No, no it cant.
As an athlete, you engage in high risk activitiestheres no
escaping that aspect of sports. You cant prevent landing in a
compromising position after losing your awareness during a
twisting flip in the air. You cant prevent someone from landing on
the side of your leg. You cant prevent a puck from hitting the
side of your knee. You cant prevent a knee on knee collision.
These are accidents that need to be accepted as possibilities.
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Outside of these scenarios, however, measures can be

taken to reduce the risk of injury. The principles in this book can
surely help.

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CHAPTER THREE THEORIES

BARBELL TRAINING
Stronger muscles go a long way in preventing injuries. Guys
like Joe DeFranco and Kelly Baggett make their living on keeping
athletes strong and healthy. Since this guide is written for
athletes, I hope you have a basic understanding of barbell
exercises. Its not necessary, but it will help. If youre worried
about not knowing enough, look into Mark Rippetoe and Lon
Kilgores text, Starting Strength. YouTube is your next best
friend. Although Im recommending different sources, be warned
that this eBook will differ from them. But for general concept
sake, its good to know as much as you can.
For everyone else, lets take a look at some popular theories
about the origin of knee pain.
DOMINANCE THEORY
Certain exercises have tags that indicate which muscles will
be used most during the movement. For instance, a squat (and
its variations) are quadriceps dominant. A deadlift (and its
variations) are hip, hamstring, or posterior dominant. Muscles
most involved are a consequence of body position.
Quadriceps dominant exercises will stress the quads the
most. This happens, usually, from a more upright torso which
causes the knees to extend beyond the toes to keep the body
balanced.

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The deep position of a free squat. The knees are slightly forward of the toes and
the back angle is more vertical to accommodate

Hip dominant movements will stress the hamstrings and

glutes. The torso is more horizontal and the knees barely move,
keeping the lower leg nearly perpendicular with the ground.

The deep position of a deadlift variation. The shins are nearly vertical and the torso is
parallel to the ground placing more stress on the posterior structures.

One theory of knee pain is predicated on doing too many

quadriceps dominant exercises, which creates a strength
imbalance between the muscles on the front of the leg compared
to the muscles on the back of the leg. Squats have gotten a bad
name because of this, but most of it is unwarranted.
Avoiding things that cause pain is a good strategy, unless
youre hiding the problem instead of correcting it. And if youre
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following this theory, someone is yelling ready or not, here I

come.
THE VASTUS MEDIALIS OBLIQUE THEORY
Another muscular imbalance theory says the vastus medialis
oblique is the cause of your knee trouble because it doesnt fire
correctly.

Its responsible for end range knee flexion and rehab

strategies will target the top portion of a squatting motion with
exercises like terminal knee extensions and petersen step ups.

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But there is no holy grail exercise that cures knee pain. If

adding a few sets of easy exercises were effective then why is
knee pain so prominent?
Knee Tip #3
Everything you know is wrong, including the dominant
movements theory.
Knee Tip #4
Training through pain is a surefire way to always have pain.
THE SOURCE
There are more theories, but they all focus on the site of
pain. Complaining to (most) doctors about knee pain results in a
long look at the patellar tendon. After all, thats where the pain is
and as the saying goes, where there is smoke, there is fire.
But if you spend your time watching the flames, you wont
see arsonist breaking for the woods. Its about what is causing
the problem, not where (or what) the problem is. Instead of
overanalyzing your quadriceps and patellar tendon, start looking
at your hip and ankle. Your knee is caught between two faulty
structures.
Knee Tip #5
Dont blame your quadriceps, they are not the problem.

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CHAPTER FOUR THE REAL REASON

The popular theories predicated on having a dysfunctional
knee seem to make sense. But if these theories were valid, knee
pain wouldnt be as prominent. They didnt apply to me, I know
that. To consider the whys and hows, you have to go back to
science class.
PHYSICS
When your foot hits the ground during movement, force is
transmitted from the ground up through your body, like electricity
flowing through a circuit. If youre hitting a baseball the current
goes through the foot, ankle, knee, hips, shoulders, elbows, and
wrists, before it gets to the bat, and eventually the ball. Any
hitting coach will tell you power is generated in the legs.
Sometimes the electricity doesnt exit the system as it does
in baseball. Sticking a landing in gymnastics involves the
electricity going up the chain and then back down the chain in an
effort to keep rigid. A lot of times, harnessing the energy like this
is harder than letting it flow out.
Knowing that every link in the system has a responsibility,
you can see that if something underperforms, something else has
to over perform to compensate.
Knee Tip #6
Physics and force can explain the cause of your pain if you have
the ability conceptualize it.

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THE ASSEMBLY LINE

Your lower body is an assembly line. Each major joint
(ankle, hip, knee) are equipped with a certain amount of workers.
The hip is the workhorse. It requires 50-60% of the employees.
The next largest is the knee requiring 20-30%. Lastly, the ankle,
being the smallest, needs 10-20%. (I think Bret Contreras uses a
similar analogy, but with a waterfall.)
Why are different joints assigned a different amount of
workers? Because muscle size hints to capacity. The glutes are
the largest muscle in the entire body, let alone lower body.
Maintaining a bigger facility requires more workers.
Employees have the potential to work above normal capacity
in dire times. But 10 employees doing the job of 20 employees
comes with a price. Because more work is being done in the
same amount of time, the quality diminishes. Its frantic and
rushed. Things are missed and skipped. Workers get angry.
Their paycheck isnt reflecting extra work. A strike is around the
corner.
If the hip is only working at 50% of its capacity, the
breakdown changes. The knee has to work more than twice as
hard to cover for it. Our patellar tendon doesnt like that workload
its not built for it.
LIFE
You like muscles that you can see in the mirror. Flexing
your biceps and quadriceps is easy because you have more
control over what you can see. Flexing your latissimus dorsi is

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difficult for a non-fitness enthusiast. Trapezius? Hamstrings?

Even more difficult.
Compared to your knee, you have little voluntary control over
your hip muscles. There isnt as much visual stimulation. Your
life sucks you down further. Desk jobs, chairs, cars, and
computers put our hips in an unfavorable situation. Has your butt
ever fallen asleep from sitting too long?
Having no control of your hip forces a bypass in favor of the
quadriceps. Foot and ankle problems are directly related to hip
function. Smash your big toe with a hammer if you dont believe
me. Force follows the path of least resistance, and you will use
the quadriceps if they work better than the hip, even if its not built
for it.
Knee Tip #7
Your knee pain is caused by lack of voluntary control over the hip,
not a lack of strength of the hip.
LISTENING AND BACKING OFF
Fluid, fast, and forceful movement is a memory if you have
knee pain. This gets frustrating, making it tempting to push the
limits of comfort to become your former self. But in quicksand, its
better to remain calm.
Youve suffered enough. Your body doesnt know how to
feel healthy. Human psyche adapts and expects things that occur
frequently in life. Attachment to people, places, feelings, and
emotions shape who you are. A daredevil needs the adrenaline
rush. A husband needs his wife (depending on who you ask, of

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course). Dont let your body need pain. You cant fix it if your
body expects it. Mental healing comes before physical healing.
Star football players that get hurt on Sunday are usually
limited in practice. Why limited and not inactive? Because they
can do things that dont cause pain, which helps retain skill.
If you have to cut back, do it. But dont succumb to bed
rest. Do what you can do within your comfort zone. A lower
body injury shouldnt prevent upper body strength work. Explore
new hobbies. Dont let it destroy you.
For three months, my lower body workouts were lifts with
135 pounds. It was boring, but it facilitated my recovery. Dont
obsess about losing your strength. Regaining abilities is much
easier the second time around. Besides, without health strength
is useless.
The great lifter, Vasili Alexeyev, once said, It seems to me
that some of the talented athletes lack one thingthey haven't
had an injury. That's right! An injury that will put them out of
commission for a year during which time they'll have a chance to
weigh every-thing.
You cant take the flour, eggs, and sugar out of a cake thats
already baked. Own your defeat. Clean the kitchen, buy new
ingredients, take your time, and follow the recipe.
Do what you have to do to feel healthy, but make sure you
keep tabs on how your injury feels. This is where doctors that
prescribe rest and painkillers fail. Its obvious that after downing
medicine that kills pain and avoiding what causes pain, you wont

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have pain. But it doesnt mean anything healed. Youre just

masking a permanent problem for a small window of time.
If you have a strong urge to touch hot metal objects, youre
going to get burned. If youre given medicine to treat your unique
mental disorder, youll stop touching scalding stove tops. But
once the medicine is gone, youll still have the problem. Just
because something can be done to prevent a problem doesnt
mean that something has been done to correct a problem.
Knee Tip # 8
Bed rest will only appear to cure your knee pain.
THE HORIZONAL PLANE
Dysfunction starts with a lack of voluntary hip control. The
quads become hyperactive and are used more than they should
be, exposing the patellar tendon to an enormous workload. But
why do you lose voluntary control of the hip? How can the
strongest and largest muscle in the body fall asleep?
First, you sit down a lot. Theres nothing natural about your
butt falling asleep in a computer chair. Sitting requires hip flexion,
which stretches the glute. Static stretching inhibits. So by sitting,
youre inhibiting the glutes.
Second, your life takes place in the axial vector, or the up
and down direction as I like to call it. You walk up steps. You get
up from sitting in the car. You stand up from the potty.
Everything is up and down.
Third, your training takes place in the up and down direction.
You squat down and up. You bend down and pick the bar up.
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Youre more concerned about a vertical jump than a sprint. Im

sure youre getting the picture now.
Fourth, you wear heeled shoes. The higher the heel on a
shoe, the less hip extension occurs during your stride. You rely
more on an up and down bouncy walk, which brings us back to
that damn axial vector.
And fifth, youre more concerned about your biceps and
mirror muscles.
Everything we do lowers the function of our hip, ankle, and
foot. But the problems dont manifest at home, so they never get
tagged as a problem. Yet knees and lower backs are hotspots for
pain. Stop looking at the site of pain to find a reason for pain.
With the knee, look above and below the joint. I cant say youll
understand the knee better after you have read this eBook, but
youll understand the hip and ankle like you never have.

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CHAPTER FIVE CONSIDERATIONS

To become a better athlete and to fix your knee pain, you
need to follow what I call considerations. They are rules, yes, but
I like the term considerations because they are things you
should, well, consider before doing anything that involves the
lower body.
From here, the next six Chapters are broken down into each
consideration for easier referencing. If youre looking for
exercises that target a particular consideration, just visit the
Chapter. Its easier than scouring through the stages of
rehabilitation, trying to remember when an exercise was
introduced. If a headline is colored teal, it means the exercise
that follows is used in the rehabilitation plan.
After those six Chapters, the specific prescriptions are given
with workout logs using the detailed exercises, and I also tie up
some unresolved issues you may have.
The considerations are given their own page (p. 22) so that
you can print them out and litter them everywhere. Put them on
your dashboard. Put them near your computer. Read them every
morning and a part of a pre and intra-workout ritual. Make a tshirt out of them. Whatever. As long as youre reading them
often.

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CONSIDERATIONS
1.Take care of soft tissue problems through self
massage and self myofascial release.
2.Track the knee over the second toe.
3.Keep an even weight distribution in the weight
room.
4.Optimize forefoot function.
5.Establish femoral control.
6.Regain flexibility and mobility in the hip flexors.

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CHAPTER SIX SOFT TISSUE

ITS ALL IN THE FASCIA
Massage and foam rolling are healing methods that pin point
a portion of the muscle complex called the fascia. But like other
gadgets, they are used without knowing the hows and whys.
Static stretching used to be the epitome of muscle care, but
people got tired of the blood coagulating in their brains when they
were touching their toes. Other forms of stretching became
popular (dynamic, static, PNF, etc.), especially after static
stretching was shown to reduce power output. And not too long
ago someone noticed that when we stretch, we stretch the muscle
belly. But the muscle belly is sheathed with a film (fascia) that
runs continuously with the tendons, which raised the question: If
the muscles needed stretched, shouldnt the fascia need
stretched?
SOFT TISSUE CORRECTIVES

SELF MYOFASCIAL RELEASE

To stretch the fascia, most people use a foam roller. Its a
fancy tube encased in hard Styrofoam. The technical term for
stretching the fascia via foam rolling is self myofascial release
(SMR).

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Left PVC roller encased in a yoga mat / Center Lacrosse Ball / Right Foam Roller

Foam rolling has become so vogue, Ive heard some people

pretend they are releasing the fascia of their armpit as they apply
deodorant (I might have made that up). Regardless, you want to
avoid rolling around on cylindrical piping like a jackass without a
purpose.
In addition to releasing fascia, foam rolling can relieve pain
by the same mechanism of massage. Neural impulses are sent
that dull pain receptors, making it an inhibiting activity. Yet it is
recommended regularly as a warm up tool despite static
stretching getting the ax not long ago for having the same
inhibiting powers.
To shake the fascia, you need to be aggressive. Most
commercial foam rollers are too gentle. Instead of buying a roller
online, go to your local hardware store and get a 4-5 PVC pipe
and a roll of duct tape. Duct tape the PVC pipe so your clothes
grab on it better when you roll. In the picture above, I taped a cut
yoga mat to the PVC, which can also be done. Not only am I
saving you money, but youre creating something more effective
than anything you can buy in a fitness store.

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The sensitive spots will be your quadriceps and IT band,

specifically the rectus femoris and vastus lateralis. There isnt
any wrong position, but it is best if you spend most of your time on
your hot spots, which is a fancy word for places that hurt like hell
when pressure is applied.
Using the PVC creation is as easy as putting it on the ground
and cramming the muscle in question with it. Youll see most
people roll up and down on it, but thats not as effective as it could
it be. Think of your fascia like hair. It takes a few downward
swipes through your hair with a comb before you get the knots
out. But if you go side to side or front to back with the comb, the
knots magically reappear. Pick an area, concentrate on it, and
move in all directions. I like rolling side to side and doing mini up
and down pulsations on real sensitive areas. It may look mildly
sexual, so make sure no one around you is a comedian. If youre
new to this kind of thing, your muscles will be sensitive. Progress
to leaning more of your bodyweight onto the hot spots. Go slow,
and dig in.

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SELF MASSAGE
If youre rich enough to see a massage therapist or ART
practitioner, then book your appointment for an IT band release or
an aggressive friction massage that involves the quads. Theyll
have something brutal for you if you tell them youre in for knee
pain. If you dont want to spend the cash, heres a thrifty third
generation recipe that was mutated from some old Charlie Francis
advice.
1. Grab your favorite menthol rub (icy hot, blue heat) and
odorless aspercream. If you do not want to absorb the
chemicals is those creams, Paul Rossi, a blog reader says,
a good substitute is a homemade mix of coconut oil and
cayenne pepper. Make sure the coconut oil is at or above 75
degrees F so the cayenne pepper can be mixed in it.
2. Before you go to sleep, lube up your knee cap, patellar
tendon, and vastus medialis and lateralis (going 1-3 above
the kneecap).
3. Massage the creams inget some positive vibes going.
4. Be gentle to the patellar tendon and the knee cap, but be
angry with the quads.
5. Make it a very Zen process.
6. Go to sleep with your knee ablaze.

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Yellow gentle area / Green aggressive area / Gray angry area

THE LACROSSE TREATMENT

The lacrosse ball is a specialized version of a PVC roller. It
has the same purpose, but because its smaller, its much more
focalized (providing more pressure, as your face will soon attest
to).
Youre going to merge the PVC rolling and self massage
sections above to provide specialized relief to the rectus femoris.
If you have the time and want to explore other areas, thats fine.
But for the purposes of this eBook, the lacrosse ball has to be the
rectus femoris killer.
I like using the roll and bend technique. This entails doing
mini back and forth rolls over an area, and then bending the knee
a few times. This stretches and moves the rectus femoris,
allowing the ball to break up adhesions.
Start at the anterior superior iliac spine and the external
rotators on the hip and finish directly above the knee cap. You
have no idea what Im talking about, so just look at the sequence
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of pictures. Put the ball on those places, lean your bodyweight

into them, oscillate and wiggle back and forth, and then bend your
knee ten times. Try to seek some sense of relief in each area
before moving on.
Knee Tip #9
You MUST induce positive feelings into your knee for it to heal. If
it constantly feels pain, it wont know life without it.

The hot spots of the lacrosse treatment. Focus on each of the above five areas. Use
pressure and knee bends to relieve the areas.

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An example of a knee bend. Once the ball is secured on a sensitive area and ample
pressure is applied, bend the knee to shake the soft tissue. Use this technique on each of
the five trigger points.

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CHAPTER SEVEN TRACKING

Patellar mistracking can be a devastating conditioning. But
considering it doesnt involve surgery or invasive treatment, youre
lucky. Mistracking occurs when the knee cap doesnt sit in its
groove. It is a misunderstood condition, and those that are
diagnosed with it dont know what the hell to do.
Common treatments are terminal knee extensions and other
movements as described in the Vastus Medialis Oblique theory.
Some people praise the VMO theory of knee pain, and Ive had
blog readers tell me that terminal knee extensions are miracle
workers. But miracles dont happen to everyone, and I certainly
wasnt an ample candidate.
Most people that have patellar tracking problems are heavy
squatters and deadlifters that do a lot of lifting without their knee
properly aligned over their foot (as discussed on pages 10-11).
This is largely a consequence of hip control and avoiding it
requires following my golden rule: the knee must track over the
second toe.

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Correct alignment with the knee over the second toe.

An inward or valgus collapse, the weight is carried more so on the inside of the foot. This
is a risk position for severe internal damage during forceful movements.
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An outward or varus collapse , the weight is carried more so on the outside of the foot.
This can cause patellar tracking problems.

