Corrective Exercises for the Tactical Athlete

By, Dan Herring – O2X On-Site Specialist

From the moment we start to crawl we begin to develop patterns of movement. Lift your hips, reach forward with one hand, and bring your opposite knee toward your chest. Stabilize your trunk as you move forward, repeating the motion until your knee touches the ground and you reach your destination. Look at that baby go! Believe it or not, that’s just the beginning. We continue to develop patterns of movement as we learn to walk, squat, run, and even sit/stand in our environments. All these movement patterns rely on an incredibly complex yet effective process, composed of multiple body systems working together to create and facilitate a coordinated contraction and relaxation of muscles in order to generate and sustain movement. In other words, movement is complicated and requires a lot of different systems in your body working together effectively. Now imagine that process having to take place continuously throughout each day, week, month, and year over the course of a lifetime. Furthermore, in the life of a tactical athlete, the demands placed on this complex process are even greater.

So what does corrective exercise have to do with this? Well, as that movement process continues to work itself out throughout our lifetimes, it will adapt to the different stressors our lives place on it. Whether it’s due to an injury, habits, or purely the environment a person is placed in, that system learns to compensate in order to meet the need. Once that happens–we now have a new pattern of movement. Observe a toddler squat down to pick something up. Do they do it because they have to or just because they want to? Compare that toddler’s squat to your own. I’ll bet the toddler is better. Why is that? A life with altered movement patterns due to injury, pain, or other factors can be like a bad habit—difficult to change. That’s where corrective exercise comes in.

What is corrective exercise?

According to the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM), it is “…a series of assessment and movement techniques that address these unhealthy patterns and help improve movement quality, and therefore overall quality of life, more effective workouts, and improved function in everyday life.” In essence, a biomechanical approach to corrective exercise in order to address movement system imbalances. To expand on NASM’s definition, Seidi et al conducted a randomized controlled trial in 2020 that incorporated a neurological (ie. cognitive/brain) approach into the standard biomechanical approach to corrective exercise programming. This comprehensive approach yielded significant improvements in postural alignment and muscle activation patterns that remained even after four weeks of detraining. So what does that all mean, you might be wondering? Well to sum up, corrective exercise done right takes into account how your limbs are moving, how your brain is moving them, and gets them working better together so you can live a better quality of life. Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?

3 Corrective Exercises for Common Compensations

Here is where the fun starts. Does the front or side of your shoulder(s) bother you on occasion when you try to hold something out in front of you or when you reach ahead with one arm to pull yourself into the truck / apparatus? Does your low back start to ache and then radiate pain after a mile of rucking? Do the front of your knees feel 80 years old when you go up or down the stairs? Then give these 3 exercises a try. They’re not hard. You can do it. They might not “fix” you, but you just might feel a little better. Give them a try.

Levator Scapulae Stretch

Place your right hand behind your back and rest it against the small of your back. If that hurts, just grab the bottom of the chair you’re sitting on instead. Now take your left hand and place it on the right side of your head. Rotate your head away like you would if you were trying to sniff your left armpit. Then use that left hand to pull your head into the stretch. After, alternate the stretch with opposite hands. You might be thinking–a stretch isn’t an exercise is it–hold this for 30-45 seconds and see if you’re not a little winded afterward. You might be surprised.

Scapular Cueing

This is where your brain comes in. This is one of those cognitive exercises–so work with me here. Feel where your shoulder blades are on your upper back. Then feel the muscles around them. If you’re at a desk or just overall a tad stressed, your traps are probably a bit contracted and your shoulder blades are riding a little high. This is what you’re going to do: you’re going to, using just your back muscles, try to pull your shoulder blades into the back pockets of your pants. If you’re just pinching your shoulder blades together and puffing your chest out, stop and try again. Pull them down. You should feel your mid/lower back muscles working, as well as some muscles under the backside of your armpit. Feel that? Now go back to what you were doing and be mindful of this position.

Finding Pelvic Neutral

Pictures would be really helpful for this one, but we’re going to do our best here. Step 1: Sit or stand. Step 2: Keeping your chest/trunk still, roll your hips forward, popping your butt up and giving your low back a little arch. Step 3: Still keeping your chest/trunk still, roll your hips backward, squeezing your glutes and giving your low back a slight outward curve. Step 4: Now that you’ve gone all the way forward and all the way back, roll your hip into the middle, between both extremes. Step 5: Hold it there. When you’re standing, sitting, walking, or whatever. Your low back will thank you later.

You might be thinking…That’s it? Well, yeah. Corrective exercises aren’t meant to build lean muscle mass or increase your aerobic capacity. We’re working on patterns of movement. Patterns that are primarily repetitive, low-amplitude, everyday-occurring. Of course, there is plenty more to address specific concerns you may have. But for now, this will do. Train your brain to start building good habits now. Who knows? Your body might thank you later.

References:

1. NASM. (2024). Become a corrective exercise specialist – NASM-CES. Retrieved from https://www.nasm.org/continuing-education/fitness-specializations/corrective-exercise-specialist
2. Seidi, F., Bayattork, M., Minoonejad, H., Andersen, L. L., & Page, P. (2020). Comprehensive corrective exercise program improves alignment, muscle activation and movement pattern of men with upper crossed syndrome: Randomized controlled trial. Scientific Reports, 10(1), 20688. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-77571-4

About O2X On-Site Specialist Dan Herring:

Dan is an On-Site Human Performance Specialist and Athletic Trainer at DC Fire and EMS, focusing on Injury Prevention and Management. He graduated from Cedarville University with a Bachelor’s in Athletic Training in 2016. While at Cedarville University, he worked with NCAA Division II baseball, track & field, and DIII football. During this time he also completed an internship at the ESPN Wide World of Sports in Orlando, FL. He was offered a Graduate Assistant position with the University of Pittsburgh as the Athletic Trainer for the Pitt men’s soccer team. He received a Masters of Science in Sports Medicine in 2018 from the University of Pittsburgh and went on to complete a one-year Residency program at Syracuse University, working with both the football and men’s lacrosse teams. After the completion of his Residency, Dan went on to work as an Assistant Athletic Trainer at Georgetown University where he worked with the football program, men’s basketball program, and oversight of the women’s lacrosse program. After spending the better part of six years working with high-level collegiate athletes, Dan took his leadership and program development skills to DC International Public Charter School, where he functioned as the Sports Medicine and Performance Coordinator, developing the sports medicine and performance programs into a sustainable program that provided high-level athletic training and sports performance services.

About O2X Human Performance:

O2X Human Performance provides comprehensive, science-backed programs to hundreds of public safety departments, federal agencies, and the military. O2X works with clients to elevate culture, improve mental and physical wellbeing, support healthy lifestyles, and reduce healthcare costs associated with injuries and illnesses. Driven by results and cutting edge research, O2X programs are designed and delivered by a team of Special Operations veterans, high level athletes, and hundreds of leading experts in their respective fields of human performance.