Joint Micro-Motions & Contractile Integrity… The Foundations of Internal Performance®… the very beginning of and keys to both the Functional Continuum® and the Exercise Continuum®!
A few introductory considerations that are essential to understand about this advanced series:
There are many perspectives on and philosophies of how things work in the body, as well as how to intervene, e.g., protocolize vs individualize, impose vs encourage, etc. However, for a wise professional it shouldn’t necessarily about “which is best?” as a standalone skill. It should be about “which appears to be most appropriate now/when, and then how much/many?”. And then to consider the responses…. as well as considering what may still remain to be addressed. Keep in mind that virtually every process that occurs in the body, normal or abnormal, has multiple influences, therefore, an array of considerations and options.
The spectrum of normal joint functions and movements relies on “foundational motions”. Consider the movements you perform during normal daily activities (reaching, bending walking, running, exercising, etc.) to be comprised of joint movements that you can choose to perform, while the foundational motions are the required precursors that you can’t simply choose to perform. These essential foundational joint micro-motions are incredibly subtle, but when explored and gently encouraged with the appropriate manual skill, the outcome can be quite powerful.
Similarly, while an individual might be able to move hundreds of pounds in the gym, there can be required contractile tissues servicing a joint that are not able to “keep up”. And lifting more might just leave them further behind… maybe in a sense it’s like they say… “the strong get stronger and the weak get weaker”. Nurturing low contractile function might be thought of as tutoring in a way. The neuromuscular challenge might have to be dramatically reduced in order to allow lagging contractile tissues to avoid being left behind. With the stimulation reduced to, or even below, the current level of competency and tolerance, appropriately progressed “tutoring” might allow the less competent player might be able to rejoin the team.
Assessing and encouraging foundational joint motions and contractile integrity in order to create the optimal joint function that is essential for optimal gross movement are skill-sets requiring a great deal awareness and attention in order to generate the necessary precision, especially in joints and tissues wherein a loss of normal function and tolerance is due to loss of these foundations. No amount of “stretching“ and traditional “strengthening” will properly encourage these vital subtle motions and contractions, however, aggressive traditional approaches can increased inflammation and progressive loss of tissue tolerance and joint function. These skill-sets require a “don’t piss it off” and “don’t get greedy” philosophy wherein wisdom trumps protocols and predetermined numbers.
Additionally, it should be noted that there is considerable empirical evidence showing that subtly exploring and gently encouraging these motions via a non-aggressive, highly skilled approach can actually improve muscle contraction.
Keep in mind these are not a standalone skill-sets! And… quite frankly neither is any other skill or technique!
It is unlikely that you’ve ever experienced an educational setting where you’ve received as much detailed personal attention and consideration for your specific learning needs as an individual as you will receive in this class. Your abilities with every single aspect of every skill taught will be progressed as you require and reinforced as you desire. It’s not a “here it is, now you’re on your own” type of situation. It’s a “let’s review… and review… and review” situation. It’s not practice until you get it right. It’s practice until you can’t do it wrong.
Essential Perspective Lab and Discussion
- Clarify the evolution and updates to the Internal Performance® end of the Functional Continuum®.
- Examine the latest research on the interrelationship between joint function and the quality of muscle contraction. It’s a two-way street!
- Begin the road to mastering advanced manual skills by exploring your current palpation sensitivity, moving on to a series of progressive sensitivity challenges.
- Explore and experience the detailed strategic options for progressively stimulating contraction.
- Explore why the skill of manual influencing foundational joint motions is not an independent intervention in a true professional’s toolbox and must be combined with skilled and strategic contractile challenge/exercise progression.
- Heighten your awareness of the potential for tissue tolerance “landmines”, especially the effects of long term “stress deprivation” such as immobilization, deconditioning (lack of use, sedentary lifestyles), injuries, etc. on connective tissues, leading to their extended intolerance for force.
Advanced Hands-on Skills Lab:
- Start developing the most basic skills of incredibly subtle manual influences necessary for evaluating and encouraging the fundamental joint functions vital for normal movement that may not otherwise be attained, and as the research indicates, when done with impeccable skill and subtle dosages, can actually improve muscle contraction indirectly, while aggressive, heavy-handed, unskilled impositions of manual therapies can create negative influences including inflammation and inhibition of muscle contraction.
- Maximize your skill sets by learning to eliminate the “heavy hands” associated with poor skill level, lack of understanding of force MicroProgression® and intolerance, and poor tactile sensitivity!
- Experience the individual attention afforded by small groups and is absolutely required to excel at any high level skill as you begin the extended process of learning the investigation and encouragement of the specific foundational motions available at each specific joint.
- Review and reinforce the basic contractile stimulating skills from Beyond Isometrics, then build upon them by engaging in guided problem-solving and strategies for implementing exercise investigation and delivery skills from static manual resistance to minute oscillations then to the gym.
NOTE: Attendance is by invitation or application only and will be considered based upon the dates of mastery attendance, how up to date with the evolution of RTSm information they have remained, and personal experience/history in various manual skills.