Powerlifters and barbell enthusiasts are susceptible because

of exaggerated cues. Shoving your knees outside during a squat
is a good idea if they are collapsing inward. But there is a chance
they could be going too far outside, just like they can be going too
far inside. Its like getting in a huge anterior tilt to prevent back
injury. Sure, youre protecting your back, but youre exposing
your abs. Anytime you deviate to an extreme, something is
getting compromised.
When your knee isnt tracking with your second toe, youre
altering the linear hinge that the knee is fond of. Its like a pair of
pliers twisting the handles in opposing directions grinds the
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components together. This is why most people with mistracking

have crepitus.
Whether youre running, jumping, landing, squatting,
deadlifting, scuba diving, canoeing, drawing, cooking, knitting, or
kissing keep the knee over the second toe. If you dont,
mistracking manifests to other motor patterns. Squatting without
correct alignment, means jumping without correct alignment.
Soon enough, youll be in enough pain to re-read this PDF.

Knee Tip #10

The knee must track over the second toe.
You may be familiar with common tactics to deal with this
problem. People like to squat with bands around the knees, or
with a ball in between the thighs.

Yes, it is tempting to mimic Jessica Biel, but both of the

above are ineffective and can actually cause patellofemoral pain.
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As you should know by now, Im a firm believer in fixing the

hip and foot before worrying about specific knee modalities. Even
though I havent cited anything, Im not pulling this information
from the sky. There are many studies that show that anterior
pelvic tilts and foot problems (specifically navicular drop) are more
prevalent in those that have knee valgus or previous ACL injuries.

The foot on the right is overly pronated, a position similar to navicular drop.

A squat with pronated feet navicular drop that risks severe internal knee injury. As
you can see, the knee are collapsed inward leaving the knee astray and off of the second
toe alignment.

If youre pronating the foot, the knee juts inward and tracks
with the big toe or further. Anterior pelvic tilting makes tracking
more difficult because the hip is disengaged and weak. This
wouldnt that big of a problem if the hip rotators didnt dictate thigh
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positioning which ultimately determines knee and foot

alignment.
So when youre in an anterior tilt your rotators are
disengaged meaning that your thigh is free to roam. If the thigh
roams, the foot will accommodate and the knee then settles in
between them.
But when the hip is engaged the thigh is controlled. Good
feet and good hips mean good knees, especially when it comes to
rotation. Stand up, squeeze your glutes, and trying wobbling
your legs. Now, get into an anterior tilt and try wobbling your legs.
Crazy, eh?
TRACKING CORRECTIVES

Tracking the knee over the second toe is an artifact of

sucking the hip into its socket and being conscious of the
problem. Unlike other considerations, there arent specific
exercises that magically track your knee over your second toe, its
just something that you have to mentally prepare for especially
as you progress through rehabilitation. Dont shrug off improper
tracking as something that cant be treated. It can be, but it will
come from doing the right things at the hip and foot and keeping
your mind conscious of correct alignment.
Having said that, you know the hip rotators play an important
role in controlling the femur. In order to cover all aspects of hip
control, you have to give them some attention.

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CLAMSHELL
The clamshell is the quintessential Pilates Im lazy and
exercise lying down exercise. Nevertheless, its a basic
movement that fires the hip rotators.

Above: Correct start and finish position for the clamshell.

Keep the torso rigid, and open the hip as far as comfortable.
Dont force yourself past your means. Keep your free hand on
your hip to feel it contracting.

Above: When trying to open further than capable, the chest opens towards the
sky. Do not do this.
X-BAND WALKS

As the name suggests, youll need a band for these. Bands

are cheap and can be used for a lot of things. Sack up and get
one. One mini band and one average band will cover most
needs.
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Loop the band around your feet and hands, forming an X in

the band. Tension increases with hand height. Optionally, you
can loop the band around your neck. Get enough tension to
make it challenging, but not so much that it alters your mechanics.
Keep your spine neutral with a slight bend at your hips and
knees. Lift one leg off of the ground and step sideways within
your comfort zone. Plant your foot and then control the trailing leg
just as you have done with the first. Dont slide it along the
ground without effort. You can do this exercise many ways, but I
like taking one step to the left and then one step back to the right
because it saves room.

The hips power this sideways walk. Dont wobble back and
forth with your steps. Keep your toes pointed forward at all times.
Imagine that your spine is a steel rod that extends up to the
ceiling and down to the ground. Your spine is motionless.
Remember this, because it holds true for the next two exercises.
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Above: When your torso leans, youre no longer letting the hip do the work. Stay
upright. Do not do what is shown above.

PALLOF PRESS
The pallof press might seem like a wildcard in this section
because its traditionally seen as a core exercise. But as you will
see in future sections, isometric exercises have prime time uses
because they prepare you for more complicated dynamic
movements in the future.
There are many ways to perform the pallof press, but I prefer
the one demonstrated in the pictures. You can use a band or a
cable machine for resistance. Keep your hips shoulder width
apart and take a slight bend in the hips and knees. Arrange the
band so that its parallel to the ground and at about naval or chest
height. Affix the band to something that wont move and take a
few steps away from it while holding the band close to your torso.
This is the starting position. From here, press the band or cable
away from your body and hold for five seconds.

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Its very similar to the band x-walk. Your spine is

motionless. Your feet are in concrete. Nothing moves except
your hands pressing the band in and out. And if something else
does move, you of course have too much resistance. So take
a step closer to the origin of the band or lower the weight on the
cable machine.
This is an anti-rotation exercise. Yes, youll feel it in your
abs but make sure you also think about whats happening at the
hips. They are stabilizing the lower body. Make every attempt to
feel them working.
Oh yea, and when you see this exercise mentioned in the
rehab, please tell me you know to do the reps on both sides.
Please?
HIP ROTATIONS
Hip rotations are underrated. So underrated, in fact, I dont
think youll need any resistance at first. Truthfully, the main
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proponent of this exercise is Bret Contreras, and I give him all of

the credit I can muster for what follows.
Hip rotations are difficult to explain while speaking let alone
through text. But if you were diligent with the pallof press, youll
pick up easily.
Stand in the pallof press finish position arms extended
from the body, feet shoulder width, slight bend at the hips and
knees. (As with the pallof press, youll do all reps on both side.)
For now, assume youre going to be turning to your left. Get on
your right tip toe and internally rotate your hip. Rotate back to
the starting position. Do this slowly. Each rep should have a two
second concentric and eccentric portion.

Just like the x-band walks and the pallof press the hip
powers the movement. So just as with those exercises, the non
working leg is planted in concrete, and the spine is
connected to the ceiling and the ground. Now, youre free to
rotate, but youre only rotating because of your hip. This means
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that your outstretched arms stay in line with your naval. As long
as this happens, youre rotating from the hip which is what you
want.
If you start rotating from your torso, this nice straight line
becomes crooked. If you must, hold a band around your waist or
a stick in your hands that is pressed against your chest to make
this happen.

Above: Straight line between the chin, naval, and fists. This is correct, and is held
constant the entire movement.

Above: Rotating the arms before the hips. Do not do this.

Above: Rotating the hips before the torso. Do not do this.

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If youre doing this right, rotating your hip in and out, your
glute should be just about ready to call the fire department on rep
ten precisely why adding resistance from the get go is
unnecessary. After mastering the motion, however, you may
want to use a band or cable machine to add resistance.
Remember, however, to affix yourself offset of the band or cable
so that there is tension at the finished position.

REFERENCES

The drop-jump screening test: difference in lower limb control by gender and
effect of neuromuscular training in female athletes.

The influence of in-season injury prevention training on lower-extremity

kinematics during landing in female soccer players.

Sex Differences and Representative Values for 6 Lower Extremity Alignment

Measures

Hip strength in females with and without patellofemoral pain.

Gender differences in three dimensional gait analysis data from 98 healthy

Korean adults

Lower extremity malignments and anterior cruciate ligament injury history.

Hip Strength in Collegiate Female Athletes with Patellofemoral Pain

Hip strengthening prior to functional exercises reduces pain sooner than

quadriceps strengthening in females with patellofemoral pain syndrome: a
randomized clinical trial.

Patellofemoral pain syndrome and its association with hip, ankle, and foot
function in 16- to 18-year-old high school students: a single-blind case-control
study.

Gluteal muscle activation during running in females with and without

patellofemoral pain syndrome.

The relative timing of VMO and VL in the aetiology of anterior knee pain: a
systematic review and meta-analysis.

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CHAPTER EIGHT WEIGHT DISTRIBUTION

If dysfunctional, the force that the ankle or foot should
handle gets thrown to the next joint in line, which you now know is
the knee. To prevent this, you have to respect and take care of
the leaks in the system.
Structurally, you have three bony areas that should make
contact with the ground when standing. Theoretically, our weight
balances evenly over these three points, which are the base for
movement.

Blue Medial Forefoot / Yellow Lateral Forefoot / Green Heel

Blue & Yellow Forefoot / All Three Points - Tripod

Together, they form what is called the tripod of the foot. The
front of the tripod, closest to the toes, houses two of the three
points, which are known as the forefoot. The point nearest your
big toe is the medial forefoot point. The point nearest your pinky
toe is the lateral forefoot point. The last point, near the Achilles
tendon, is known as the heel.
In an ideal world, your bodyweight gets balanced evenly
over these three points. But as discussed, you tend to live and
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train on your heels. Thick soled shoes and high heels force our
heel to be the prominent tripod contact. In the weight room, you
always are advised to keep your weight on your heels another
common cue taken to the extreme.
The tripod is the foundation for balance. Why should you
only use half of it when you have hundreds of pounds on your
back or in your hand? I know youre afraid of losing your balance
forwards and it can happen if you carry your weight too far
forward, just as losing your balance backwards can happen if you
carry your weight too far back but Im not telling you to squat on
your toes. Keep it even and use your natural balancing system,
allowing your body work the way it is supposed to.
Heel problems, like mistracking, spread faulty motor
patterns. An athlete that lives on their heels is what you call a
benchwarmer. Dont be that guy or gal that sprints heel to toe
because you do nothing but stay on your heels in the weight
room.
WEIGHT DISTRIBUTION CORRECTIVES

When I talk about keeping an even weight distribution, Im

mainly referring to standing barbell exercises. Its customary to
keep your weight on your heels (as alluded to), but using the
whole tripod makes you much more grounded lessening the
chance for patellar tracking problems.
Mastering weight distribution is similar to fixing tracking
problems in that there arent special correctives that automatically
fix the problem. This is going to emerge as a characteristic of
every stage because change isnt just running through physical
modalities. Its every bit mental as it is physical. A single
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exercise isnt going to transform your life it has to be a holistic

production.
Having said that, there are exercises that help us feel what
an even weight distribution feels like.
FIND YOUR TRIPOD
Stand barefoot with your feet shoulder width and assume
good posture chin down, shoulders back, elongated through the
spine, with a mild glute contraction.
Finding the three points of the tripod can be difficult, but a
little trick is to lift your toes to the sky. It exploits each point
making them much easier to find. Balance your weight evenly
over the three points (with your toes still to the sky). In this
position, you shouldnt feel one point of the tripod dominate. It will
be very comfortable and you will feel weightless. Gently set your
toes back down, and if you can, splay them outwards. Ideally,
you want to have some sort of V between your big and second
toe because it indicates an activation of the arches.
As a recap your weight is evenly distributed, your arches
are engaged, and your toes are free to wiggle. Once you set your
toes down, your arches may start to cramp. Just shake them out
and get back into the position.

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I dont want to insult your intelligence, but always do this

exercise barefoot. It may seem easy, but it gets difficult when
youre maintaining this balance during active ranges of motion.
Its a position that you eventually want to be able to assume
without the toe pointing and preparatory work.
UNILATERALLY FIND YOUR TRIPOD
In the rehabilitation program, as a progression, youre going
to move onto doing the same thing outlined in the above section,
but only on one foot. Set up the same way with your toes to the
sky, balance, and then set and splay toes.
The unilateral element will challenge the forefoots balance
and put more pressure on the foots structures. This one of the
exercises that helps people realize how important the forefoot is
as it struggles to control the everting and inverting at the ankle. It
is the pendulum of balance that can affect the entire kinetic chain.
FINDING YOUR TRIPOD BEFORE MOVEMENT
Also mentioned in the rehabilitation program is finding your
tripod before doing an exercise. This entails following the same
progression toes to the sky, balance, set and splay toes. Dont
skip steps, even as you become more proficient. Remember, the
purpose is to ingrain motor patterns, and you have to make sure
the correct ones are being programmed.

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CHAPTER NINE - FOREFOOT

As I mentioned, its common to carry too much weight on
your heels. When you think about distributing your weight over
your entire foot, its about feeling comfortable nudging some of
your weight off of your heel and onto your forefoot. Doing so
reduces the potential knee pain for a few reasons. First, it primes
your body for horizontal propulsion, helping you tap into your hip
muscles. Second, by tapping into your hip muscles, you prevent
your knee from moving forward in respect to the foot. Third, it
helps you dissipate force throughout your kinetic chain,
preventing huge impact forces that slowly destroy your body.
My light bulb moment in respect to the power of the forefoot
came after hill sprints. Those with knee pain can empathize with
me when I say walking down steep hills isnt the most therapeutic
feeling motion. When on a downhill, the muscles of the knee get
the responsibility of deceleration, which can be very stressful.
Adding to that, the knee is moving forward in relation to the foot,
and the heel strike creates a very lax system. I experimented,
and led with my forefoot instead of my heel. This changed
everything.
During a normal gait pattern, you are wired to walk from heel
to toe. But shoes make it comfortable and easy to
overemphasize the heel strike. Its like being in a total body
protective casing. Youre more apt to do things you normally
wouldnt because your think your safer.
The large heel strike interrupts the heel to toe transitioning.
People rarely make it to the forefoot, let alone the toes which
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are your last link between your body and the ground. Youre
supposed to roll off of your big toe, but you rarely get there when
you have shoes.
The forefoot is a master at dissipating force compared to the
heel*. The heel has no muscle or structures outside of bone
working with it. The forefoot has the arches and intrinsic muscles
of the foot. Thats why barefoot runners have a mid-forefoot
strike, in contrast to shoed runners that have a heel strike.
Landing heel first creates a massive force spike not very joint
friendly. The only reason the heel strike occurs is because our
body is given a false sense of security with the shoes. When you
take them off the body knows it cant land heel first without
destroying itself, so it doesnt.

Society has numerous knee, hip, and back injuries and no

one considers the power of the foot. That massive impact force
from an exaggerated heel strike wreaks havoc on our structure.
Run around your house, right now, propelling and landing only on
your heels. Notice how much noise you make and how much
rattles. Now, run around using only your forefoot.

*http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jrnj-7YKZE

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That extra force that destroyed your fine china is now being
absorbed by the body, and its all because of the power of the
forefoot.
Now, dont get the idea that I want you to neglect your heel
when you walk. As I mentioned, the heel will strike first, but what
needs to change is how fast you go from heel to forefoot. Its time
for a barefoot walking experiment.
The first time, take a stroll with an intentionally hard heel
strike. It will be uncomfortable, but this is what you do when
youre wearing shoes because of the faux comfort zone they give
you. Youll hear two thuds. One when your heel strikes, the other
when your forefoot thumps down. Notice how shaky and unstable
this feels through your entire leg.
The second time, take a stroll on your forefoot, keeping your
heel inch off of the ground the entire time. Much quieter, no
thuds, akin to the jogging example. More importantly, however, is
that there is less wobble radiating through your leg. The forefoot
strike is stable and locked because the muscles and soft tissue
are handling business instead of your bony structure.
The above two paragraphs represents two ends of the
walking spectrum, your job is to breach the gap between the two.
Make your heel strike softer and transition to your forefoot faster
and smoother. Avoid any deep thud noises, especially a, thud
thud. Roll off of your big toe and repeat. The best way to do this
is to program your mind that youre walking barefoot, even if you
have shoes on. If nothing else, think about walking with some
damn grace. It might just save your life.

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Throughout this chapter, Ive been harping on the forefoot.

Its common to associate the forefoot with a calf-raise motion
(meaning high on your tip toes). But if the heel is only elevated a
millimeter from the ground, youre using your forefoot. And thats
all that matters.
EVOLUTION
Imagine picking up a pencil with no fingers. In fact, dont
imagine. Try it right now. Make two fists and pick up a pencil.
Notice how much your elbows and shoulder contort as you try to
trap in in-between your knuckles. This contortion and strain
wouldnt happen if your fingers were probing out and about like
they should have been.
Fingers keep your shoulders and elbows healthy. Toes are
supposed to do the same for your hip and knee, but they dont
because they get bottled up in protective casings. Without
fingers, your shoulders and elbows do a lot of things they
otherwise wouldnt be doing. From a physiological standpoint,
you are designed with fingers to grasp and manipulate things
just like you are designed with toes.
Our shoeless ancestors have different feet than you. Not
only are they are wider, but the toes are also separated, which
makes them resemble hands much more than your modern feet
do. As you can see below, they show the V separation I
mentioned in the Weight Distribution Chapter.

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Feet conform to shoes. Thats why so many Americans and

civilized people have pinky toes that curl underneath the foot.
This is why I encourage you to splay your toes on your weight
distribution drills. It starts to awaken the arch and the dormant
muscles of the foot.

