Since the world of strength sports has entered the online sphere, more and more coaches are providing services remotely. This shift is incredible, but it leads us to question what a "cue" really is and highlights a huge misconception of what constitutes cueing for barbell athletes.

And for those who are still coaching in person, cueing can be a bit overwhelming for you and your athletes. Constantly wrestling with questions such as: "what is the best cue for this athlete or this particular movement?", "When is the most appropriate time to provide a cue?", "how many times do I use the same cue before you try a new one?" and "why isn't this cue working for this individual?"

In this episode, PRS Clinical Coaches Dr. Rori Alter, PT, PRSCC, SSC and Dr. Alyssa Haveson, PT, PRSCC, CSCS get into the nitty gritty of "cueing." They answer all your questions in just 10 minutes (with a few bonus minutes!) and cover:

✔️How to effectively "cue" someone online and what you may be doing wrong

✔️The various types of cues, their effectiveness, and how to identify the best one

✔️The proper implementation of cues for the main barbell lifts when you are providing real-time coaching

✔️9 Elements of Safe and Effective Barbell Training

After listening to this episode, you will gain confidence in your ability to give cues effectively. The what, when, why and how so that you can efficiently communicate with each of your clients to ensure they maximize strength while reducing the risk of injury.

Join our Facebook Community for free form checks, live Q&As & more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PRS.Barbell.Mastery

Got questions or guests you'd like to hear on the show? Submit them here: https://forms.gle/7Vu2HmgHoeQY9xM59

Get in touch with the show!

Web: https://www.progressiverehabandstrength.com

Email: [email protected]

Rori IG: @rorimegan_prs

Alyssa IG: @alyssahope_prs

Many barbell athletes experience aches and pains during their training even when they feel like they're doing everything right. Unfortunately, despite their best efforts or adherence to a specific template program or movement model, they can be left feeling less than ideal and struggling to push through discomfort or pain.

Whether you are a barbell or powerlifting coach working with athletes, a physical therapist or chiropractor rehabbing injured powerlifters through the athlete recovery process, or the person experiencing this, it can be very frustrating for everyone involved.

Don't get us wrong, training should be challenging and require you to push the limits from time to time.

At PRS, we have helped countless athletes dealing with injuries, and there always seems to be very distinct trends:

1. They are following a generic template program incorrectly, that does not accommodate for fatigue, is chronically at too high of an intensity, or is not tailored enough to match their individual capabilities.
2. They try to subscribe to and replicate a movement model they read in a book, watched on youtube, or are trying to emulate their favorite athlete's technique without considering their own attributes.

It's crucial to understand that each of us are different. From our anthropometry, chronological and training age, injury history, time constraints, life stressors, ability to recover, and so much more.

All of these details provide the distinction between coaching a movement and coaching the person and must be considered when implementing a program and performing the barbell lifts.

So rather than forcing a rigid movement model or programming template on an individual, it's best to evolve each of these based on their individuality.

It's easy to fall victim to the "BEST" way to lift, coach, or program, especially with all the advice and programs on the internet. However, in this episode, PRS Clinical Coaches, Dr. Rori Alter, PT, PRSCC, SSC and Dr. Alyssa Haveson, PT, PRSCC, CSCS provide insight into how they have evolved a systematic movement model and program that adapts to every individual and discuss specific cases.

Episode Resources:

• Barbell Movement Masterclass (sign up for free) >> https://bit.ly/3DR7KPe
• The PRS Lifting Manual >> https://bit.ly/3CDDs0p
• The Sustainable Training Builder >> https://bit.ly/3zgMtux

Join our Facebook Community for free form checks, live Q&As & more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PRS.Barbell.Mastery

Got questions or guests you'd like to hear on the show? Submit them here: https://forms.gle/7Vu2HmgHoeQY9xM59

Get in touch with the show!

Web: https://www.progressiverehabandstrength.com

Email: [email protected]

Rori IG: @rorimegan_prs

Alyssa IG: @alyssahope_prs

Many barbell athletes experience aches, pains, and injuries. Whether a specific incident happens during or outside of lifting, these injuries can impact training and leave you confused about how to best manage continuing to train in pursuit of your strength goals.

The last thing you want to do or tell someone is to "stop lifting."

