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How can I do some strength and mobility work everyday without over doing it? I'd like a program where I do some strength and/or mobility work everyday. I have a history of burning myself out by committing to an intense schedule, and am trying to out grow that habit. One of the things that drew me to GB and Sommers was his idea of consistency over intensity; developing both strength and mobility to heal your body, avoid injury, and optimize your long-term success. So how do I do this best? In other words, how should one think about recovery when programming across these course... across strength and mobility... across the full body? Where I also have some limited weighted routines along side and some semi-competitive soccer? For example, some of these courses (longer mobility routine like Stretch Front Split) Coach Sommers says explicitly they should be done once a week and doing them more than that is going backward. Other, less-intense, courses, like the Restore Hips, say to do once per week – but seems more like a suggestion than a hard rule. When it comes to strength, it's common to have a weighted split that supports 8-12 sets per muscle group per week with at least 24-48 hours recovery between muscle group workouts. But I'm not sure how to fit this into the GB routines. Perhaps there is some feature within the app I'm missing. FWIW: My personal priorities (in order): long-term health, strength + mobility, performance in semi-casual competitions (e.g. soccer). Thanks!

Hello everyone! I'm back to my old plateau of my elbow tendon endurance being a limiting factor on a lot of my training, so I'm just wondering if there's anything I can do speed up my recovery window. Couple of quick things that I'm already doing: I'm NOT injured, nor do I have any elbow injuries in the past (all the advice I found was about rehab) I'm not pushing past the sharp localized pain (learned this the hard way my first year of training) I'm taking my time with my workouts now and not trying to rush (see point 2 about learning the hard way... lol) I point these out so people don't just say search the forums as everything I found was more from an injury recovery perspective, where as I'm more looking at this from a recovery optimization. I'm just wanting to make sure there's nothing else I can do then just proper warm up, rest and not over doing things to speed up my elbow recovery. Thanks everyone! Matt

So, after many years of discomfort, I finally settled on having the bone spur under my VMO removed -- turns out it was 2.8cm long and 1.6cm wide. The single leg squat may now actually be a feasible goal once I'm back to fighting shape. In terms of GST, I was wondering what people suggest/recommend in terms of therapeutic exercises. I'm going it alone as I've read everything I can get my hands on regarding exercise, therapy, rehab, prehab, rep ranges, and so on, so I don't feel convinced that a physio would somehow surprise me with his suggestions and offer up solutions that I hadn't thought of myself. That being said, regressions of GB movements that could serve as rehab and eventually prehab and other ideas would be much appreciated. I'm obviously not about to jump right into the knee series, though that's an eventual goal. I'm currently doing laps in a pool -- making my way to kid's end ever so cautiously and going to eventually include the F1 elements of SLS series when my knee flexion is back to at least 90 degrees if not greater. I've also noted Coach's support of heat rub and have been using tiger balm very liberally (though being mindful to not lather it on too high up on my thigh...) @Wesley Tan @Coach Sommer @Alessandro Mainente. I will also upload some photos eventually to show where exactly I had surgery (as of July the 7th) and how recovery has gone thus far. Cheers,

So I messed up big time. To make a long story short I was an idiot and tried to train around wrist pain. While it didn't hurt while training it slowly got worse over time and now 7 months later I am still trying to recover from a tfcc tear that occurred as result of poor decisions. I haven't done a handstand in 5 months (for 2 months I kept trying to see if it was better, not smart) and while most of the pain is gone while doing normal activities my wrist still feels unstable and I suspect it will come back if I try to resume training. I was thinking about trying prolotherapy but I do not know if it will help see as if my tfcc was going to heal completely I think it may have done so by now. I still have popping and cracking in my wrist so I am pretty sure the tear is still there just the inflammation has dissipated somewhat. Has anyone had any success with prolotherapy for healing a tear that just wont seem to get better? Are there any other treatments I can try other than PT, which I am currently doing. Is there any hope that I can eventually master the foundations series with my wrist in this condition?

I'm looking for advice/recommendations concerning returning to training after carpal tunnel release surgery from experienced trainers or people who have gone through it? It seems so many if not most of the gymnastic exercises rely on at least being able to put weight on your wrist and then more and more so as you progress. Any advice? Tips? Expectations? Etc Some background: I recently went through my worst flare of carpal tunnel syndrome, ending with proper diagnosis, EMG, and then successful carpal tunnel release surgery (first on my right hand, soon on my left). I'm recovering quickly so far but I expect I'll be asked to not put pressure on my palms for a few weeks more at least. I'm in my late 30s, fairly fit and strong compared to the average person and I'd gone through the foundation series and was working into the fundamentals. I was/am looking forward to progressing on with the program/s.

11) Can you provide the definition of “Recovery”, specifically as used in GST? 22) Can you provide criteria, tips or tests to assess level of recovery (ie low, medium, high) in order to determine optimal number of strength training days per week? ( *Prior to GST my husband and I were working out 7 days a week -no deload week- with 2 of them being “active recovery” days of yoga and pilates. We were sore all the time, but just worked through it. So the idea of recovery is kind of a foreign concept to us. 33) I read some posts on the forum recommending taking a complete 1 week off for rest/recovery a few times a year. Can a coach comment on this – specifically if this is needed and how to determine how often (i.e. I imagine it would be different for our teenage athletes vs us 50 year old parents). T Thank you!!! Monica Stettler Brozny (& family)

Hi all, I got into amateur gymnastics training ~4 years ago, dove in headlong without building a solid foundation and using too much volume, and have been out of the game with a bunch of muscle pain issues as a consequence. I'm hoping to start over from scratch with regular video coaching (if not in person) and focusing exclusively on restoring proper movement, no strength until my body is ready for it. The Fundamentals course seems like a possible option. I still have some predictable aches and pains - in particular, certain t-spine movements will set off my costochondritis. My question: what threshold should I reach before trying to start Fundamentals? I know that rest is key, but too much inactivity will lead to problems as well. Thanks! (For anyone else dealing with pain, I found http://painscience.com to be a nice resource. I'm a nerd and love that he cites all his primary research sources.)