Feet are the last link between your body and the ground
during any standing movement, and often times the last link is
responsible for producing an effective effort. Throwing and hitting
in baseball are perfect examples. The legs generate the power in
both, making them a focal point of training programs. But how
effective would a pitcher be without fingers? A batter without
strong wrists?
The better the feet are, the better we are. It may seem like
Im advocating never wearing shoes again, but thats not the
case. So lets talk a bit about acceptable footwear in and out of
the gym.
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FOOTWEAR
Shoes have been a controversial topic as of late. Some riot
over the Vibram Five Fingers and others wear them when
sleeping. I follow Parisi Speed School on Twitter and they tweet
this message at least once a week, Barefoot training isn't a fad it's a necessary part of training your base of support. Im also
their friend on Facebook, and here is a quote from their page:
It's a beautiful day for barefoot training- Barefoot training is
essential. Almost 33% of all joints in our body are in our
feet. Feet are your base of support, the foundation of
movement. If the feet lack strength, mobility, and
proprioception (the ability to feel yourself in space and the
ability to react) and we have strengthened the rest of the
body so that the force that will be put into the ground through
those feet is increased- were asking for trouble.
Others worship Olympic Weightlifting shoes. But if you go
back, I dont like shoes that have heels. This is disappointing
because the Olympic Weightlifting shoe does so many good
things under a barbell. They are solid, stable, and firm. They
dont compress, and they transmit force like a champion. Having
said that, the cons outweigh the pros.
Knee Tip #11
Almost all shoes will hinder your ankle function, and as a result,
can cause knee pain.
Some wont agree with me, but realize that I coach athletes
outside of the barbell sports. And the only two disciplines that
demand the use of barbells are Olympic Weightlifting and
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Powerlifting. Dont worry. Once I fix you, you can crawl back to
your shoes. For now, just listen.
For weight training you need a shoe that doesnt compress
like marshmallows. Vibrams, New Balance Minimus Trails, Nike
Zoom Waffles, indoor soccer shoes, boxing shoes or plain ol
wrestling shoes can get the job done. The problem is that
extreme minimalistic shoes like the Vibrams arent comfortable
during squatting. Deadlifting is another story as even the
strongest use slippers.
For field and speed work again, stay away from
marshmallows. People like to jump right into barefoot activities,
but do me a favor and take a look at the pictures on page 44
again. Your foot is weak and unconditioned, so use caution.
Most can get away with doing their warm up barefoot, but always
know there is a risk of glass and other non-flattering objects that
can get lodged in your skin.
If youre looking for one shoe to solve all of your woes, Id
recommend the New Balance Minimus Trail. It beats the Nike
Free because it has a wide toe box, a smaller heel, and more
durability. It gives you the comfort of a shoe, something the Five
Fingers lack. As your foot grows stronger, I think the Five Fingers
are a great shoe for most field work (running, jumping,
plyometrics, bodyweight manipulation drills) and deadlifts.
A word of caution: wearing a miminalistic shoe puts your
foot and toes at risk of falling objects. Be careful. Dropping a 2.5
lb plate can be devastating.
A second word of caution: if youre going to ignore me and
do the Olympic Lifts, use shoes regardless of your position. I cry
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a little bit inside when people Olympic Lift barefoot or in Five

Fingers. The foot is a master of stealth movement, and there is
nothing stealth about stomping the ground as a barbell loaded
with 315 pounds slams against your shoulders and clavicles.
DISCLAIMER
You will not hold me responsible for any injury that may occur as
a result of not using shoes. Use caution and be safe. After being
encapsulated for years, the bare foot isnt used to activity. Ease
into it to prevent system shocktheres no 6 months of x shoe,
and 3 months of y shoe. Use good judgment, they adapt over
time. Start by doing your warm up barefoot. Light running and
general calisthenics can be handled at a low volume. Stop
wearing shoes and socks around the house. Let your toes
breath. Try to move each toe independently. Embrace the
feeling of grass, dirt, and sand. Cherish your calluses. Feel alive.
A QUICK NOTE ON ISOMETRICS
From here, youre going to see a lot of isometric exercises
because they teach positions better than dynamic exercise.
Being locked down allows you to activate muscles that would
otherwise be ignored. For instance, its crazy to think that
activation exercises teach you how to use your glutes at the
bottom of a squat. The mechanics are off, the angles are
different, and there is less complexity. A better idea would be to
get into the bottom of a squat and simply try to contract your
glutes while toying around with foot position and back angle.
Traditional dynamic exercise happens too fast, negating
necessary time in money positions to facilitate motor
reprogramming, hence the use of isometrics.
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FOREFOOT CORRECTIVES

ISOMETRIC FOREFOOT
The isometric forefoot hold is easy to learn once you have
mastered finding your tripod. The process is the same toes to
the sky, balance, set and splay toes but once do that, shift your
weight onto the two points of your forefoot.
DO NOT claw the ground with your toes, it negates arch
involvement. You always want the toes to be able to move freely,
hence splaying them in the drills.

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ISOMETRIC PROPULSIVE FOREFOOT

When you propel off of your feet, you rarely have your
weight evenly distributed over the two points of your forefoot. The
big toe is big for a reason. The medial (inside) point powers
movement, so you need to be familiar with what this feels like.
Set up identical to isometric forefoot, but shift 60-70% of
your weight onto the medial forefoot contact. The same rules
apply.

BUNNY HOPS
Isometrics have primed the forefoot for more intensive work,
so now youll learn how to explode off of the foot in the right place.
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Fix yourself in the same position as the isometric

propulsive forefoot. When youre on your tip toes, re-reach your
toes to the sky so that your toes arent touching the ground (if you
cant lift them that high, just get them as high as you can so that
your weight is being supported by your tripod).
From here, do quick bounds up and down. Work at the
ankle joint, not the knee or hip joint. Keep 60-70% of your weight
on the medial forefoot point as you bound. Squeezing your glutes
during this is also a good idea.
SPLIT STANCE SHIN RAISES
I harp on the forefoot, making it easy to forget about the
opposite side of the shin that controls bringing your toes and foot
to the sky. These muscles play a pivotal role stabilizing the ankle
and when underdeveloped or tight, can prevent you from using
your hips when you walk or run.
Assume a split stance with your feet 12 inches apart (no
need to be overly anal about this, it can be adjusted based on
feel). Your rear leg is flat on the ground with your toes pointed in
the air and, of course, youre balanced evenly over your tripod.

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Your lead leg can do whatever is comfortable. Bend at the

hips and at the rear knee. Drive the knee of the rear leg forward,
keeping the toes to the sky and the foot flat on the ground. After
hitting the sticking point, attempt to raise your forefoot and toes to
the sky and pause for two seconds.

Relax, and then raise your forefoot four more times. It

probably wont get off of the ground, but you should feel the
muscles on the front of your shin working hard.
The exercises goes like this: drive the knee forward, raise
your forefoot for a two count a total of five times, and then
assume starting position. This is considered one repetition. The
goal is to drive the knee further with each rep. Keep your knee in
line with your second toe. People have a tendency to cave their

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knee inward because it increases range of motion. But this

collapses the arches and negates the purpose of the exercise.

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CHAPTER TEN FEMORAL CONTROL

Developing femoral control entails gaining dominance over
muscles that control your thigh. To do this, you must first
understand how pelvic tilting affects muscular recruitment. As an
aside, I want to touch on the theory of muscular imbalances.
Injuries are rarely caused from a lack of strength. Soft tissue
restrictions, incorrect motor patterns, and improper form will
cause an injury before a lack of strength will. Athletics cause
imbalances because certain muscles need to be strong for certain
actions whether nature intended them to be in a strict ratio with
their antagonist or not. So when you hear that the quadriceps
and hamstrings have to have a certain ratio of strength to prevent
injury, dont buy it. These measures are likely done with knee
flexion and extension two movements that dont occur in
isolation in a normal sporting environment.
POSITIONING
Understanding pelvic tilting helps you understand muscular
recruitment. You cant maximally activate the lower back, glutes,
abs, and hamstrings at the same time. There is a give and take
relationship with the muscles that surround the pelvis. Its just like
your bicep and tricep when one flexes, the other extends. Its
more confusing at the hip, however, because there are more
muscles and movements.

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Lower Back

Tilt Table
Anterior Tilt
Posterior Tilt
Shortened,
Lengthened,
Contracted
Disengaged

Lower Abs

Lengthened,
Disengaged

Shortened,
Contracted

Glutes

Lengthened,
Disengaged

Vulnerabilities

Abs

Likely
Disengaged,
But Could be
Highly
Engaged
Lower Back

Neutral Spine
Solid,
Engaged, The
Middle Ground
Solid,
Engaged, The
Middle Ground
Solid,
Engaged, The
Middle Ground

None

Left Anterior tilt / Center Neutral / Right Posterior tilt

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THE SWEET SPOT

With femoral control and barbell exercises, its all about the
glutes. The deep muscles on the front of the thigh that control the
hip (psoas and lower abs) are also important, but they rarely get
trained during traditional barbell exercises and you dont have an
abundance of incorrect motor programming with them.
Maximizing glute involvement will require a close-to-neutral
spine. An anterior tilted spine is a common recommendation
during externally loaded exercises to prevent lower back injury.
Ironically, this lengthens the abdominals putting them at an
increased risk of injury (hernia, anyone?) Additionally, it puts the
glutes in an inhibited position when standing upright.
You can try this yourself by locking your back in an extreme
anterior tilt and trying to squeeze your glutes. If you want the
glutes to contract, the spine has to tilt to a neutral position, which
is controlled by the abs. Toy around by flexing the glutes and abs
at different times and intensities to see fluctuation in contraction.
For a maximum, squeeze the glutes and tighten the abs as if you
were preparing for a punch to the stomach. Contracting the
glutes and abs at the same time locks the hip in place.
Kettlebellers refer to this as snapping the hip during swings.

FEMORAL CONTROL CORRECTIVES

Things get complicated at the hip. The foot stuff, although

tedious, is easy. As alluded to in previous sections, there are no
magical exercises. In fact, any exercise can be used if properly
programmed and sequenced. True change comes from
conceptualizing and implementing a different movement lifestyle.
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Say goodbye to the axial (up and down) vector. Nearly

every up and down movement needs to be performed as if it were
a back and forth movement. Its difficult to understand, which is
why this section is the most intensive.
The king for learning standing hip extension is the romanian
deadlift. But as youll see, I also teach an isometric lunge
because it can aid in conceptualizing important principles (and
also helps with the Stretching Chapter). If youre having
difficulties with the lunge, skip to the romanian deadlift because
its taught in a progressive sequence, making it easier to learn.
ISOMETRIC LUNGE
I first head of the isometric lunge from Alex Vasquez, which
he got from Jay Schroeder. Jay had some crazy ideas, but he put
isometric exercises on the map.
Lunging is traditionally a quadriceps dominant or knee
dominant exercise. But remember how I said isometric exercises
allow you to turn on muscles that normally wouldnt? This is a
classic example, because the isometric lunge can teach you how
to use every lower body muscle except the quads. If you can do
the isometric lunge as I teach it, youll know how to apply
horizontal force to the ground in a vertically loaded position.
To Perform: Set up in a traditional lunge with the lead leg
bent at 90 degrees and the lower leg perpendicular to the ground.
Extend the trailing leg straight back from its original shoulder with
position. Dont externally rotate it or extend it at an off angle. Its
critical that you keep the hips square.

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Knee tracks over the second toe. Shoulders stay square to the front and dont rotate.

Rear leg extends directly behind its original position and not off to the side.

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Do not externally rotate the leg like the picture above.

Your quads burn in this position because youre doing an

isometric leg extension with your lead leg. Your rear leg is
dominated by gravity and it forces itself into the ground, which is
troubling if your knee hurts.
Look at the pictures below. The first shows what your legs
are trying to perform. The second shows what you will be
reprogramming them to do.

In a traditional lunge, your legs are working isometrically against the ground to hold
your position. Even though there is no movement, your legs are trying to perform knee
extension, which is driven by the quadriceps.

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Reprogramming the body requires a glutecentric mind. Instead of knee extension, think
about hip extension with both legs. With the lead leg, also think knee flexion.

Instead of a leg extension, the lead leg does a leg curl

against the ground. Of course, your leg isnt going to move. But
you need to paw back on the ground as if you were making a
realistic attempt at curling the ground. Youll feel this in your
hamstring and glute. If you have too much hamstring, think more
hip extension and less leg curl. Toy around with your pelvic
positioning too.
For the rear leg, think about driving the heel to the ceiling.
Again, youre not going to get your heel off of the ground, but you
want to make an attempt. Dont rotate your hips and keep your
knee over your second toe.
By performing these contractions, youre making both legs
perform hip extension as opposed to knee extension. That
should sound familiar because thats the entire rationale behind
femoral control. Never hold this position longer than what you are
capable of while engaging the right musculature. You shouldnt
feel your quads, at all. The moment you do, stop, rest, shake it
out, and then go back. Once you can hold the lunge position with
total glute control for 30 60 seconds, youre making progress.
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THE ROMANIAN DEADLIFT (RDL)

I teach hip extension via the RDL. As of late, there has been
a migration towards the hip thrust as popularized by Bret
Contreras. If youre wondering why I use the RDL instead of the
hip thrust, here are my reasons.
First, Id rather you be standing upright because its how
youre going to move the majority of your life. Second, hip thrusts
have nearly the same amount of quad activation as a full squat.
Thats a lot of unnecessary knee extension when teaching
beginning hip extension. Third, it doesnt teach you standing hip
extension. It teaches you hip extension lying on your back. This
position primes you for peak contraction but its not necessarily
going to teach you how to optimize function when upright.
Having said that, Im a big Bret Contreras fan and we share a lot
of similarities.
I dont care what anyone tells you. I dont care what Arnold
did. I dont care what bodybuilders want. If youre doing any
compound lift that involves the lower body and youre not
powering (and feeling) the glutes, youre doing it wrong. It pains
me when people feel the deadlift in the lower back and
hamstrings instead of the glutes. The largest muscle in the body
is reduced to nothing.
Keep in mind, youre doing the RDL to learn standing hip
extension. You have to consider the pelvic tilts because the
moment you hit hip extension depends on it. If you dont lock the
hip down in neutral, youre not going to get hip extension. Use
your abs to keep everything close-to-neutral and avoid rotation at
the hips. Everything stays tight and square.
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Now I dont want to treat you like a child, but I know some
people have trouble following a progression of exercises. They
like to skip to the flashy ending. But if you do that you will fail.
Yes, I know, the first two exercises are easy. Yes, Im going to
make you do them longer than you want to. Yes, youre going to
a high volume . Yes, it may get boring. But you need your mind
in every second of every repetition. The beginning is when youre
telling your body the importance of the muscles. Youre going to
take it one exercise at a time because minimizing focus makes
mastery easier.
PRONE GLUTE
The first exercise and simplest form of hip extension is the
prone glute. Its a short range of motion leg lift that hyper extends
the hip and teaches you how to lock down the pelvis.
To Perform: Lay on your stomach. Legs can be straight or
bent at 90 degrees. Lift one leg in the air by hinging at the hip.
Place the same hand of the working leg on the small of your back.
Dig the thumb into your lower back and the pinky into your glute.
This is so that you can feel the glutes working instead of the lower
back.

Working leg is bent at 90 degrees and the hand is in proper position to feel what
muscles are being activated.
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In the second version, the working leg can be straight. Its a matter of preference.

Lift your working leg in the air by squeezing the glute and
hinging at the hip. Perform each repetition slow and controlled
with a distinct lifting, holding, and lowering phase, each lasting a
minimum of 1-2 seconds. Never extend a set beyond capability
(proper form or glute activation) to get the reps done faster.
Quality requires time. Deal with it and plan for it. Range of
motion for this is very small. Your knee will only get a few inches
off of the ground.

The leg is lifted a few inches off of the ground from the original position. Think about
keeping the entire body stiff except for the hip of the working leg.

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Same movement, only with the working leg straight.

Trouble Shooting: If your hamstring is cramping, or if youre

feeling your hamstring or lower back instead of your glute then
think about shoving your hip flexor into the ground (or lengthening
the hip flexor). If this doesnt work, toy around with the bent vs.
straight leg lift. Bending the leg is supposed to lessen hamstring
involvement, but Ive found they cramp easier in this position. As
with the lunge, dont externally rotate your leg (seen in the second
picture below).

The leg is square and the toes are pointing straight.

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Do not externally rotate the leg as seen above. Leg is out to the side and the foot
follows.

MODIFIED BIRD DOG

The regular bird dog is a great exercise, but its too much.
You only need to reap the benefits of hip extension from a
quadruped position. The modified bird dog is similar to the prone
glute, except being on all fours adds range of motion and lessens
the base of contact.
To Perform: Get on all fours. Straighten one leg behind, but
maintain contact with the ground. From here, just think prone
glute. Lift the extended rear leg towards the ceiling via hip
extension. Again, each repetition has a 1-2 second raising,
holding, and lower phase. The hips stay locked and square with a
neutral spine. This means that the toes point to the ground.

Starting position for the modified bird dog.

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Finished position for the modified bird dog. Note that extending the rear leg past
parallel is not important.

Do not attempt to extend the leg higher than needed as seen above. Doing so kills the
neutral spine and makes the movement worthless.

The glute powers the movement and it should be the muscle

that is felt the most. Dont overarch your lower back to get the leg
higher. If youre locking the hip down it might not even hit parallel.
Trouble Shooting: If you cant keep the knee straight, think
about extending the leg to the wall behind you.

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As with the lunge and prone glute, the leg stays square and doesnt rotate. The toes
should be pointing to the ground.

Do not externally rotate the leg as seen above.