Instructors
- Tom Purvis, PT, et al.
Current classes
- Part 1: The Shoulder Complex: ST, SC, AC, & GH – 3 Days
- Part 2: Foot and Ankle: tib-fib, talocrural, subtalar, ITs, TMTs, MTPs, PIPs, & DIPs – 3 Days
- Part 3: Hip, Knee/PF, Elbow/RU, Wrist, and Hand – 4 Days
Tuition
- Individual classes
- Shoulder $1500
- Foot/Ankle $1500
- Hip, Knee, Elbow, Hand $2000
Check the Mastery Electives schedule for dates.
Daily itinerary
8:30-12:00, 1:00-4:30 (or as late as necessary)
NOTE: Do not schedule flights that require you to cut class short! This is not a class to attend in order to “just be a part of it”, or to “see what it’s all about”. Use of these tools/skills is a major personal and professional responsibility that must not be taken lightly. Becoming proficient is a very challenging endeavor requiring serious commitment and conscientious meticulousness.
Testimonials from Series 1 attendees
“This new set of skills is amazing!! I am getting all kinds of great results that I was not expecting… or getting before.”
“I had a client with foot issues. The muscles tested strong, but movement was limited. I used the super subtle skills we learned for the foot joints and her discomfort resolved, walking returned to normal and has remained that way. Follow-up at the end of that week confirmed full range of motion was maintained.”
“One client was diagnosed with compartment syndrome and had been discharged from healthcare providers, but still had some remaining issues. After exploring joint play super gently and coming up with a way to encourage super low level contractions like we explored in class, his discomfort was almost gone and movement was way better.”
“It’s been great just having this new set of powerful eyes for those clients or in situations where you think, “I need to do way less with this person. Where can I even start?” This is where you go. It’s the best starting point I can think of for anyone, because it is easy to ramp things up. The harder part has always been knowing how to make things smaller, quieter, softer, more refined and that’s exactly what this gives you. If I compare it to everything else we previously explored at mastery, this provides an even subtler, more foundational layer to work from… one that just makes a lot of sense.”
“It’s not separate from the continuum; it’s still about forces, anatomy, what you have, what you own, and how you interact with it. But it’s the smallest, most accessible foundation I’ve found. And just having that in mind when I’m working with someone… asking myself, “What can I do? Where can I meet them?”. That’s been huge for me!”
“My clients really like the subtlety of these techniques. Some say: “This is great. Can we also end the session with this? It’s like dessert.”
“Especially with my background in numerous other techniques, I had been somewhat dissuaded from encouraging joint mobility work. I’d often hear, “That’s dangerous! It shuts down muscles!”. So, on the first day of this class, it was incredibly valuable to go through all the studies showing that strength can actually increase, depending entirely on HOW and WHAT you do. That really opened doors for me. I’m no longer as hesitant to explore that line of thought. For example, before, using a hands-on technique that focuses on identifying and correcting muscle inhibition, I used to test all the muscles on a client every session, and they’d show up weak every time. But now, using these new skillsets, I’ll test the same muscles, and about 75% of them come back strong right away, where before they’d always test weak. So this has become a really powerful addition to my toolbox. Something I can use with almost every client.”
“This has turned into kind of my go-to for working with someone just because it’s quick in terms of the assessing, I can begin to make improvements right away very gently, and then move right on to doing a progression of contractions or exercise. I don’t get bogged down in 45 minutes of assessment and then going from there. I’ve just found it’s been great for negotiating with positions.”
“The key is gentle. I mean, it barely feels like anything. Clients really liked it. Compared to other things that I’ve done, people tend to feel really relaxed with it. I use it pretty much every day. It makes sense that something that’s light would be a good starting place, right? I can go from there into muscle testing, or maybe we’ll go to the floor into something else. I just like how it’s relatively quick and efficient. You know, it’s a lot of bang for your buck.”
“I was working with a professional female figure competitor for a bit. She won the Arnold several years in a row but hadn’t gone above top five in the Olympia. She described a chronic and consistent kind of “weird feeling” in her right shoulder, like she couldn’t really make it feel the same as the left when doing pulldowns and lateral raises. I mean her strength and muscle mass were awesome, but like all professional athletes she’s always looking to improve. So we explored those two exercise scenarios in terms of progression by backing way up in terms of end range. We explored super small changes in scapular position and a bunch of small changes in resistance profile and tried some touch cues to get her more aware of positions and contractions. After backing up and a lot of trial and error that would be considered a really low level progression wise, we found a scenario where she could feel positions and feel contractions and then progressed into the end range that she never felt or even got to before. Not saying this was directly or even indirectly the thing, but she did go one to win the Olympia a few weeks later.”
Hi Tom & Talita, thank you both having the Series 1 guys out for the free review. I found it particularly helpful (if not essential) for getting good at hands on skills. Whenever I come back from one of these, or other RTS courses, my skills are noticeably improved. Along with trying to improve client outcomes, it also greatly impacts overall client experiences, which helps to differentiate oneself in this field.