Here at PRS, we want to ensure athletes stay lifting and working toward their goals no matter what. To do this, we have created four core goals that we aim to accomplish when working with any client:

1️⃣Maximize Strength and Muscular Development

2️⃣Reduce Injury Risk

3️⃣Maximize Performance and Goal Outcomes

4️⃣Maintain Longevity

So to satisfy these four core goals at Progressive Rehab and Strength, we approach pain and injury with one thing in mind:

Stay as close as possible to the main movement, volume, and, ideally, relative intensity to support the program's intention.

This will help you continue to make progress, stay on track toward your goals, get stronger, and overcome your injuries without any major detours.

In this episode of the PRS Podcast, Dr. Rori Alter, PT, PRSCC, SSC, and Dr. Alyssa Haveson, PT, PRSCC, CSCS, shed insight on navigating pain and injuries to keep you training.

Here's what you'll find in this episode:

1. First order, actionable steps to modifying the lifts and keeping them as close to the main lifts as possible
2. Manipulative variables that can be applied to each main barbell lift to help keep you on track with your goals
3. Insight on equipment alternatives: the when, why, and how to best utilize each
4. Gear recommendations to ensure you aren't stalling your progress
5. How to keep you and your clients in the gym and training hard

If you are a barbell strength or powerlifting coach, athlete, or a clinician, this episode will help you navigate pain and injury without major detours.

This episode goes great with our Pain & Injuries in Training series (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3).

Join our Facebook Community for free form checks, live Q&As & more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PRS.Barbell.Mastery

Got questions or guests you'd like to hear on the show? Submit them here: https://forms.gle/7Vu2HmgHoeQY9xM59

Get in touch with the show!

Web: https://www.progressiverehabandstrength.com

Email: [email protected]

Rori IG: @rorimegan_prs

Alyssa IG: @alyssahope_prs

In clinical rehabilitation there is often a separation between therapeutic exercises and strength training. Clinicians take a "bottom-up" approach to treatment, starting as simple and gentle as possible, often prolonging the rehab experience or even leaving it incomplete.

Our philosophy at PRS is that strength training should be the foundation of physical therapy utilizing a "top-down" approach, starting at the highest functional strength training level a patient can tolerate. In order to do so, physical therapists and chiropractors need to be coaches in addition to just therapists.

There 3 major problems physical therapists and chiropractors face are:

1. Most clinical settings do not have the appropriate equipment for strength training with barbells (even at low levels)
2. Strength training prescription and coaching of any kind is not taught in our education process
3. They treat patients as fragile

Through mentoring clinicians in our Clinical Barbell Coaching Institute since 2019 we've found that an overwhelming majority of them struggle to create an integrated approach to rehab and exercise prescription to effectively rehabilitate clients using a "top-down" approach.

In this episode, we discussed the importance of having a background in barbell training, exercise prescription, and movement coaching of people without injuries or medical concerns. Because from there, you can then easily modify the movements based on the very unique circumstances of the person presenting to you for rehab.

In this episode of the PRS Podcast we deep dive into:

• The problem with viewing the barbell movements as JUST barbell movements applicable to ONLY well-individuals and barbell athletes
• How you can modify the lifts based on the very unique circumstances of each individual
• Building confidence with complex or post-operative cases
• The importance of acquiring the skills of coaching and programming beyond the clinic
• How you can integrate the principles of barbell strength training from a "top-down" approach and in a clinical setting with limited equipment

At the end of this episode you will be equipped with insight and resources so that your critical thinking and clinical outcomes go beyond TherEx and modalities. We want to ensure that your clients get results they deserve and you become the clinician you've always wanted to be.

Free Resources:

• PRS Lifting Manual
• Clinical Coach Starter Kit
• Secret Society of Barbell Mastery

oin our Facebook Community for free form checks, live Q&As & more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PRS.Barbell.Mastery

Got questions or guests you'd like to hear on the show? Submit them here: https://forms.gle/7Vu2HmgHoeQY9xM59

Get in touch with the show!

Web: https://www.progressiverehabandstrength.com

Email: [email protected]

Rori IG: @rorimegan_prs

Alyssa IG: @alyssahope_prs

Chin ups and pull ups are essential exercises for all strength based sports, including powerlifting. At the same time, they are the hardest exercises to progress and it often takes months to years for people to get their first pull up and add more reps to their pull up and chin up bank.