ADVANCED HIP EXTENSION, A QUICK NOTE

The prone glute and modified bird dog develop basic hip
extension patterns and a mind-muscle connection. There are the
only glute activation exercises necessary.
Normally, from here, people are eager to head to squats and
deadlifts. But transitioning requires more than doing hundreds of
reps on remedial exercises. Im not covering either because they
can interfere with horizontal movement patterning. Im teaching
you how to perform standing hip extension in hopes that you can
transfer this feeling into squats and conventional deadlifts when
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its all over. You dont need to muddle yourself with a barbell at
this point.
As we move into the RDL, the goal is to transform up
and down movements into back and forth movements. During
a squat your body moves up and down. In a deadlift, you bend
down to the bar and stand up with it in your hands.
Although hip extension takes place in a squat and a deadlift,
you dont actually propel horizontally. Once you set our feet in
these lifts, you dont move. The heavier up and down vector
training becomes, the more vertical a bar will travel. Mark
Rippetoe harps on keeping the bar path vertical for squats and
deadlifts because heavy things like to take the shortest path
between two points.
A squat or deadlift with what many would see as perfect form
a nice back arch, below parallel isnt the goal. As I said,
youre not going to worry about those exercises yet. Shift your
focus to the RDL so you can learn how to move back and forth,
without actually moving back and forth.
There are two ways to perform the RDL. Theres the up and
down way, which is what most people do. Its a glorified back
extension. Then theres the back and forth way, which is what
smart people do. Its real hip extension.

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RDL powered through back extension.

Via Back Extension: Most people that power the RDL

through back extension will have a nice arch in their lower back
that never goes away, even at lockout. The arch is correct by
most standards, but most standards need changed. Its harder to
use the glutes, and consequently, most dont. To imagine this,
pretend you have a rope around your neck that is tied to a car
behind you. If the car drives away, youll lose your balance
backward, leading with the chest and contracting through the
lower back.

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RDL powered through hip extension.

Via Hip Extension: Requires tightness and stability

everywhere but in the hips, because they are the only thing
moving. Most will have a neutral spine and squeeze the glutes at
lockout, indicating hip involvement. Range of motion is shorter
because it ends when the hips hit their sticking point as opposed
to the lower back and hamstrings. To imagine this, pretend you
have a rope around your glutes that is tied to a car in front of you.
If the car drives away, youll lose balance forward, leading with
the hips and contracting through the glutes.
The difference between the two is that with hip extension
youre pawing the ground with your feet, which propels you
forward. I didnt coin the term pawing, in fact, I got it from Kelly
Baggett*. The analogy he uses is that its like a bull pawing the
ground even though the feet dont move.

*Kelly is one hell of a guy. He always answers my e-mails and puts out a lot of free information. A huge inspiration and one of my
favorites. Check out his website: Higher Faster Sports. Its worth your time.

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FUNDAMENTAL TIP TOE POSITION

Pawing the ground allows you to use the muscles involved in
horizontal propulsion without actually propelling horizontally.
Referencing Baggett again, he mentions that its like trying to
bench press the bar from a standing military position in hopes of
getting maximum pectoral activation. The force is coming from
the wrong direction. This is where the fundamental tip toe
position (FTTP) becomes important. It bridges actually travelling
horizontally and theoretically travelling horizontally.
To Perform: Assume an isometric propulsive forefoot
position, toes pointed straight ahead or slightly out (15 degrees or
less). From this tip toe position, squeeze your glutes. Use your
pointer finger to feel your obliques and abs. Being on your toes
challenges your balance and squeezing your glutes forces the
abs to contract to maintain equilibrium. The abs and glutes work
together, remember! Thats why an anterior pelvic tilt, which
lengthens the abs, hinders glute function.

The FTTP. Hands are on the hips to feel the abdominals. The glutes are squeezed and
the weight is on the forefoot.

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ISOMETRIC BOTTOM RDL

The FTTP is the finished position of a well performed RDL.
Now youre going to learn the opposite end. If you can get the
start and finish, the stuff in between will take care of itself.
To Perform: Start in the FTTP with your hands on your
thighs. Rock back to an even weight distribution as you push
your hips back and your shoulders forward, sliding your hands
down your thighs. When you hit the beginning of the sticking
point, stop. Your fingers will be around knee cap level. This is
the position for the isometric bottom RDL. Explore this position
attempt to fire you glutes. You should feel the tension in your
glutes, not in your hamstrings.

The Isometric Bottom RDL. Spine and head are neutral, with the weight over the entire
foot. Hands are on the glutes to make sure they are contracting throughout the hold.

Trouble Shooting: First, although primitive, some respond

well to literally being punched in the glutes or abs as they hold the
bottom position because it forces you to tighten up. Try it, but
dont kill yourself. Second, toy around with pelvic position to feel
the extremes. Try to default in the middle. Third, envision the
rope tied around your hips to the car in front of you. If it drives
away your glutes are going to fire, shooting your hips forward.
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Fourth, see if you can envision what pawing the ground would feel
like and try to implement it.
THE RDL
To Perform: Start in the FTTP. Rock down to an even
weight distribution as you push your hips back and shoulders
forward. Keep a neutral spine, and dont worry about how far
down youre going to go. Stop at the first sign of the sticking point
and pause briefly. Paw the ground and shoot your hips forward to
get back into the FTTP.
Remember, you want this to feel like youre going to travel
horizontally. If need be, do a little hop or lose your momentum
forward as long as youre finishing in the FTTP with your glutes
squeezed.
Reps are to be done rhythmically, and will replace traditional
glute activation exercises.

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ISOMETRIC HIP FLEXOR (SEATED)

To Perform: Keeping good spinal position, lift your knee off
of the ground as high as you can. You should feel it high on the
hip, not in the quad. To increase difficulty, lean forward.

ISOMETRIC HIP FLEXOR (STANDING)

To Perform: The standing version carries the same
principles as the seated one. The goal is to lift the knee as high
as possible while maintaining good spinal position. Difficulty
increases because your grounded leg needs to stay rigid, which
forces a glute contraction. Bending the leg is a sign of a weak
hip.

For the standing version, find an object that puts your thigh parallel to the ground. Lift
your foot from the object (as seen above) and bring your thigh as close to your chest as
possible.
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Do not round your lower back or let the support legs knee bend. Doing so is a sign of
weak glutes. Stay tall and fire the glute of the support leg.

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CHAPTER ELEVEN STRETCHING AND MOBILITY

90% of setbacks are from skipping out on whats in this
chapter. Dont undermine the need for flexibility work, because
realistically youre stretching every moment you live. When it
comes to knee pain and athleticism, its all about opening up the
hips. Youre going to do a lot of hip flexor based mobilizations.
The problem with traditional hip flexor stretches, however, is that
they neglect the rectus femoris.
I hate to blame knee pain on one portion of one muscle
complex, but the rectus femoris is one of the main bad guys. It
originates on our hip and attaches on our lower leg. When people
think about the quads, they think about leg extensions the
kicking motion. Thats why they are such a common exercises
prescription when fixing knee pain.
But its not a strength issue and the faulty logic here is that
the rectus femoris also cross the hip. It not only kicks the soccer
ball, but it also brings your knee to your chest. Common
stretches target the knee and hip in isolation. Instead, they need
to be treated as a unit.
THE METHOD
Before I get into the specific stretches, Im going to say I
hate long duration static stretching. There is a tendency to get
complacent and adopt a just survive mentality. But correcting
these issues takes a lot of time so its not optional. Its
mandatory. Ditch the survival mindset and adopt an attack
attitude.
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Dont, however, stay in one static position and start the

countdown. Search for your hot sports, feel free to move. Adjust
your body, tilt your hips, do what you need to do to seek
discomforting positions, and once there, do what you can to make
it comforting. Do isometric stretching, active isolated stretching,
or whatever you want. I dont care as long as youre being
aggressive with the position in question for the duration
prescribed.

STRETCHING AND MOBILITY CORRECTIVES

THE QUAD-HIP COMBO

Although Im going to give you a few stretches and exercises
to do, this one is the king. If you have knee pain, its going to be
your best, most hated friend. It hurts. Its never fun. But its
necessary. You wont look forward to it, but you have to pull
through and do it every day, as youll see in the prescription
chapter.
I first saw this stretch demonstrated by Kelly Baggett. Since
then Ive seen it referred to as a couch stretch because it can be
done on a couch. Ive also seen it done against a wall. But Im
mean, and Im only going to tell you this once. Youre not
allowed to do it against the wall or couch. You need to do it
against a bench, chair, or anything about knee height that
lets you stuff your leg underneath of it. You cant get a good
stretch unless this happens. And you cant fix yourself unless you
get a good stretch.
It resembles a bulgarian split squat in that your rear leg will
be elevated on the box, chair, or bench (remember this
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terminology: rear leg=the leg resting on the platform, lead leg=leg

in contact with ground). Be careful, however, if your chair or
bench is too high or too low, it can cause pain because youre
going to end up with your weight resting on your knee cap instead
of right above the knee cap. Be sure to differentiate between
discomfort and pain. This stretch will surely be discomforting, but
it shouldnt be painful on the knee cap.
To Perform: Set up in front of the platform with your rear leg
resting on the bench. Squat down so that your knee is touching
the ground and tuck your knee underneath the platform as far as
possible (ideally, behind your hip). This is the only way to get a
maximal stretch. A lot of commercial benches will be too low to
the ground for this stretch, in which case seek out dining room
chairs or anything you can find.

On a commercial bench, the knee isnt able to be tucked underneath of the rear leg.

Instead, use ninja tactics and steal a dining room chair out of a neighboring house (dont
steal, its not nice.)
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Much better. Be sure to steal the pillow too, making it more comfortable for the foot on
the chair.

Release your hands from the bench and hang out. This will
be painful the first time, but do not arch the lower back to ease the
pain. Do the opposite. Squeeze the glutes and hip into a
posterior pelvic tilt. Think about tilting the front of your hips to the
sky using a humping motion. Not the most child friendly way to
put it, but it works. The glute must be contracted for the entire
stretch. This is going to feel impossible, but you need to make it
happen. If you have to resort to punching your glute, then do it.

Do not overarch the lower back as shown above.

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Instead, squeeze the glute and bring the abs down. It may help to grab onto the chair
behind you to get into position. If not for positioning, it will still help you from
screaming bloody murder.

Keep the shoulders square and the knee-ankle-foot in proper

alignment (knee over second toe) with the lead leg. In addition to
squeezing the glute of the rear leg, with the lead leg you want
to do the isometric hamstring curl that was discussed in the
isometric lunge chapter. Your lead leg isnt passive.
Once youre in position, experiment. Reach to the sky.
Twist your body. Reach and twist. Try getting your glute to your
heel (keeping your glute squeezed). You can even loop a band
around your gluteal fold and attach it to something stable in front
of you, forcing the band to pull your hip forward.

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Different positioning to attack different parts of your hip flexor compartment. Just
dont be a jackass like the guy above and let your knee un-tuck from the chair if you
stretch with the band. Who is that guy in these pictures anyway?

BOX HIP FLEXOR STRETCH

The quad-hip flexor stretch is the best all around stretch,
however, it doesnt fully tax the hip flexors. You should already
have a knee height object from the last stretch, and youre going
to need it again.
To Perform: Put one leg on the bench in front of you, and
extend the other leg back. When it comes to this stretch, a
picture says it all. Again, tilt your pelvis up via squeezing your
glutes. It will be difficult at first, but make it happen. Always
squeeze the glute. Try getting your rear leg straight. Explore
different parts of the hip flexor. When you internally rotate your
leg, the stretch becomes a lot more difficult. Spend some time
there to work out your kinks.
The taller of a box you get, the more taxing it will be.
Experiment. Its all good if youre getting a quality stretch in your
hip flexor.

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Squeezing the glute and trying to get the rear leg straight by tilting the hips up.

Internally rotating the rear leg to hit a different compartment of the hip flexor. I
recommend spending some time here.

CALF-SOLEUS STRETCH
The calf-soleus stretch is a more concentrated version of the
split stance shin raise.
To Perform: Angle your forefoot on a wall in front of you,
square your hips, and squeeze your glutes. Lean forward into the
wall to stretch your calf. From this position, bend your leg to
stretch your soleus. Time should be split in half for this stretch (1
minute on each part for 2 minutes total). Remember: dont let
your foot collapse inward to get more range of motion. Keep the
knee over the second toe. Youll feel an abrupt sticking point, and
thats precisely why this stretch is important. Its a good idea to
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wear shoes during this stretch to prevent your heel from feeling
miserable.

Keep this hips square and glute squeezed of the leg on the wall. To increase the stretch,
think about getting your hip close to the wall.

Same as above, but bending at the knee.

ALTERNATIVE COMBO QUAD-HIP STRETCHES

Im not doing this happily, but Im doing it. A few pages ago, I
mentioned that the combo quad-hip stretch needed to be done on
something that allowed your leg to get into some kind of hip
extension. The best way to do this is on a chair or something that
has an opening below the platform where you rest your foot.
The obvious choice is a bench press bench, but I know that
some people dont have home equipment, and driving to the gym
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just to stretch is a waste of time. This is especially useful because

I prescribe this stretch often, so being able to do it anywhere is
important. The same rules apply to all of these stretches as they
did to the original quad-hip combo stretch. Push the hip forward,
squeeze the glutes, and tighten the abs. Here are some
alternatives that can be done.

Pictured Above
Top Left: Couch Stretch
Top Middle: Wall Stretch
Top Right: Banded Pretzel Stretch
Bottom Left: Do It Yourself Stretch
Bottom Right: Banded Do It Yourself Stretch

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CHAPTER TWELVE STUFF YOU SHOULD BE

DOING
A grocery list of exercises isnt going to fix your problem.
Change has to be more focused, meaningful, and controlled.
Stop looking at supplementary training, and realize that your life
to blame. How many times do you put a barbell on you back and
squat in one week? 100 times, on the high end? (This is the
equivalent of doing nearly 3-4 sets of 8-10 reps, twice a week,
factoring in warm up sets.) How many steps do you walk in a
week? Taking stairs with 6 steps 10 times per day equals 60 reps
per day and 420 reps per week. This is over 4x the volume of
your squatting sessions. And I bet most people exceed this
estimate because I am being conservative.
Considerer your life as one big workout. A good friend of
mine, Jon Call, once said, We are training 24 hours a day. We
are recovering 24 hours a day. Just because it doesnt take
place at the gym during your workout doesnt mean it cant affect
you. Jumping around like a maniac, tackling other men in pads,
and squatting a lot of weight isnt what your knees expected when
they emerged from the womb. Yes, you should focus on these
things to heal, but you have to consider and plan for daily
activities because, as I showed, the volume adds up.
Another example of this is sitting down and standing up on
chairs that put you above the half squat position. Just think of
how many half squats you do. In and out of bed. In and out of
the car. In and out of the restroom.

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In your defense, squats are beneficial. But I go right back to

the underlying fact that you dont know how to use your hip. The
top half of a squat is one of those danger zones and it eerily
resembles a RDL. Because you do it incorrectly so frequently,
the body reprograms itself. Here is a quote by Bret Contreras
about glute activation and half squats: When you stand up from a
chair, quad activation reaches 70% of MVC, but glute activation is
around 10% of MVC. Brisk walking will only get glute activation to
around 30% of MVC, as will climbing stairs. So most individuals
never activate their glutes to over 30% of MVC in their normal
daily activity.
THE NOTEBOOK
Buy a notebook and note any time you have knee pain. Go
a bit further and rate how severe it is on a scale of 1-10. Im
talking any time you have it. In the weight room, in the bathroom,
in the car, whenever. Youll be surprised that most activities of
daily living will be more painful than barbell squats. This stress
adds up. Chronic problems arent born from intense, short burst
moments, but rather the accumulation of small stressors over
time.
Youre recording your painful moments for two reasons.
First, you can see if the events that cause pain have
commonalities. Second, you can see what can be done based off
of the six considerations. My initial rehabilitation focused on
walking up steps differently. Yours will look similar if you expect
to be healthy.
Doing everything right during one hour time slot
commonly known as a workout, will not undo doing
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everything wrong during a twenty-three hour time slot

commonly known as a life.
Give yourself time to adjust to the new mentality. Youve
lived your entire life not thinking about these things. Youll forget
because daily activities arent prompting events like exercises
sessions. But to undo the unconscious incorrect, we must
consciously correct.
The fun part about this rehabilitation strategy is that you get
to experiment. Youre not confided to a barbell and set rules. For
instance, I found that my knee felt a lot better if I stayed on my
forefoot when walking up steps, instead of keeping an even
weight distribution. Before every set of stairs I tapped into my
glute and forefoot and transformed the movement into a
horizontal propulsion, instead of a vertical clod up the steps.
Changing motor patterns require repetition and frequency.
Merging exercise with life accomplishes more in less time. Im not
asking you to walk up stairs to become a better athlete, but to
adopt the mentality needed to be successful.
POSTURE & WALKING
In the forefoot chapter, I showed you how to walk better. So
start doing it. Gently place your hands on your hips when you
walk, and just think about getting them active. Walking with your
hips is the epitome of developing a strong mind-muscle
connection with your glutes, and it should be a focal point, but
dont forget how the forefoot ties into it.