Hi everyone, I'm a 31 year old male with a love for gymnastics (albeit no training in the field).. and also with a knee injury.. My knees were already cracking excessively for a few years (probably from a combination of starting with intensive martial arts, sitting cross legged for long times on meditation retreats and prolonged travel while eating a diet mostly based on fruits for an extended period of time). About 8 months ago, I saw a doctor who recommended me an exercise to help repair them (this happened in India, I was there for yoga training..). While trying the exercise (pushing the knee down while lying on my back) with the doctor, the left knee was overextended at the first trial. It is not causing me pain, but few times already I felt like I was falling through my left leg. And generally, my knees feel weaker than they used to be. Could following the gymnasticbodies training help recover the injury and make my knees strong again? Or rather, should I be careful not to undertake this training as it could put more stress and make the injury worse? Thanks for your thoughts and advice, Giyom

Hello, I have injured my right arm/shoulder after over training OA FL and OAP. I ended up having a tear in my long head of my bicep, which put me out of action for 4 months. Currently doing exercises set by Physio to help regain strength, mobility and stability in the arm. However I am now looking if anyone has experienced coming back from injury similar to this what to expect, and what did they first start with training again. I can currently do different variations of planks, push ups and rows(with feet on floor whilst on rings). But Ideally I want to get back to my old level of strength(video for attention, compressed the file so bad quality). Being that of FL MU etc. I know it will be a slow process but any tips and advice would be great. Thanks in advance video-1455225047.mp4

So I am coming off a really long term injury, and my question is this. Do you ever lose the strength in the connective tissue that you've built up? I was very careful when I was training to try and go slow (although clearly not slow enough!!!) and focus on building up the connective tissue as opposed to the muscles as a goal. For me this meant (not sure if it's right or wrong) very heavy loads, very controlled, and very slow. Only a few reps of each exercise. So I'm slowly coming off my injury and starting to sheepishly do some very light work; I'm wondering once I get back, how much I will have really lost for the time off? If the primary goal of the work is connective tissue (tendons, etc. that are strengthened by long term loading), I would assume that the lack of blood flow would also render these adaptations almost immune to 'atrophy' or any form of reversion. This is in stark contrast to the neurological adaptions which fade very quickly, and then muscular adaptations which fade over a longer period. My feeling is that the connective tissue adaptations take so long to gain, and would take so long to lose that they're basically there for life once you've made them. My thoughts on this are informed by the few periods that I've tried to get back on again, and usually within a few workouts I was about 70% or more of what I used to be able to do. I was definitely back from the edge of what I could do and it wasn't polished or easy anymore, but there was still a lot there and I was really surprised. Just wanted to get the thoughts of others on this. I'm really looking for light at the end of the tunnel, and some silver lining!

So I was hit with a cold on Saturday and immediately decided that sleep was in order. I've been getting 9+hrs per night and have not trained my typical Monday or Tuesday this week. I'm even trying to squeeze in naps if possible wherever I can (during lunch break in my car). Happy to report that I'm feeling about 90% normal right now and hope to catch up starting tomorrow provided i wake up feeling equally good. I can remember times when sleep wasn't a priority when it would take me 7 or more days to feel how I do now after only 3.5 being sick. I wanted to post on here to recommend a section similar to that of Nutrition that could cover things like Rest and Recovery which I am finding to be critical this week. It's SO important to listen to your body and we mention that so much here. Perhaps a Forum section devoted just to that might be helpful for encouragement and accountability.

Dear all, I'm pretty certain that I strained my hamstrings. What to do to get me back to where they're healthy? About a month ago, I was bed-ridden with that seasonal cold/flu and as a result I became awfully stiff. Anyways, upon recovering from my illness I'm fairly certain that I pushed myself too hard in some stretching/cooldown components post-workout and now experience excessive tightness in my hamstrings. Furthermore forward bending, as one would do in a standing pike, exhibits a lot of stress (and not the debacle between soreness and injury, it feels like injury). Does anyone know of any methodologies that speed the recovery. I'm thinking of specific yoga stretches/routines or various weighted stretches or holds that might help expedite the recovery time. I can still do all of the Foundation and Handstand exercises. I use lacrosse balls, rumble rollers and do yoga from 10-45 minutes a day, on top of the stretching series. Though, to be fair the front split routine may be sidelined due to the aforementioned problem with my hamstrings. Any insights or help from coaches or more knowledgeable types is appreciated. Thanks, Danny

Hi everyone, Sometimes shit happens. I unfortunately fractured my metacarpal of the index on my left hand almost 2 weeks ago. It's now plastered up and I have no choice but to be patient. I was of course exceedingly frustrated at first but am now grateful it's "only" a small fracture on one hand. Could of landed on my head I guess..! Anyhow it's now more often leg day and I'm alternating between SLS variations and some weighted lunges and squats. For my GB Foundation training I'm just taking it as an opportunity to revisit and emphasize the basics; HBRs, ABRs, V-Ups, Side Planks, etc.. and of course a ton of mobility work! As to Handstand practice I'm back to elbow headstand and presses. Any training ideas? Anyone been through this kind of injury? Any tips on speeding up recovery? Tips for rehab' when the time comes for me to be plaster-free? And how to progressively reintroduce handstand work and stress on my hand? PS. Being injured right now completely relieves the impatience of delayed M1 release hahaha Have a great day! Mark