In this episode of the PRS Podcast we discuss:

1. How to choose the right assisted version based on your goals, abilities, and equipment access.
2. Why pull-ups are hard and progress slower than the main lifts
3. The number one way to eventually be able to do a pull-up (it's our little secret)
4. Criteria to move from easier version to more challenging versions

Even if you CAN do pull ups and chin ups, this episode provides insight to progress them so you're not chasing after one more rep for months!

Are you a barbell strength or powerlifting coach? Use this episode to help you more effectively program the chin up and pull up for your clients to improve shoulder health, strength, and reduce their injury risk!

Join our Facebook Community for free form checks, live Q&As & more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PRS.Barbell.Mastery

Got questions or guests you'd like to hear on the show? Submit them here: https://forms.gle/7Vu2HmgHoeQY9xM59

Get in touch with the show!

Web: https://www.progressiverehabandstrength.com

Email: [email protected]

Rori IG: @rorimegan_prs

Alyssa IG: @alyssahope_prs

There is a lot of fear surrounding the spine and weight training. When it comes to scoliosis and resistance training with barbells, there is even more fear and warnings from doctors, personal trainers and family members that lifting heavy with barbells will worsen the scoliotic curve.

We brought in scoliosis and spine expert, Dr. Beth Terranova, physical therapist, scoliosis specialist, barbell strength coach, and a graduate of our courses here at PRS to discuss the benefits of barbell training for people with scoliosis.

In this episode Dr. Beth discusses all about scoliosis, strength training, and getting under the barbell.

Dr. Beth shares:

1. How weightlifting and progressive overload helped her keep her curve from progressing or being painful
2. The Scoliosis spectrum and the difference between structural versus functional
3. How, when, and why you should integrate barbell training into rehab and strength training for people with scoliosis
4. Why our discs aren't jelly donuts and why it's important to load them even with scoliosis and other spinal deformities
5. If people with with asymmetries and muscular imbalances should get under a barbell or wait to "correct" them

Connect with Dr. Beth:

@strengthandspine

Scoliosis Strength Club (on Facebook)

Join our Facebook Community for free form checks, live Q&As & more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PRS.Barbell.Mastery

Got questions or guests you'd like to hear on the show? Submit them here: https://forms.gle/7Vu2HmgHoeQY9xM59

Get in touch with the show!

Web: https://www.progressiverehabandstrength.com

Email: [email protected]

Rori IG: @rorimegan_prs

Alyssa IG: @alyssahope_prs

The standing barbell overhead press or military press is an essential exercise to include in all powerlifting programs and strength, conditioning programs for sport athletes, and rehabilitation of the upper extremity. So in this episode, we're going to share how to overhead press optimally and without pain.

The overhead press is often misunderstood by strength coaches, physical therapists, and doctors. Additionally, its importance in supplementing the bench press is often overlooked by most powerlifting coaches and powerlifters.

In this episode of the PRS Podcast, we discuss how to effectively optimize your body position and execution of the overhead press to successfully include it in shoulder and upper extremity rehabilitation, powerlifting programs, and strength and conditioning programs.

When performed optimally, the overhead press is safe to execute in all populations, even with active shoulder injuries, and is essential to the strength and rehab process because of how it trains the entire shoulder girdle.

Want some visuals to go along with this episode? Download the PRS Lifting Manual here >> https://bit.ly/3CDDs0p

Overhead Press Start Position: https://www.instagram.com/p/B3VpPBWgjGT/

Join our Facebook Community for free form checks, live Q&As & more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PRS.Barbell.Mastery

Got questions or guests you'd like to hear on the show? Submit them here: https://forms.gle/7Vu2HmgHoeQY9xM59

Get in touch with the show!

Web: https://www.progressiverehabandstrength.com

Email: [email protected]

Rori IG: @rorimegan_prs

Alyssa IG: @alyssahope_prs

In this episode of the PRS Podcast, our special guest is Dr. Jenna Nitowski, chiropractor, barbell strength and running coach, in-person and remote clinical coaching business owner, and a graduate of our courses here at PRS.

Jenna discusses her journey to creating a chiropractic practice that bridges the gap between traditional chiropractic care and exercise rehabilitation.