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CHAPTER THIRTEEN - REHABILITATION

Rewiring your neurological pathways takes time. Buddy
Morris, in a series of YouTube videos, explains what youre up
against:
It takes 500 hours to invoke a motor pattern before it
becomes unconscious. It takes 25-30 thousand reps to
break a bad motor pattern. So once you ingrain
something into the central nervous system its there
forever.
Im being more optimistic about them being there forever.
But you have to remember that youre not only reversing nearpermanent motor patterns, youre also creating new ones. More
important than time, is frequency. When possible, you want to do
the corrective exercises twice per day. If it calls for two sets, do
one set in the morning and one set in the afternoon. It just works
better that way.
WHAT CAN I DO?
I get a lot of questions that deal with this foundational
question: what am I allowed to do during the rehab? My answer
is almost always the same: do whatever you want to do as long
as it doesnt hurt.
Now people with thick heads misinterpret this. If it hurts to
barbell squat, dont keep barbell squatting. But maybe you can
do goblet squats without pain, or just regular bodyweight squats.
I will say, however, that most times squatting is out because its a
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big pain producer, along with broad jumps. But if you can find
healthy substitutes, then Im all for it. But dont be an idiot.
Dont let it stop you from hammering upper body work. Get
in and get jacked as long as youre not sacrificing time and focus
for your rehab work. You can preserve your lower body strength
with glute-ham raises, back extensions, or reverse hypers if you
have the equipment. But remember that the goal of rehab is to
learn hip extension and these exercises can interfere via
soreness and other problems.
There are different levels of disability. Some may only have
pain during one movement like squatting or jumping. Others may
not be able to do much. This is why I recommend having a one
week play time. I spent a lot of time creating, living, and teaching
the rehabilitation program. But I know not everyone is going to
need its entirety. Ive seen crazy results from people that only
took care of their soft tissue problems with a lacrosse ball, or
learned how to keep their knee over their second toe. Ive seen
the opposite end, when people need a complete system reboot.
If youre feeling sketchy about spending the next eight weeks
without your pain producing provocatives, spend one week toying
around with the methods and considerations. If you feel better
without going through the entire process, then more power to you.
But after that week if you still feel bad, you know what you need to
do.
REINCORPORATION
As mentioned in the previous chapter, this eBook isnt a
rehabilitation program; this eBook is a lifestyle. Going through the
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motions isnt enough. People struggle, however, in finding a

direction after the rehabilitation program.
I cant stress enough that the rehab isnt a pill. Its not
something that is done for a duration of time that magically fixes
the problem. In this eBook, I cover the basics of relearning hip
extension and lay the groundwork for future movement. Its up to
you to take the concepts of the RDL and apply them to your life.
Its up to you to actually think about walking up the steps by
powering with hip extension. I cant yell at you or teach you this
unless you pay for my airfare and living expenses. You have to
make the concentrated effort.
The most confusing part for a lot of people is how to trek
back into activity after doing the program. Youve sacrificed your
squats, your broad jumps, your vertical jump training, or whatever
it was that was causing your problem. You survived the eight
week rehabilitation protocol. Now what?
You have to take the principles you learned and apply them
to whatever caused you pain. Throughout this eBook, I make
references to barbells, squats, deadlifts, and other traditional
weightlifting methods. But the only thing I teach is the unweighted
romanian deadlift.
If you go through the eight weeks of rehab and squatting or
jumping still hurts, then you have to apply the principles I talked
about in this eBook. If you mindfully did the program, this wont
be a problem. Try keeping a more neutral spine during a squat.
Perhaps teach yourself how to squat using an isometric bottom
position and using a back and forth motion (I gave you plenty of
analogies to help you with this).
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If youre a jumper, learn how to use your hips more.

Perhaps do the romanian deadlift as outlined, but actually jump
out of the FTTP. Make sure your forefoot is doing its job.
Yes, using the same principles of learning the RDL can be
used for squatting or jumping. I know because I have done it.
And yes, this requires starting at bodyweight. Drop your ego and
45 lb plates at the door.
There is a developmental continuum and it goes something
like this endurance strength power. Each progression builds
on its predecessor. This eBook develops the endurance aspect
of the continuum. It primes your hips for action. It awakens them.
They are ready, you just have to find a way to load them. This
probably means altering the way you used to train and the form
you used to use. Things must change.
Look at the continuum again. This program isnt the end.
Its the beginning. Take your new concept of femoral control,
neutral spine, and horizontal propulsion into your barbell training
and explosive work after this. Im not hinting at anything (maybe I
am), but I have a progression that works people back into barbell
and athletic training after this initial eight week conditioning
program.
If you cant wait until the second part of this book series is
released (dealing about relearning the squat and how to
incorporate speed-power drills back into the mix) then feel free to
e-mail me. Ill help you along the way.
I once had a guy tell me, I bet professional athletes dont
deal with this junk, trying to rationalize his inability to get that you
can learn a squat in nearly the same sequence I teach the RDL.
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But realize that if you have knee pain youre a different animal.
You have to do things differently. You dont have the easy road.
END OF STAGE PAIN RATING
At the end of every stage, I want you to do whatever it was
that used to cause pain. Squatting, jumping, running, whatever.
This is to test how the rehabilitation process is going. Im not
telling you to take it to exhaustion or to make it painful, but spend
some time feeling your bodys limits to see if they have changed.

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CHAPTER FOURTEEN THE PROGRAM

STAGE ONE
Length: Two weeks
Goals: Lay foundation for future.

DAILY WORK
Prone Glute x 100 repetitions Complete in as many sets as necessary to keep proper
form. Dont rush. Each rep should last 3-6 second and the lift-hold-lower should be in
distinct phases. Can be broken into two sessions per day, with 50 reps per session.
Find Your Tripod x 2 sets of 2 minute holds
Isometric Forefoot x 1 x 1 minute hold
Clamshell x 1 x 20 repetitions

STRETCHING / SOFT TISSUE

Quad-Hip Combo x 2 x 2 minute holds Preferably one set in the morning, one set in
the evening (works great if done after lacrosse, massage, and myofascial release).
Box Hip Flexor Stretch 2 x 1 minute hold Preferably one set in the morning, one
set in the evening.
Lacrosse Treatment x 2-5 minutes per leg in the morning, and preferably more in the
evening.
Self Massage x 2-5 minutes per leg in the evening.
Self Myofascial Release x 1 session per day finding the hot spots, preferably in the
evening with lacrosse treatment and self massage.

End of Stage One Pain Rating ____ / 10

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Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

Day 6

Day 7

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

2 x 2 min

2 x 2 min

2 x 2 min

2 x 2 min

2 x 2 min

2 x 2 min

2 x 2 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Clamshell x
20 reps

Clamshell x
20 reps

Clamshell x
20 reps

Clamshell x
20 reps

Clamshell x
20 reps

Clamshell x
20 reps

Clamshell x
20 reps

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

Box Hip
Flexor

Box Hip
Flexor

Box Hip
Flexor

Box Hip
Flexor

Box Hip
Flexor

Box Hip
Flexor

Box Hip
Flexor

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

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Day 8

Day 9

Day 10

Day 11

Day 12

Day 13

Day 14

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Prone Glute x
100 reps

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

2 x 2 min

2 x 2 min

2 x 2 min

2 x 2 min

2 x 2 min

2 x 2 min

2 x 2 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Iso Forefoot x
1 min

Clamshell x
20 reps

Clamshell x
20 reps

Clamshell x
20 reps

Clamshell x
20 reps

Clamshell x
20 reps

Clamshell x
20 reps

Clamshell x
20 reps

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

Box Hip
Flexor

Box Hip
Flexor

Box Hip
Flexor

Box Hip
Flexor

Box Hip
Flexor

Box Hip
Flexor

Box Hip
Flexor

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

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STAGE TWO
Length: 2 weeks
Goals: Learn true hip extension and forefoot reliance.

DAILY WORK
Modified Bird Dog x 100 repetitions - Complete in as many sets as necessary to keep
proper form. Dont rush. Each rep should last 3-6 second and the lift-hold-lower
should be in distinct phases. Can be broken into two sessions per day, with 50 reps per
session.
Seated Hip Flexor x 30 repetitions - In as many sets necessary to complete with good
form.
Unilaterally Find Your Tripod x 1 x 1 minute hold
Isometric Propulsive Forefoot x 1 x 1 minute hold
Band X-Walks x 1 x 10 steps (each direction)

STRETCHING / SOFT TISSUE

Quad-Hip Combo x 2 x 2 minute holds Preferably one set in the morning, one set in
the evening (works great if done after lacrosse, massage, and myofascial release).
1A) *Box Hip Flexor Stretch 1 x 2 minute hold
1B) *Calf-Soleus Stretch 1 x 2 minute hold
Lacrosse Treatment x 2-5 minutes per leg in the morning, and preferably more in the
evening.
Self Massage x 2-5 minutes per leg in the evening.
Self Myofascial Release x 1 session per day finding the hot spots, preferably in the
evening with lacrosse treatment and self massage.

End of Stage Two Pain Rating ____ / 10

*Alternated every other day (see chart that follows)
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Day 15

Day 16

Day 17

Day 18

Day 19

Day20

Day 21

Modified Bird
Dog x 100
reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 100
reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 100
reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 100
reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 100
reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 100
reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 100
reps

Seated Hip x
30 reps

Seated Hip x
30 reps

Seated Hip x
30 reps

Seated Hip x
30 reps

Seated Hip x
30 reps

Seated Hip x
30 reps

Seated Hip x
30 reps

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

Box Hip
Flexor

Calf-Soleus

Box Hip
Flexor

Calf-Soleus

Box Hip
Flexor

Calf-Soleus

Box Hip
Flexor

x 2 mins

x 2 mins

x 2 mins

x 2 mins

x 2 mins

x 2 mins

x 2 mins

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 113

Day 22

Day 23

Day 24

Day 25

Day 26

Day 27

Day 28

Modified Bird
Dog x 100

Modified Bird
Dog x 100

Modified Bird
Dog x 100

Modified Bird
Dog x 100

Modified Bird
Dog x 100

Modified Bird
Dog x 100

Modified Bird
Dog x 100

Seated Hip x
30

Seated Hip x
30

Seated Hip x
30

Seated Hip x
30

Seated Hip x
30

Seated Hip x
30

Seated Hip x
30

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

Iso Propulsive
Forefoot x 1
min

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

X-Walks x 10
steps (each
direction)

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

Calf-Soleus

Box Hip
Flexor

Calf-Soleus

Box Hip
Flexor

Calf-Soleus

Box Hip
Flexor

Calf-Soleus

x 2 mins

x 2 mins

x 2 mins

x 2 mins

x 2 mins

x 2 mins

x 2 mins

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 114

STAGE THREE
Length: 2 weeks
Goals: Begin learning standing hip extension via RDL positioning.

DAILY WORK
Modified Bird Dog x 50 repetitions - Complete in as many sets as necessary to keep
proper form. Dont rush. Each rep should last 3-6 second and the lift-hold-lower
should be in distinct phases.
Standing Hip Flexor x 30 repetitions - Complete in as many sets as necessary to keep
proper form.
Unilaterally Find Your Tripod x 1 x 1 minute hold
Bunny Hops x 2 x 30 repetitions
Split Stance Shin Raises x 2 x 10 repetitions
Pallof Press x 1 x 5 reps (5 second hold at lockout) (each side)
FTTP x 5 x 1 minute holds
Isometric Bottom RDL x 5 x 1 minute holds

STRETCHING / SOFT TISSUE

Quad-Hip Combo x 2 x 2 minute holds Preferably one set in the morning, one set in
the evening.
1A) *Box Hip Flexor Stretch 1 x 2 minute hold
1B) *Calf-Soleus Stretch 1 x 2 minute hold
Lacrosse Treatment x 2-5 minutes per leg in the morning, and preferably later too.
Self Massage x 2-5 minutes per leg in the evening.
Self Myofascial Release (SMR) x 1 session per day finding the hot spots, preferably
in the evening with lacrosse treatment and self massage.

End of Stage Three Pain Rating ____ / 10

*Alternated every other day (see chart that follows).
Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 115

Day 29

Day 30

Day 31

Day 32

Day 33

Day 34

Day 35

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

x 2 x 30 reps

x 2 x 30 reps

x 2 x 30 reps

x 2 x 30 reps

x 2 x 30 reps

x 2 x 30 reps

x 2 x 30 reps

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

x 2 x 10 reps

x 2 x 10 reps

x 2 x 10 reps

x 2 x 10 reps

x 2 x 10 reps

x 2 x 10 reps

x 2 x 10 reps

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

FTTP

FTTP

FTTP

FTTP

FTTP

FTTP

FTTP

x 5 x 1 min
holds

x 5 x 1 min
holds

x 5 x 1 min
holds

x 5 x 1 min
holds

x 5 x 1 min
holds

x 5 x 1 min
holds

x 5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

Calf-Soleus x
2 mins

Box Hip
Flexor x 2
mins

Calf-Soleus x
2 mins

Box Hip
Flexor x 2
mins

Calf-Soleus x
2 mins

Box Hip
Flexor x 2
mins

Calf-Soleus x
2 mins

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

SMR

SMR

SMR

SMR

SMR

SMR

SMR

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 116

Day 36

Day 37

Day 38

Day 39

Day 40

Day 41

Day 42

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Modified Bird
Dog x 50 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Standing Hip
x 30 reps

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

Unilateral
Tripod

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

x 2 x 30 reps

x 2 x 30 reps

x 2 x 30 reps

x 2 x 30 reps

x 2 x 30 reps

x 2 x 30 reps

x 2 x 30 reps

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

x 2 x 130 reps

x 2 x 10 reps

x 2 x 10 reps

x 2 x 10 reps

x 2 x 10 reps

x 2 x 10 reps

x 2 x 10 reps

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

Pallof Press x
5 reps (per
side)

FTTP

FTTP

FTTP

FTTP

FTTP

FTTP

FTTP

x 5 x 1 min
holds

x 5 x 1 min
holds

x 5 x 1 min
holds

x 5 x 1 min
holds

x 5 x 1 min
holds

x 5 x 1 min
holds

x 5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Bottom RDL x
5 x 1 min
holds

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

Calf-Soleus x
2 mins

Box Hip
Flexor x 2
mins

Calf-Soleus x
2 mins

Box Hip
Flexor x 2
mins

Calf-Soleus x
2 mins

Box Hip
Flexor x 2
mins

Calf-Soleus x
2 mins

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

SMR

SMR

SMR

SMR

SMR

SMR

SMR

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 117

STAGE FOUR
Length: 2 weeks
Goals: Learn the RDL.

DAILY WORK
RDL x 100 repetitions - Complete in as many sets as necessary to keep proper form.
Dont rush. Each rep should last 3-6 second and the lift-hold-lower should be in distinct
phases.
Standing or Seated Hip Flexor x 30 repetitions - Complete in as many sets as
necessary to keep proper form.
Find Your Tripod x 1 x 1 minute hold
Bunny Hops x 2 x 30 repetitions
Split Stance Shin Raises x 2 x 10 repetitions
Hip Rotations x 1 x 20 repetitions

STRETCHING / SOFT TISSUE

Quad-Hip Combo x 2 x 2 minute holds Preferably one set in the morning, one set in
the evening.
1A) *Box Hip Flexor Stretch 1 x 2 minute hold
1B) *Calf-Soleus Stretch 1 x 2 minute hold
Lacrosse Treatment x 2-5 minutes per leg in the morning, and preferably more in the
evening.
Self Massage x 2-5 minutes per leg in the evening.
Self Myofascial Release x 1 session per day finding the hot spots, preferably in the
evening with lacrosse treatment and self massage.

End of Stage Four Pain Rating ____ / 10

*Alternated every other day (see chart that follows).

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 118

Day 43

Day 44

Day 45

Day 46

Day 47

Day 48

Day 49

RDL x 100

RDL x 100

RDL x 100

RDL x 100

RDL x 100

RDL x 100

RDL x 100

Any Hip x 30

Any Hip x 30

Any Hip x 30

Any Hip x 30

Any Hip x 30

Any Hip x 30

Any Hip x 30

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

x 2 x 30

x 2 x 30

x 2 x 30

x 2 x 30

x 2 x 30

x 2 x 30

x 2 x 30

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

x 2 x 10

x 2 x 10

x 2 x 10

x 2 x 10

x 2 x 10

x 2 x 10

x 2 x 10

Hip Rotations
x 20

Hip Rotations
x 20

Hip Rotations
x 20

Hip Rotations
x 20

Hip Rotations
x 20

Hip Rotations
x 20

Hip Rotations
x 20

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

Calf-Soleus

Box Hip
Flexor*

Calf-Soleus

Box Hip
Flexor*

Calf-Soleus

Box Hip
Flexor*

Calf-Soleus

x 2 min

x 2 min

x 1 min

x 2 min

x 1 min

x 2 min

x 1 min

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 119

Day 50

Day 51

Day 52

Day 53

Day 54

Day 55

Day 56

RDL x 100

RDL x 100

RDL x 100

RDL x 100

RDL x 100

RDL x 100

RDL x 100

Hip x 30

Hip x 30

Hip x 30

Hip x 30

Hip x 30

Hip x 30

Hip x 30

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

Find Tripod

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

x 1 min

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

Bunny Hops

x 2 x 30

x 2 x 30

x 2 x 30

x 2 x 30

x 2 x 30

x 2 x 30

x 2 x 30

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

Shin Raises

x 2 x 10

x 2 x 10

x 2 x 10

x 2 x 10

x 2 x 10

x 2 x 10

x 2 x 10

Hip Rotations
x 20

Hip Rotations
x 20

Hip Rotations
x 20

Hip Rotations
x 20

Hip Rotations
x 20

Hip Rotations
x 20

Hip Rotations
x 20

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

Quad-Hip
Combo

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

2 x 2 mins

Calf-Soleus

Box Hip
Flexor*

Calf-Soleus

Box Hip
Flexor*

Calf-Soleus

Box Hip
Flexor*

Calf-Soleus

x 2 min

x 2 min

x 1 min

x 2 min

x 1 min

x 2 min

x 1 min

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Lacrosse
Treatment

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self Massage

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Self
Myofascial
Release

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 120

STAGE FIVE
Length: Indefinite (As a warm up/cool down procedure)
Goals: Maintenance.

WORK (2-3 TIMES / WEEK)

Body Weight RDL with Fundamental Tip Toe Position x 20 repetitions
Standing or Seated Hip Flexor x 15 repetitions
Split Stance Shin Raises x 10 repetitions
Bunny Hops x 30 repetitions
1A) *Box Hip Flexor Stretch 1 x 2 minute hold
1B) *Calf-Soleus Stretch 1 x 2 minute hold

WORK (DAILY)
Quad-Hip Combo x 1 x 2 minute hold
Lacrosse Treatment x 2 minutes per leg
Self Myofascial Release x one session per day finding the hot spots

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 121

WARM UP / COOL DOWN

DAY A

DAY B

BW RDL W/ FTTP x 20

BW RDL W/ FTTP x 20

SEATED HIP x 15

SEATED HIP x 15

SHIN RAISES x 10

SHIN RAISES x 10

BUNNY HOPS x 30

BUNNY HOPS x 30

BOX HIP FLEXOR STRETCH x 2

MINUTES TOTAL

CALF-SOLEUS STRETCH x 2 MINUTES

TOTAL

DAILY
QUAD-HIP COMBO STRETCH x 2 MINUTES TOTAL
LACROSSE AND SOFT TISSUE WORK

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 122

CHAPTER FIFTEEN Q&A

Q: I have no interest in barbell training, and Im having
trouble falling along with this terminology.
A: Its ok. Honestly, just look past it. You dont need to be familiar
with barbells, really. I describe every movement separately. Just
hang in there, it becomes clear. If not, e-mail me. Ill help you
along the way.
Q: Im just a runner. How does this impact me?
A: More than you can imagine! Using your forefoot and hip is
paramount to preventing injuries.
Q: What if I cant train seven days per week?
A: Its understandable, and it does become mentally draining. If
you cant keep up with it, I recommend training five days per week
on a 3 on 2 off schedule. You dont want to go two days in a row
without doing some kind of work. 3 on 1 off is a good way to do
this as well.
Q: Where do I learn how to squat?
A: I like to think of the squat as a separate subject, and I knew if I
included it in this eBook, people would be trying to do too many
things. Thats why Im creating a second eBook that deals with
repatterning the squat and programming explosive work.

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 123

Q: So after I complete this eight week stint, am I healed?

A: Youll notice that you move differently and youll be a blank
slate at that point. All movement you layer on top of it should
respect the rules and patterning that you went through.
Q: I tried to squat right after the program and my knee pain is
back. Help?
A: Its likely youre not patterning the squat well enough. Your hips
are still failing you. Be on the lookout for my second eBook. It will
help you do this. E-mail me in the mean time.
Q: Im getting knee pain in the isometric positions of the
RDL, what should I do?
A: Knee pain in the bottom RDL position is common, but what Ive
found is most people that have it carry too much weight back on
their heels. Try shifting your weight to a more even distribution,
even erring on the side of the forefoot.
Q: What if I dont have time to do stuff in the morning,
evening, and night?
A: Although ideal to spread the workload, you can cram
everything into one session. Do some supersetting to save some
time. When youre resting from your activation stuff, hit a little soft
tissue work and such.
I will say, however, finding some time for the self massage and a
one-two minute quad-hip combo stretch a few times a day is
nearly essential.

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 124

Q: Why is this program eight weeks?

A: As Pavel points out in his newest work, Easy Strength,
based on German research by Neumann, who studied the
dynamics of adaptation for over 20 years and came to the
conclusion that complete adaptation takes at least six weeks.
(Neumanns research led to the East German practice of planning
elite athletes training in six week units.)
I added two weeks because most of us arent elite athletes and
with an issue like this, its best to err on the side of caution.
Q: Why train daily?
A: As Buddy Morris said, It takes 500 hours to invoke a motor
pattern before it becomes unconscious. It takes 25-30 thousand
reps to break a bad motor pattern. The work were doing is low
intensity enough that it can be done frequently, and the more
frequently its done the more motor programming takes place.
Q: I took your advice and I tried to incorporate some of your
ideas immediately, but I still have knee pain. What gives?
A: Any kind of question like this will assumedly get the same
response: do the program. The ideas are good and I encourage
you to test things out before dedicating eight weeks to the rehab,
but if you cant get by with your tinkering, its time to man up and
do the rehab.
Q: If I have more time, can I do more?
A: Its not necessary, but you can do more. Its an individual thing.
Add another set or two at your leisure, or another session at
another time in the day.
Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 125

Q: My legs are fatigued. Can this be fixed?

A: They should be at first. They are working harder than they ever
have. But your body will adapt. Stick through it and youll come
out a better person.
Q: How do I know if this is working?
A: In each stage, I have testing built in so you can gauge your
progress. People dont really realize how the body should move
until the sixth week though, so stick it out until then.
Q: When should my pain start to go away?
A: Since youre going to be avoiding the pain stimulus, it shouldnt
bother you unless you provoke it in the beginning stages. It will
subside further when you learn how to use your hips instead of
your knee. Its all a part of the learning. It wont suddenly
disappear either, like magic. Your knee is damaged and
overused. It needs a little me time to get well.

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 126

AN ATHLETES GUIDE
TO CHRONIC KNEE
PAIN, PART II
increasing strength and explosiveness
through barbell exercises, leaps, and
bounds

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 127

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter One Pattern, Grind, Ballistic..131
Chapter Two The Romanian Deadlift.135
Chapter Three The Squat.....146
Chapter Four Jumps, Leaps, and Bounds.168
Chapter Five Sample Program....173
Chapter Six Pay it Forward..179

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 128

PREFACE
After releasing An Athletes Guide to Chronic Knee Pain,
Part I, I knew that I had more work to do. And that work consisted
of truly finishing off the rehabilitation program and creating, what I
like to call, an athletic enhancement program.
Getting rid of chronic knee pain is one thing. But learning
how to keep it off by incorporating the movement patterns learned
in Part I is another matter. This book was written specifically for
that. And over the years of doing this I always notice that people
make great strides, from an athletic standpoint, after finishing the
rehab program because their body functions a lot better.
So for the inquisitive minds wondering what the hell is
next? at the conclusion of part one. This is what the hell is next.
Lets kill rehabilitation programs. Lets give rise to what
rehabilitation programs should be. Lets give rise to the era of
rehabilitation being an achievement of athletic enhancement.

THE VIDEO ARCHIVES

Unlike the last book, I felt that the information in this book
needed video referencing and explanation. So I created private
YouTube videos that explains all of the movements that are
discussed. You will be linked to the appropriate video as we go.

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 129

THE MAINTENANCE WARM UP PROGRAM

At the end of the first book, I left you with a warm-up and
cool-down procedure. Keep. Using. It. Of course, you can (and
should) do more as a warm up. But this just maintains the
patterning that was set in place. Alternate between pure hip flexor
stretches and calf-soleus stretches for the cool-down. So if you
trained Monday, youd do the hip flexor stretch. Tuesday, youd do
the calf-soleus stretch. On both days youd do the lacrosse work
and quad-hip combo stretch for two minutes each leg. And if you
took Wednesday off, youd still do the lacrosse and quad-hip
work.
WARM UP / COOL DOWN
DAY A

DAY B

BW RDL W/ FTTP x 20

BW RDL W/ FTTP x 20

SEATED HIP x 15

SEATED HIP x 15

SHIN RAISES x 10

SHIN RAISES x 10

BUNNY HOPS x 30

BUNNY HOPS x 30

BOX HIP FLEXOR STRETCH x 2 MINUTES TOTAL

(COOL DOWN)

CALF-SOLEUS STRETCH x 2 MINUTES TOTAL (COOL

DOWN)

DAILY
QUAD-HIP COMBO STRETCH x 2 MINUTES TOTAL
LACROSSE AND SOFT TISSUE WORK

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CHAPTER ONE PATTERN, GRIND,

BALLISTIC
Terms have a propensity to change. At the end of the first
book, I told you that the contents developed the endurance aspect
of the endurance strength speed continuum.
Well, since then, Ive come across a new way to categorize
this continuum. It means the same thing, but the words seem to
stick in peoples mind better because, well, they are way cooler. I
have to thank the great Dan John for providing these new terms,
but let me explain them.
The first part of teaching new movement patterns involves
developing the endurance in the pattern. This is what Dan John
calls patterning. You have a near infinite amount of time to
practice these kinds of contractions because they are low
intensity. Patterning is what we did in the first book. We first
learned how to use our hips through remedial activation
exercises. We then gradually incorporated our new found
activation into more complex movement patterns such as the
romanian deadlift (RDL). And to solidify this further, I made you
do about a billion of them so that your body could learn how to
move in a way to fully utilize the hips.
That was patterning. Tons of reps. Tons of conscious
control. Tons of practice. Tons of monotony. Tons of time to focus
on things. You stayed in the two positions of the RDL and had
nothing to do but think about your muscles contracting. This is
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what it takes to develop a motor pattern. As Sam Snead once

said, I figure practice puts your brain in your muscles.
After you solidified a motor pattern, however, a continuation
of activation and patterning becomes useless. At some point you
have to replace activation with strength. This is what Dan John
calls grind. So after adopting a new motor pattern, the next step is
to incorporate strength in the pattern.
Whats not to be lost sight of, however, is that youre still
learning at this point. You may be able to hold your newly found
motor pattern when there is no external resistance, but once
weight is added, you will break down fast. This is why you have
to progress through your strength work slowly. Always be
sure to maintain the new pattern. Pattern maintenance is
more important than weight on the bar.
A lot of people finish the initial eight week rehabilitation and
immediately try to squat or deadlift the weight they used to, only
to forego all of the patterning that was just completed. That is a
terrible error. Days later, they will complain of their knee pain
returning. You have to hold the pattern. When you dont, your
pain will come back. Its that simple.
But lets say that you progressed sensibly, and youre
actually developing strength in the newly found motor pattern. At
some point, because youve developed the pattern to such a great
extent from both an endurance and strength aspect, you can
begin to hold it during more explosive movements.
Now, I should note that its nearly impossible to consciously
think about things during ballistic movements. Its not like it was
back in the patterning stage. We had lots of time then. But in the
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ballistic stage, we have little time. So, in some instances, you

shouldnt expect to have mental control over your movements as
you reach the higher ranks of complex, ballistic movements.
Nevertheless, training to hold these motor patterns can be
gradually introduced with lower intensity explosive movements in
hopes that they unconsciously get adopted into the upper echelon
of complex, ballistic movements.
So then, what exactly are you reading? What is the purpose
of this eBook as compared to the last one?
Well, the first eBook was the patterning. Truth be told,
patterning is perhaps the most difficult part. This eBook is about
the grind (strength) and ballistic (explosive) movements. Meaning,
how do you make sure the patterning holds through whenever
you start doing more complex movements where you really dont
have time to think about activating certain musculature? It is our
hope that we can rewire the body enough so that it takes care of
that problem by itself. But we have to follow our progression
through pattern grind ballistic.
But back to the first bookwe patterned the romanian
deadlift, or what most like to call a hinge movement at the hips.
So, at this point, we should be able to begin the grind (or
strengthening) phase of the hinging movement pattern. Once we
make some progress there, we can then begin the ballistic (or
explosive) phase.
But the hinge isnt the only lower body movement pattern
that we need to consider. There is also the squatthe movement
pattern youve probably been obsessing over since last book. The
squat patterning is aided tremendously by the hinge patterning, so
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the process shouldnt take as long as long as the first book tamed
any knee flare ups you had. After patterning, of course, comes the
grind and ballistic phases.
Lets get started.

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Chapter two the Romanian deadlift

Theres nothing inherently special about the RDL, but its
one of the few standing exercises we can do that involves nothing
but hip extension. Traditional deadlifts have knee flexion at the
beginning of the lift that can interfere with learning, and most
other hip extension intensive movementslike back extensions,
hip thrusts, and reverse hyperextensionsarent done from a
standing position, which, I feel, transfers over to using the glutes
better during ballistic movements.
If youre wondering about the squat, its in the future
chapters. I chose to discuss the RDL first because it can be
loaded while the patterning for the squat takes place.
Nevertheless, the time has come to load the RDL. But before you
do, there are a few things you have to keep in mind.

How to rdl

VIEW RDL VIDEO EXPLANATION

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It may seem redundant to relearn the RDL after all of the

patterning we did in the first book. But I want to mention a few
things just so youre aware of the differences you will encounter
once the bar is in your hands.
First, disregard the tip toe portion of the fundamental tip toe
position. You should be able to come to a strong lockout with the
glutes squeezed without rising onto your tip toes. You still should,
however, think of it as a back-and-forth movement and not an upand-down-movement. Keep the image of pawing the ground in
your mind.
Second, the bar interferes with the movement so you have to
be careful. Since the barbell is in your hands and it is sliding down
your legs, the arms are fixed. Some people get hung up on this,
but the main thing you need to remember is that the range of
motion stops when you cant hold the pattern (probably with the
bar just below knee cap level).
Third, the bar stays as close to your body as possible. There
may be a slight tendency for the bar to move away from your
body on the concentric portion if youre really hammering the
pawing motor pattern. This is fine. Just keep it close.
Fourth, all rules still apply. Power the RDL through hip
extension, not back extension. Keep your weight distributed
evenly and your knees aligned over your feet properly. Basically,
all of the stuff in the first book cant be forgotten.
Traditionally, to do a RDL, the bar is taken out of the rack so
that you dont have to do a conventional deadlift to get the bar in
the correct position. I understand that not everyone has this
luxury. If you need to deadlift the bar into position, remember to
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power the movement from the hips as best as possible. Keep

your spine in a good position and think of the top half as a RDL.
You should be fine.

Once the bar is in position, slide it down your legs by

pushing your hips back, keeping it in contact with your body.
Once you hit your sticking pointwhere you can no longer keep
good spinal position and your hamstrings have reached their
extensibilitypaw the ground and shoot your hips up and
forward. Think about humping the bar and coming to a position in
which your glutes are squeezed.

Dumbbell vs barbell
Ideally you will use a barbell to load the RDL. If you would
rather use dumbbells, thats fine. It may work better in some
instances because it gives you more freedom throughout the
range of motion. But if you plan on doing more complex barbell
exercises, you should stick with a barbell. If you dont, however,
feel free to use dumbbells.

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The following is written for barbell users, but it will look the
same for those using dumbbells. Numbers never change. 35
pounds is always 35 pounds.
Stronger guys (and gals) may run into problems with
dumbbells simply because the dumbbells dont go high enough. In
this case, well, youre just going to have to go as high as you can
and then find your own way. But its better to just venture over to
the barbell.

Conservative loading
Like I said in the first chapter, people usually have problems
with loading the bar conservatively at first. You may have been
able to RDL 315 pounds prior to embarking on this rehabilitation,
but remember that was with your old motor pattern. Your new
motor pattern is just thatnew. Its a just-born-baby. You cant
treat it like an adult.
The easiest way to pick your starting weight is to take your
very first RDL strength training day and titrate your way up using
small increments. I like starting people off with five sets of ten
repetitions, all done with the same weight. This techniquedoing
all written sets and reps with the same weightis a technique
called sets across.
So your first training session will look something like this.
Take the bar and do ten repetitions. Yeah, with just the bar. Hold
the motor pattern I taught you. If you do, youll feel this all in the
glutes. Your hamstrings might feel a mild stretch, but your glutes
should be getting a massive rush of blood flow. If youre feeling
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this in your lower back and hamstring over your glutes, theres a
good chance youre not keeping the pattern.
Add five or ten more pounds to the bar and, after a little rest,
do ten more. If you can still hold the motor pattern, feeling it in
your hips, add five or ten more pounds. Keeping doing this, if you
can, until you hit 135 pounds. Some of you might not be able to,
so dont worry. I only use 135 as a cutoff point because if you
listened to me, that would be nearly your ninth set.
So if you didnt hit 135, then youve found your starting
weight. Lets say you lost form at 95 pounds. The next workout,
warm up and load the bar with 75 pounds (you generally want to
start 20 pounds less than the weight you stalled at) and do all of
your sets and all of your reps with that weight.
The workout after that, add five or ten pounds, and complete
all of your sets and reps with that weight. In our example, thats
80 or 85 pounds. Keep adding 5-10 pounds with each
consecutive workout, until you hit the point where you fail to
complete all of your sets without keeping form.
But if you did hit 135, then during your next workout, warm
up to 135 pounds and follow the same strategy. Ten reps per set,
adding 5-10 pounds each set until you cant hold form. If you
make it up to 225 pounds for 10 repetitions, hold there and call it
a day.
If you didnt, and stalled at, lets say 155 pounds, then follow
the recipe from two paragraphs ago: drop 20 pounds from the bar
and slowly work your way up every workout. Your first real
session would be 135 pounds. Add 5-10 pounds for the next one,
and so on until one day you hit a point where you cant keep form.
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If you made it to 225 pounds, youre just going to use that as

your starting point. Follow the same progression outlined (twice)
above.
So far I gave you three scenarios. Heres what they look like
in non-paragraph format.

Example One:
Workout One: 45x10, 55x10, 65x10, 75x10, 85x10, 95x10
(fail)
Workout Two: 5 x 10 x 75
Workout Three: 5 x 10 x 85
Workout Four: 5 x 10 x 95. . .
Workout Ten: 5 x 10 x 155 (fail)

Example Two:
Workout One: 45x10 135x10
Workout Two: 135x10, 145x10, 155x10 (fail)
Workout Three: 5 x 10 x 135
Workout Four: 5 x 10 x 145
Workout Five: 5 x 10 x 155. . .
Workout Eight: 5 x 10 x 185 (fail)

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Example Three:
Workout One: 45x10 135x10
Workout Two: 135x10 225x10
Workout Three: 5 x 10 x 225
Workout Four: 5 x 10 x 235 . . .
Workout Nine: 5 x 10 x 285 (fail)

Eventually, most everyone is going to hit a stalling point. And

I guess now is a good time to tell you that you have two main
lower body days slated per week, which means that youll be
doing weighted RDLs twice per week, both days for 5 sets of 10
repetitions.
Once you fail to keep your form with a certain weight, youre
going to switch one of the days to 5 sets of 5 reps and continue
on the same progression at the same weight you failed at. The
other day, however, is going to drop back down by 10-20% in
weight on the bar, and continue with the 5 sets of 10 repetitions,
but only add 5 pounds per workout.
So now that youre confused as hell, let me just chart this out
for you so that it comes to life.