Dr. Jenna shares her insight on:

1. How her journey as an injured highschool runner led her to seek higher education and a profession integrating exercise and rehabilitation
2. The difference between traditional and progressive chiropractic care
3. Why we we shouldn't rely on x rays or imaging to dictate our care or movement abilities
4. What spinal manipulation is, how it works, and when it's appropriate
5. What the sound that we hear with manipulation is and why it may be painful or feel really good
6. If it's OK to get under a barbell with spinal pain or injuries
7. What you should be doing as a student or practicing clinician to help advance the field of clinical and exercise rehabilitation in physical therapy or chiropractics
8. Her best pieces of advice for clinicians, athletes, and coaches

As always, our episodes are for athletes, coaches, and clinicians, and Jenne provides a unique perspective on the spine, exercises, and rehabilitation.

Connect with Dr. Jenna, DC: @dr.j.nitowski, lotusspine.com

Join our Facebook Community for free form checks, live Q&As & more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PRS.Barbell.Mastery

Got questions or guests you'd like to hear on the show? Submit them here: https://forms.gle/7Vu2HmgHoeQY9xM59

Get in touch with the show!

Web: https://www.progressiverehabandstrength.com

Email: [email protected]

Rori IG: @rorimegan_prs

Alyssa IG: @alyssahope_prs

At PRS we believe that the sumo deadlift and conventional deadlift are actually extremely similar and should be executed exactly the same.

We've identified only three differences between the conventional deadlift and in this podcast episode we dive into them!

1. Stance - how we set our feet relative to our knees & why we don't recommend going too wide
2. Toe Position - dictated relative to the hip position and thigh position
3. Grip Width - inside your feet with one issue for small people

In addition to the three differences between sumo and conventional deadlift, we discuss a common issue people face with their hands, thighs, and hook grip.

We discuss why you can lift more weight with sumo even though you may not be getting optimally strong.

Lastly, we discuss when and why we would recommend sumo versus conventional and why it's important to train both simultaneously if you decide to compete with sumo deadlift.

Join our Facebook Community for free form checks, live Q&As & more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PRS.Barbell.Mastery

Got questions or guests you'd like to hear on the show? Submit them here: https://forms.gle/7Vu2HmgHoeQY9xM59

Get in touch with the show!

Web: https://www.progressiverehabandstrength.com

Email: [email protected]

Rori IG: @rorimegan_prs

Alyssa IG: @alyssahope_prs

If you're a physical therapist, chiropractor, or personal trainer struggling to know when and how to choose multi joint exercises, like the main barbell lifts, over single joint isolation therex, this episode is for you.

In this episode we discuss the benefits of starting at the top with our exercise selection (the main barbell lifts) instead of the bottom and why we feel therapists and coaches default to isolation or therapeutic exercises. We further discuss if there is a difference between training and rehab and how do we bridge the gap if there is.

In our discussion with Clinical Coach and Exercise Science profession, Dr. John Petrizzo, PT, CSCS, SSC, PRSCC, we have engaging and exciting discussions answering the following questions and much much more:

• Is the functional movement screening or other movement screening system contributing to false beliefs about the client's ability to perform higher level exercise?

• Do we need to spend time working on specific isolation exercises if the person has the functional prerequisite to perform the main squat, bench, deadlift, and overhead press or close variation thereof?
• How do we screen someone's ability to perform movement?
• Should we use isolation/therapeutic type and mobility exercises to address injuries or movement maladaptations in strong barbell trainees?
• Why is the single joint exercise/therex mentality so pervasive in physical therapy?
• What is the unspoken advantage of utilizing large multi joint barbell exercises into rehabilitation?
• In what situations would you try to start with a barbell or multi joint exercise and in what situations would you default to starting with isolation exercises?
• What are the biggest problems we see in the rehabilitation realm when it comes to exercise?
• What's the problem with "return to sport" or "discharged from PT?"
• Is there a difference between rehab and training?

Barbell Beginner Strength Training Program: https://bit.ly/3RgB59Z

Looking for a comprehensive online course on barbell training technique, theory, & practical application for all clinical, coaching and athletic levels, join the waitlist for Barbell Coaching & Movement Optimization now and get access to an exclusive $200 discount and special bonuses when enrollment opens. >> https://bit.ly/3RLJmSJ

Join our Facebook Community for free form checks, live Q&As & more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PRS.Barbell.Mastery

Got questions or guests you'd like to hear on the show? Submit them here: https://forms.gle/7Vu2HmgHoeQY9xM59

Get in touch with the show!

Web: https://www.progressiverehabandstrength.com

Email: [email protected]

Rori IG: @rorimegan_prs

Alyssa IG: @alyssahope_prs