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EXAMPLE ONE
Week

Day One (Monday)

Day Two (Friday)

Week 1

45x10, 55x10,
65x10, 75x10,
85x10, 95x10 (fail)

5 x 10 x 75

Week 2

5 x 10 x 85

5 x 10 x 95

Week 3

5 x 10 x 105

5 x 10 x 115

Week 4

5 x 10 x 125

5 x 10 x 135

Week 5

5 x 10 x 145

5 x 10 x 155 (fail)

Week 6

5 x 10 x 125
(deload)

5 x 5 x 155

Week 7

5 x 10 x 130

5 x 5 x 165

Week 8

5 x 10 x 135

5 x 5 x 175

Week 9

5 x 10 x 140

5 x 5 x 185 (previous
week felt heavy)

Week 10

5 x 10 x 145

5 x 5 x 190. . .

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EXAMPLE TWO
Week

Day One (Monday)

Day Two (Friday)

Week 1

45x10 135x10

135x10, 145x10,
155x10 (fail)

Week 2

5 x 10 x 135

5 x 10 x 135

Week 3

5 x 10 x 105

5 x 10 x 135

Week 4

5 x 10 x 135

5 x 10 x 145

Week 5

5 x 10 x 155

5 x 10 x 165

Week 6

5 x 10 x 175

5 x 10 x 185 (fail)

Week 7

5 x 10 x 135
(deload)

5 x 5 x 185

Week 8

5 x 10 x 140

5 x 5 x 195

Week 9

5 x 10 x 145

5 x 5 x 205

Week 10

5 x 10 x 150

5 x 5 x 215

Week 11

5 x 10 x 150

5 x 5 x 225

Week 12

5 x 10 x 150

5 x 5 x 235. . .

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EXAMPLE THREE
Week

Day One (Monday)

Day Two (Friday)

Week 1

45x10 135x10

135x10 225x10

Week 2

5 x 10 x 235

5 x 10 x 245

Week 3

5 x 10 x 255

5 x 10 x 265

Week 4

5 x 10 x 275

5 x 10 x 285 (fail)

Week 5

5 x 10 x 225
(deload)

5 x 5 x 285

Week 6

5 x 10 x 230

5 x 5 x 295

Week 7

5 x 10 x 235

5 x 5 x 305. . .

At some point, as demonstrated in Example One, ten pound

jumps every workouteven on 5x5 daysis going to be too
taxing. Youll be able to feel this coming and you may even doubt
your ability to jump ten pounds. In this case, start increasing by
five pounds every weekly workout on your 5x5 days (you should
already be doing this on your 5x10 days).
Also, once you incorporate 5x5 days, your 5x10 days are
nothing more than a filler of sustaining the movement pattern.
Increasing weight on the bar this day isnt important. If you take
example three, week six, if you walked into the gym and felt
absolutely spent you could load up the bar with 185 (or even 135)
and hit your five sets of ten reps. The main thing that matters is
continued progression on your 5x5 daysremember that. Do

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whatever it takes on Monday to get your reps in and be primed for

Friday.
Once your 5x5 days stall, then youre out of my
programming boat. You should be strong enough to know what
youre doing and understand the pattern enough to venture on to
other hinge type exercises (conventional deadlifts and its variants,
hip thrusts, swings, back extensions, reverse hypers, etc.). You
can proudly say that you graduated the grind portion of the
hinge movement pattern.
If you want to be conservative you can reset your 5x5
workout once and then progress through it again. For example,
lets say you stall on 5 x 5 x 225. Drop 10% from the bar (the
recommended amount once youre this advanced) and then
repeat the progression with five pound jumps. So you would
regress to 200 (approximately 10% drop) and do your 5x5
workout. The next session would be done with 205, and the next
with 210, and so on.

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CHAPTER THREE THE SQUAT

Im smart enough to know that most of you have wanted this
chapter from way back in the first book. Of all movements
barbell or no barbellsquatting has to be the most troublesome. I
dare say that if you can figure the squat out then you wont have
any issues with the ballistic phase of motor reprogramming. Take
it seriously and diligently.
The good news is that you will squat once again. The bad
news is that its going to take a while for you to be squatting
seriously again. Theres something odd that happens when we
add a barbell into the mix that just doesnt sit well with our knees.
For that reason, its always about slow progression over time. As
Buddy Morris said, Louie [Simmons] always tells me the ability to
do a little bit of work for a long period of time is better than ability
to a lot of work in a short period of time. So lets allow ourselves
to do that little bit of work, and lets allow ourselves to do it for the
rest of our life.
If you remember back to patterning the RDL, the main goal
was to get the hips to power the movement. Its the same idea
with the squat. Truth be told, your glutes will probably grow larger
than you had ever imagined after total repatterning. Some people
might be self conscious about this, but I dont feel any remorse for
those people. Actually, I dont think I ever want to meet them.
Embrace your hips. Embrace your strength. Embrace your
beauty.

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Since were approaching the squat in the same manner as

the RDL, we have to remember those tiny things that were
important to us way back in the first book.
Weight distributed as evenly as possible
o With the squat this means that the weight shouldnt be
OVERLY on your heels to the point of being able to lift
the front half of your foot off of the ground.
Knee tracks over the second toe
o Dont shove them too far out, and dont let them
collapse too far in. The ideal relationship is with the
knee over the second toe, but you should be fine if you
just keep the knee somewhere over the middle of the
foot.
Having femoral control
o Once again, we want to view the squat as a back and
forth motion powered through hip extension not back
extension.

Patterning the squat

Just like other movements, patterning takes time and
frequency. Luckily, all of the work we did with the RDL will benefit
learning the squat. Just like what the RDL, we will follow a
sensible plan of exercise, volume, and load progressions.
At the core of learning the squat is the concept of using the
glutes to drive the movement. When most people squat they feel
their lower back or quadssome even feel their hamstrings. But
rarely does someone end a set of squats and boast about the
pump in their glutes. What cant be lost, however, is that if you
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have femoral control then the glutes are going to take the brunt of
the load. Now, thats not to say other leg muscles arent allowed
to be sore or felt during exercises, but the glutes should always
be the frontrunner. You should feel them grind on the eccentric
portion of both RDLs and squats. You should feel them
contracting to get your through the concentric portion of the lifts.
At lockout, you should feel them contracted, serving as a stable
base of support.
It borderlines obsession, I know. But if it were up to me it
wouldnt just be border line, it would be an obsession. As I
mentioned in the first book, you need to tap into your hip on a
daily basis for remedial taskswalking up steps, getting out of
your car, and walking in general. And I also distinctly
remembering pointing out that the rehabilitation process never
ends. The moment you lose conscious control over the hip is the
moment you regress. You cant let it happen. So lets look at how
to make sure the hip is doing its job during squats.

What if I dont want to squat?

I know that not everyone that picks up this book is going to
have an interest in squatting. Others, after feeling how good their
knees feel, will question whether or not they want to get back
under the bar.
But from a mobility and health standpoint, everyone should
be able to squat with the power of their hips. This isnt to say that
everyone needs to squat heavy or with a barbell, but I firmly
believe that the ability to do a proper squat and hit a respectable
depth is a sign of an overall healthy lower body.
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So whether youre a diehard powerlifter thats itching to get

the barbell on your back, or a general fitness enthusiast thats
content with doing bodyweight squats for reps, most everybody
shouldat the very leastlearn how to squat deep and learn how
to use their hips at that range of motion.

Squat patterning Box Squats

SEE BOX SQUAT VIDEO EXPLANATION

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As mentioned earlier, we dont have to go through a barrage

of activation exercises to begin the squat. We already went
though that, which means its time to dive right in.
The trickiest part is learning how to incorporate all of those
small details in the more difficult movement pattern. The squat is
a combination of hip extension and knee extension, where the
RDL is more so just hip extension. So, overall, you have more to
remember during the squat. Because of this, people tend to lose
their mind at the bottom of a squat. I dont mean that in a bad
way, but there is just too much for a beginner to think about.

SEE SQUAT STANCE AND SEMANTICS VIDEO EXPLANATION

The general for a set-up for the squat will have the feet
placed directly under, or just outside of, shoulder width. Any
further and youre putting too much stress on the hips. (I
understand Powerlifters do this, but they also wear briefs.) The
feet will point out anywhere from 10-30 degrees.
Multiple resources will tell you multiple things, but to initiate
the squat you have to break at both the hips and knees. And
since we have enough things to think about, the first step is to first
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squat to a box or chair that puts your legs nearly parallel to the
floor (a bit above or below doesnt matter).
So break your knees and reach your butt back for the chair.
As soon as you sit on the chair, freeze. Dont relax anything. Dont
change your back angle. Just hit, sit, and pause. Your descent
should have been nice and cozy with your knee over your toe and
your weight distributed over your entire foot. The benefit of sitting
on the box is that you can think about these things while not being
under tension.
Once youre sitting on the box and maintaining your
position, simply squeeze your glutes on and off. Contract for 10
seconds, and relax for 5 seconds. Repeat this for four cycles. This
teaches you how your glutes to work in a squat position. Again,
normally this cant be done because the other muscles are firing
because of the tension. But with the chair, nothing is interfering
with your ability to single out the glutes.
After the four contraction cycles, you can rise from the box,
but before you do, remember your RDL training. On the RDL, we
used something called the fundamental tip toe position.
Essentially, it was a position on your tip toes with the glutes
squeezed to help your body think of the movement as a horizontal
propulsion.
Well, we can do the same thing on the squat. So when you
rise from the box, shoot your hips forward so that your glutes are
squeezed and youre on your tip toes. Now, you dont have to
come on your tip toes, and theres a chance that doing so will
reposition your feet. So if you do decided to do it, youre going to
have to reset your feet after every repetition. What Ive found,
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however, is that with the RDL training, most people can come to a
strong glute lockout without rising on their tip toes.

Squat patterning

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Ideally, you already have the mobility to hit a free squat to a

respectable depth (with the crease of your hip below your thigh).

Theres a good chance that, during a free squat, we will get

deeper. Because there is no external resistance, your lower back
will roundwhich is perfectly fine when not under a load
allowing you to sink a little bit further to the bottom position.
I understand, however, that not everyone will be ready to hit
the bottom depth, in which case a little help will be necessary.
Ironically enough, Ive found that the deep squat position is one of
the best stretches for relieving knee pain once the initial problem
is fixed, so dont be afraid to sit at the bottom of the squat for a
little while even if your knees experience a slight discomfort at
first. Im reminded by a great Dan John passage from his blog:
Its funny, because years ago a young man told me: squats
hurt my knees. I asked him to demonstrate his squat. He
did and I said: Squats dont hurt your knees; whatever you
are doing there hurts your knees.
If youre having trouble hitting the bottom, you can use this
progression. First, use a door handle to balance yourself. Move
around down at the bottom position. Stretch your ankles. Try to
get more comfortable down there.

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Second, use a door frame. The frame allows you more

freedom because your back is in a more realistic position and
when youre comfortable you can let go of the door frame and
hold the bottom position for a while. Once you get tired, need a
break, or lose balance, the door frames are right there for you to
grab onto.

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Third, and last, simply go down into a free squat for as long
as you can.
But before you go on your mobility quest, make sure you
borrow what we just learned from the box squat section. The
basis behind programming the squat is to make sure that you can
use your glutes at the bottom. So when youre hitting your mobility
work a la the paragraph above, make sure you do the glute
pulses, preferably with the same 10 on 5 off recipe for one total
minute.

Squat patterning IsoMetric squat

stretch
SEE ISOMERTIC SQUAT STRETCH WITH GLUTE PULSES VIDEO
EXPLANATION
Once youve solidified the mobility needed for the squat, its
time to start squatting. The most comfortable position for most will
be the same described in the box squat sectionfeet near
shoulder width, toes pointed out 10-30 degrees. To keep balance
its best to extend the arms straight out in front of the body.
Again, because theres no external load, youre not going to
be able to keep your back in perfect position, which is OK. Just
keep it as solid as you can as you squat down.
You should feel comfortable in this position, and be able to
hold it for one minute with the pulse strategy described. One thing
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that surprises me about people that have knee pain when

squatting is how foreign the position really is to them. If the
bottom of the squat is only a position youre in when you squat
with a barbell on your back, your mentality is backwards. You
need to develop comfort, health, and mobility in this position
before you start loading it. If you cant hold it for one minute, you
have some work ahead of you.
The toughest part about this, for most people, is that the
front of their shins arent strong enough to keep their balance.
After contracting for some time they fail, and people roll back onto
their heels and then their back. This is perhaps one of the best
reasons to hold the full squat position for a long period of time.
The anterior compartment of the shin is grossly undertrained.
Holding the bottom of the squat can help fix that.
Again, all of these small gains from holding a free squat for
one minute show up when you actually decide to load it. Instead
of your body fighting a deep squat, it embraces it. The anterior
compartment of your lower leg is strong enough to aggressively
approach the bottom position without teetering your balance.
Everything just works better and it makes the squat much more
joint friendly.

Squat patterning Paused bottom

squats with glute pulses
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SEE PAUSED FREE SQUATS WITH GLUTE PULSES VIDEO

EXPLANATION
So after you can hold the bottom position for one minute
alternating 10 second glute contractions with 5 seconds of rest,
you can begin doing repetitions. Assume your squat stance, and
squat all the way down. Pause at the bottom and hold a glute
contraction for five seconds. After the five seconds, use the glute
contraction to power your way up to the top of the squat. Again,
squeeze the glutes at lockout too, just like what was done on the
box squats.

Squat patterning free squats

SEE FREE SQUAT VIDEO EXPLANATION
After some time of doing the paused version, adjust by using
the stretch reflex at the bottom and bouncing up. At this point,
your glutes should have gained enough control to be able to
power the movement without much conscious work. So heres a
recap:
Box squats with a pause on the box, alternate ten seconds
of glute contractions with five seconds of rest while sitting on
the box.
Free squats stretch, alternating ten seconds of glute
contractions with five seconds of rest (at the bottom), holding
the bottom position for one minute.

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 Free squat with pause at the bottom, contracting the glutes

for five seconds and powering them to lockout.
Free squat with no pause, powering glutes to lockout.

Squat patterning goblet squats

It comes as no surprise that after acquiring all of the

intangibles associated with holding a deep squat position and
learning how to free squat, we can somehow and someway add
resistance.
But to a lot of peoples dismay, its not in the form of a
barbell. And before you have the chance to complain, let me tell
you why.
Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 158

When the barbell is introduced, be it during a back or front

squat, the mobility of the upper body suddenly comes into play.
The demands up the upper back and thoracic spine affect the
ability and positioning of the lower body, sometimes greatly
enough that people can have absolutely zero pain on goblet
squats, but once they back or front squat, their knees flare up
faster than the human flash could run.
For that reason, for the general fitness enthusiast looking to
just be fit, goblet squats are good stopping point. For everyone
else, the goblet squat is the transition to the barbell world.
Truthfully, the goblet squat isnt about handling huge
weights. Its about adding some resistance to the squat,
maintaining a solid back angle, and hitting a good depth all while
having the glute-centric mindset that I always tell you to have.
Unlike the previous versions, theres no isometrics here.
Simply grab a kettlebell or dumbbell, hold it in the goblet position,
and get squatting. If you want to incorporate more of the thoracic
spine and lower back into the goblet squat, which will help you
when you move to the barbell, hold the bell further away from
your body.

SEE BOTH GOBLET SQUATS AND BARBELL SQUATS VIDEO

EXPLANATION

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 159

Squat patterning barbell squats

Not too long ago we were talking patterning, grinding, and

ballistics. If you were using your intelligence throughout the
previous squat progressions, you would realize that I started with
a low intensity endurance workload and gradually waned off of
that in favor of adding some load (goblet squats).
At this point, your lower body patterning is complete in that
your hinge and squat movement patterns have been solidified
with hip use. Your glutes should power your squats. Now its time
to strengthenor go through the grind portion ofthe squat.
Ill be up front with you here. I hate this part. Its where
people are eager and anxious to go their own way and ask the
head scratching questions. So should I start doing front squats?
No, back squats? How about bulgarian split squats? Hack
squats? I got itzercher squats, those look cool? Oh, and how
could I forget, should I use a high bar or low bar position? And
which toenail should I clip first?

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 160

Look, I dont necessarily have the answers to those

questions. A good friend of mine had terrible patellar tendonitis.
He made the executive decision to switch from back squats to
front squats. Guess what? His knees cleared up. On the other
hand, guys like Mark Rippetoe claim that the only time they have
ever been hurt squatting has been during front squats. Let me do
my best to tell you what I think without indirectly plagiarizing.
The theory of knee pain that I abide by is that the muscles of
the hip get taken over by the muscles of the thigh. What we know
about squatting is that, the more vertical a persons torso is, the
more quadriceps activation there is, and therefore, the more knee
pain people have a potential to excite. These notable vertical
torso exercises are front squats and high bar back squats.
The more horizontal a persons torso is, the more hamstring
activation there is in the exercise (and likely glutes). Theres also
generally a lessened range of motion about the knees, which
makes these types of exercises appear more knee friendly.
So we can compare the two extremes in something like a
front squat, where to torso is vertical, and a powerlifting squat,
where the torso is very horizontal. Since we live in an either or
society, most people are quick to say that you have to pick. Its
one or the other. You cant land in the middle.
But I do. I land in the middle. Smack dab in the middle. My
feelings are as such: by compromising and doing a squat that
involves both adequate contribution from the hips and knees,
youre lessening the overall stress that a muscle can contribute to
the movement. Let me better explain what I mean.

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 161

Take a front squat for example. The vertical torso means the
quads are going to take a lot of the workload because the
hamstrings are shortened. Now, this also means that the hips
(glutes) have to make up for what the hamstrings arent
contributing. It would seem, especially with my emphasis on hips,
that this is a positive because the hips do more work.
The downside, however, is that the knee angle in a front
squat is much more acute because the hamstrings arent
providing tension. This, in addition to the quadriceps working
harder, makes the knees more prone to having some sort of a
pain during front squats.
Of course, if that were true then it would make sense to do a
powerlifting squat with little quadriceps activation and much more
hip activation. But thats not the case either because I prefer the
squat to involve a contribution from as many muscles as possible
because it greatly lessens the overall structural hit.
In the front squat example, if hamstring tension is applied
then the amount of stress on the top of the thigh in the
quadricepsall being handled by the patellar tendonis
lessened because the hamstrings are doing more work.
The great part about this is that its all theoretical. I like
squats that involve the glutes, hamstrings, and quads just about
as equally as possible. This is the kind of squat that Mark
Rippetoe teaches (in the purest essence, because if you follow
my progression you probably wont perform them exactly the
same). But if you play around with different squats and one works
better for you then go for it. Ultimately, the goal is to thrive without
pain.
Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 162

A squat is a squat. As long as you strengthen the squat,

youre better off than not strengthening the squat. So squat, and
dont worry so much about the details as long as youre healthy.
Back when I was with a Division I college football team, there was
an all-star wide receiver with a host of knee pain (I couldnt help
him because my theory wasnt formulated yet). The coach in
charge of him, the smart man that he was, didnt care what type of
squat he used as long as it didnt contribute to his pain. He
eventually settled with dumbbell loaded bulgarian split squats. If it
works, it works. And it worked. Oh, did I mention that this athlete
just caught a touchdown in the NFL the day before Im writing this
exact sentence?
When you begin to load the squat, form is most essential.
Keep the repetitions low(er) while working on the form. What this
means is, just because youre doing five reps doesnt mean youre
necessarily handling a weight you can only do for five reps. But
regardless of the exact number you pick, stick between 3 8 reps
per set with around a maximum of 25 per workout, including warm
ups.
I prefer to use pyramid training for those with knee pain
because the warm up is naturally built into the workout and a
great way to ensure that your knees are nice and warm before
handling heavy weights. If you made it to this point, theres a good
chance you havent squatting with a barbell in quite some time.
So a break in workout may look like this: bar x 8, 65 x 5, 95 x 5,
115 x 5, 135 x 5. Again, the main focus of the first few workouts is
ensure that youre maintaining the pattern that was grounded in
the earlier stages, which, as you know, is using the glute
throughout the entire squat.
Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 163

Progression for squats is the exact same one used for the
RDL. Simply strive to add 5-10 pounds to the bar every workout.
Using the example above, the next workout may look like this: bar
x 8, 65 x 5, 95 x 5, 115 x 5, 145 x 5. Even though the warm up set
numbers didnt change, the last work set changed which is what
really matters. As you get stronger, the warm up numbers will
change. For example, a workout may go like this: bar x 10, 135 x
5, 185 x 5, 225 x 5, 245 x 5, 285 x 5. If youre doing a classical 5 x
5 scheme like the one Im using for these examples, you want the
warm ups to do their job without interfering with the last set. I
should mention, however, that those with knee pain shouldnt be
overly concerned about maximal squatting strength at this point,
and at NO POINT SHOULD YOU DO A NEAR MAXIMUM LIFT
WITHIN THE FIRST MONTH. What I mean by this is either a
failing, or near failing, lift. You shouldnt grind at all. The reps
again for the first monthshould be smooth and leave you little
fatigue.
If youre wondering how this can be done while still adding
weight every session, its all about starting easy and progressing
slowly. For instance, before I went through rehabilitation, I could
squat in the 400 range. But after, I started out conservatively and
worked up to a final set of 135. From there I added 10 pounds to
the bar every workout. At the end of the first month I was
squatting 205. At the end of the second month I was squatting
275. No reps were forced. No reps had a grind. No reps were
really that difficult. They were smooth. They had pop. Most
importantly, they kept the pattern. You just got done fixing your
knees and you want to go wreck them again by squatting too
heavy too soon? Go ahead. Dont say I didnt warn you.
Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 164

contract hip flexors

Perhaps one of the most underrated cues for using the
glutes is to contract the hip flexors on the descent of the squat.
This doesnt really mean youre training or contracting them,
really. Its just a cue that helps accustom some to the feel of the
movement. Theres something about conceptualizing the
contraction of the opposite musculature that makes for better use
of the targeted movers. This cue can also be used for all deadlift
variations, especially in the start position for a conventional
deadlift. For the RDL, this cue can be used when sliding the bar
down the legs. Since I mention this technique in the videos, I
suggest you check it out there.

bsq program
Rehabilitating the back squat isnt as rigid as rehabilitating
the RDL simply because of all of the work that was done in the
first book. Nevertheless, I still advise spending at least oneif
not twoweeks hammering down each progression 5-7 times
per week. If you have struggled immensely with the squat in the
past, make it two weeks. If your knees are feeling good and
youre itching to get at it, make it one. The program that follows is
the sample one week plan. But if youre struggling, simply add
another week to each progression. Remember to stick to your
warm up too.
Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 165

MONDAY

TUESDAY

PAUSED
PAUSED
ISOMETRIC
ISOMETRIC
BOX SQUATS BOX SQUATS
2x10

2x10

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

PAUSED
PAUSED
PAUSED
ISOMETRIC
ISOMETRIC
ISOMETRIC
BOX SQUATS BOX SQUATS BOX SQUATS
2x10

2x10

2x10

ISO SQUAT ISO SQUAT

STRETCH
STRETCH
WITH GLUTE WITH GLUTE
PULSES
PULSES

ISO SQUAT ISO SQUAT ISO SQUAT

STRETCH
STRETCH
STRETCH
WITH GLUTE WITH GLUTE WITH GLUTE
PULSES
PULSES
PULSES

2x 1 minute

2x 1 minute

2x 1 minute

PAUSED
PAUSED
FREE
FREE
SQUATS
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE WITH GLUTE
PULSES
PULSES

2x 1 minute

2x 1 minute

PAUSED
PAUSED
PAUSED
FREE
FREE
FREE
SQUATS
SQUATS
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE WITH GLUTE WITH GLUTE
PULSES
PULSES
PULSES

2x10

2x10

2x10

2x10

2x10

FREE
SQUATS

PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES

FREE
SQUATS

PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES

FREE
SQUATS

2x10

2x10

Anthony Mychal 2012

2x10

2x10

2x10

Page 166

GOBLET
SQUATS
2x10

PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES

GOBLET
SQUATS
2x10

2x10

PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES

2x10

2x10

GOBLET
SQUATS

FREE
SQUATS

GOBLET
SQUATS

FREE
SQUATS

2x10

2x10

2x10

2x10

GOBLET
SQUATS

BARBELL
SQUAT

3x10

5x5

GOBLET
SQUATS

BARBELL
SQUAT

3x10

5x5

GOBLET
SQUATS

BARBELL
SQUAT

3x10

5x5

GOBLET
SQUATS

BARBELL
SQUAT

3x10

5x5

Anthony Mychal 2012

FREE
SQUATS

PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES
2x10

Page 167

Chapter four Jumps, leaps, and

bounds
Once you can both hinge and squat under external
resistance, your body should be ready to handle more explosive
work. You should have done so much work to this point that your
glutes are starting to work more unconsciously than consciously,
which is a good thing.
The trouble is that during explosive work, your mind really
doesnt have the time to activate certain muscles. It does
whatever it has gotten used to doing. This is why pitchers and
other explosive athletes can seemingly lose it in less than one
week. One small tweak to their throwing mechanics causes the
body to override what it has previously learned in favorite of the
tweak. This alters their mechanics completely, and to fix it, they
go back and throw at a lesser speed, focusing on correct
mechanics. When that is familiar, they gradually increase the
speed of the pitch, making sure they maintain proper mechanics.
So knowing this, we need to work our way into explosive
movements using low(er) intensity movements first, just like we
did way back in the patterning stage. But before we do this, I
should mention that you should have dominance over your hips.
Before even embarking on this section, your glutes should turn
on more than they used to when doing explosive movements
simply because its what they have been taught to do. You should
know how to activate them by keeping your torso rigid and
contracting them at the right time. If youve progressed through
Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 168

the RDL strengthening and beginning of the goblet squat, this

shouldnt be a problem.

RDL HOPS
SEE RDL HOPS VIDEO EXPLANATION
Im going to teach you how to jump. Sound silly, doesnt it?
But your body has been reduced to such garbage that you really
need to relearn how to jump. Dont feel bad. I had to too. Youll be
better off for it. Trust me.
Remember that the most important thing in titrating into
explosive work is maintaining the pattern. So were going to
start with the trusted RDL position, as its pure hip extension. The
problem most people have when transitioning into explosive work
is failing to use their hips because during a vertical jump the
knees bend. Its easy to use them on a RDL because they get
eliminated. But come to squats and jumps, it gets crazy.
To prevent this, we will start with RDL hops. They are
simple. Do a bodyweight RDL, snap your hips forward, using this
motion to propel off of the ground. You wont travel far, and thats
not the point. The point is to use the RDL motion to get lift.
After you land, do another one. Do about ten in a row so that
youre glutes are feeling the pump and getting used to this hip
snap to propel you in the air. These are RDL hops.

ANKLE DEPTH JUMPS

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 169

See Ankle Depth Jumps VIDEO EXPLANATION

As you begin to learn how to use your hips for explosive
work, you also have to learn how to coordinate your forefoot with
your hips to create stiffness throughout the lower body. The
beginning exercise for this is something I call ankle depth jumps.
Do a RDL hop, but land aggressively on your forefoot.
Smack your feet into the ground. The purpose of this exercise is
to get the knee to track over the middle of the footover the
second toe. If, when you do this, your knees collapse in or out,
you need to make this an important part of your training.
The ability to keep your knee aligned has nothing to do with
the knee. In fact, dont think about the knee that much. Think
about a stable and balanced foot contact (landing with a 60-40
weight distribution as discussed in the propulsion chapter of the
first book) and stiffening the glutes.
After you stick the landing, you should be on your forefoot
(heel about an inch from the ground) with your torso bent at a 4560 degree angle. Your glutes should be activated, so go ahead
and palpate them. But at this point you should be able to tell if
they are on or not. The idea is to create immediate stiffness
throughout the lower body upon foot contact.

RDL JUMPS AND LANDINGS

See RDL JUMPS AND LANDING VIDEO
Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 170

After mastering the RDL hops and ankle depth jumps, the
next progression is to merge both exercises into a higher intensity
form of movement. Essentially, think of doing a maximal effort
RDL hop followed by an ankle depth jump landing. That is what
the RDL jump and landing is.
Maintain the RDL pattern, fire the hips, and elevate from the
ground as high as possible. At the takeoff, as with RDL hops, your
hips should snap forward and come to a position in which your
glutes are squeezed. Stick the landing as described in the above
section. Note the movement of the knee. It should be minimal and
stay aligned over the second toe.

VERTICAL JUMPS AND LANDINGS

Now that you have experience jumping with your hips, its
time to do some traditional vertical jumps. I wish I had more to tell
you, but this is the part where the previous months of patterning
and grinding should pay off.
If you can conceptualize jumping and landing while using
your hips as you do in a RDL, your vertical jumps should come
naturally. Use your hips.
Land solid. Land stable. Keep the knees over the second toe
in the propulsive foot position. Keep your hips stiff. Theres not
much else to say.

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 171

UNILATERAL WORK
Usually, people are good to go after the RDL jumps and
landings. They gladly graduate from the entirety of the pattergrind-ballistic progression and they are free to go about life as if
nothing had ever happened. (As long as they do their part in
keeping up with the maintenance program below.)
If youre so ambitious, however, you can re-run through the
above progressions unilaterally to solidify things.

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 172

CHAPTER FIVE - CONCLUSION (SAMPLE

PROGRAM)
Thank you. For everything. If you have any questions, dont
hesitate:

anthony.mychal@gmail.com

For the ease of things, I have written out a sample program

below that integrates everything that was taught in this chapter. I
hope it puts things in perspective. The numbers are arbitrary and
you wont follow them. The progressions and weight hops,
however, will remain about standard. Those will little experience
and strength will be better off using five pound jumps almost
exclusively. So ignore the ten pound jumps and replace them with
five.
If you want to attempt the fast track spend only one week
working on each squat pattern.

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 173

SAMPLE GRIND BALLISTIC PROGRESSION

MONDAY

TUESDAY

THURSDAY

RDL

PAUSED
ISOMETRIC
BOX SQUATS

RDL

45x10,
55x10,
65x10,
75x10,
85x10, 95x10
(fail)

5 x 10 x 75

2x10

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

PAUSED
PAUSED
ISOMETRIC
ISOMETRIC
BOX SQUATS BOX SQUATS
2x10

2x10

PAUSED
ISOMETRIC
BOX SQUATS

PAUSED
ISOMETRIC
BOX SQUATS

2x10

2x10

RDL
5 x 10 x 85

ISO SQUAT
STRETCH
WITH GLUTE
PULSES

ISO SQUAT
STRETCH
WITH GLUTE
PULSES
2x 1 minute

2x 1 minute

Anthony Mychal 2012

RDL
5 x 10 x 95

ISO SQUAT
STRETCH
WITH GLUTE
PULSES

ISO SQUAT ISO SQUAT

STRETCH
STRETCH
WITH GLUTE WITH GLUTE
PULSES
PULSES
2x 1 minute

2x 1 minute

2x 1 minute

Page 174

RDL
5 x 10 x 105

PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES

PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES
2x10

2x10
RDL
5 x 10 x 125

FREE
SQUATS

5 x 10 x 145

GOBLET
SQUATS

5 x 10 x 115

PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES

PAUSED
PAUSED
FREE
FREE
SQUATS
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE WITH GLUTE
PULSES
PULSES
2x10

2x10

PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES

FREE
SQUATS

2x10
PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES
2x10

2x10

RDL

RDL

RDL
5 x 10 x 135

FREE
SQUATS

2x10

2x10

2x10

PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES

2x10

2x10

RDL
5 x 10 x 155
(fail)

GOBLET
SQUATS

PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES

FREE
SQUATS
2x10

2x10

2x10
Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 175

RDL
5 x 10 x 125
(deload)
GOBLET
SQUATS
2x10
RDL HOPS

FREE
SQUATS
2x10

RDL
5 x 5 x 155
GOBLET
SQUATS
2x10

FREE
SQUATS
2x10

PAUSED
FREE
SQUATS
WITH GLUTE
PULSES
2x10

RDL HOPS
5x10

5x10
RDL

RDL

5 x 10 x 130

5 x 5 x 165

GOBLET
SQUATS

BARBELL
SQUAT

3x10

5x5

RDL HOPS

RDL HOPS

5x10

5x10

RDL

RDL

5 x 10 x 135

5 x 5 x 175

GOBLET
SQUATS

BARBELL
SQUAT

3x10

5x5

ANKLE
DEPTH

ANKLE
DEPTH

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 176

JUMPS

JUMPS

5x5

5x5

RDL

RDL

5 x 10 x 140

5 x 5 x 185
(previous
week felt
heavy)

GOBLET
SQUATS
3x10
ANKLE
DEPTH
JUMPS
5x5

BARBELL
SQUAT
5x5
ANKLE
DEPTH
JUMPS
5x5

RDL

RDL

5 x 10 x
145

5 x 5 x 190...

GOBLET
SQUATS
3x10
RDL JUMPS
8x3

BARBELL
SQUAT
5x5
RDL JUMPS
8x3

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 177

At some point, youll feel confident doing squat variations, in

which instance you can ditch the goblet squat. But I suggest
picking a money weighted squat variation that you can master
and always come back to with great glute control.

And after you graduate from everything, heres how to not lose
everything you worked so hard for. It boils right back down to the
warm up and cool down procedure created from the get-go.

MAINTAINENCE WORK TO BE DONE UNTIL

DEATH DO US PART
(next page)

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 178

WARM UP / COOL DOWN

DAY A

DAY B

BW RDL W/ FTTP x 20

BW RDL W/ FTTP x 20

SEATED HIP x 15

SEATED HIP x 15

SHIN RAISES x 10

SHIN RAISES x 10

BUNNY HOPS x 30

BUNNY HOPS x 30

BOX HIP FLEXOR STRETCH x 2

MINUTES TOTAL (COOL DOWN)

CALF-SOLEUS STRETCH x 2 MINUTES

TOTAL (COOL DOWN)

DAILY
QUAD-HIP COMBO STRETCH x 2 MINUTES TOTAL
LACROSSE AND SOFT TISSUE WORK

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 179

CHAPTER SIX PAY IT FORWARD

Im a big believer in spreading information as easy as
possible. So, if youre a believer in An Athletes Guide to Chronic
Knee Pain, Im going to give you a chance to play an important
role in the spread of quality information.
If you know someone, somewhere that could use this eBook,
you can recommend them to buy it at a discounted price of $17. If
your friend appreciates the sweet deal and buys it, Ill give you
$10. As a disclaimer, both you and your friend need to have
PayPal.
Heres what you need to do:
1) Send them the following e-mail:

Hey,
I just finished reading An Athletes Guide to Chronic Knee Pain,
and I found it extremely informative. Theres the cool section at
the bottom of the book that lets me recommend it to someone
else at a discounted price of $17 (originally $33). I knew you had
some knee troubles and thought this could be of some use. So if
youre interested, hang in there. The author of the book (Anthony
Mychal anthony.mychal@gmail.com) should be contacting you
soon about your decision.

(Note: If you want to stray from this copy, feel free to razzle
and dazzle.)
Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 180

2) CC me when you send the e-mail above. My address is

anthony.mychal@gmail.com

3) Thats it. If the person you recommend goes ahead and buys it,
you get $10 dropped into your PayPal account.

SPREAD THE
KNOWLEDGE BOMBS
<3

Anthony Mychal 2012

Page 181