Arsenal Performance and Rehabilitation

06/05/2026

“Hip flexor” injuries aren’t always your hip flexor.

Just because the pain is near your hip flexor doesn’t mean that it is the source.

Pain in the front of the hip is often actually an irritation to the joint itself as the joint moves into repeated internal rotation or flexion with little support.

Over time, this irritates the front of the hip as the femur pinches against your pelvis.

The fix? Strengthen the muscles that keep the hip from rotating inward - things like the external rotators and lateral glutes.

06/04/2026

MAKE YOUR REHAB EXERCISES DIFFICULT

I’ve heard countless stories of people who “did PT before” without any results, just to find out the were doing a few reps of incredibly easy exercises.

Your body needs challenge to adapt. This applies to big exercises and small exercises alike.

You wouldn’t expect to make progress on bench press if you just lifted the empty bar every day.

People understand this, but then lift the equivalent difficulty of an empty barbell in their rehab exercises.

06/01/2026

Most scapular winging treatment isn’t enough.

Simple exercises for your serratus or rhomboids are good, but they don’t address how scapular winging truly happens.

If you have this problem, your scapula tends to wing with LOAD or MOVEMENT, not just in static positions.

Traditional exercises to improve winging often use straight plane exercises with minimal resistance.

If this is all you do, it’s not surprisingly when the winging comes back as soon as you starting lifting weights again. The demand of the exercises did not match the demands of lifting, even if they technically were “good” exercises.

05/21/2026

Your shoulder probably doesn’t need more mobility.
It needs more stability.

A lot of people stretch and foam roll their shoulders nonstop, but if you can’t control the joint under load, symptoms keep coming back.

Mobility without stability is just uncontrolled motion.

The goal is to build strength and control through ranges the shoulder can actually own—especially overhead.

These are examples of what can be used—not a one-size-fits-all plan.

Stability creates usable mobility.

05/20/2026

Strengthen your low back THROUGH bending, not by avoiding it.

The idea that spinal flexion and rotation is dangerous is not only outdated, but also harmful.

If you specifically avoid training a certain position, you’ll almost certainly be weak in that position. Spinal flexion is no different.

The moment you need to pick up a heavy object that’s not a perfect ergonomic shape (like most objects in real life), you’re likely to hurt your back.

People that don’t train their back are arguably at HIGHER risk for injury, as they have no practice at stabilizing the back under load.

Naturally, you need to train your back responsibly. You shouldn’t just max out your Jefferson curl, but controlled, deliberate spinal loading goes a long way for your back health.

05/18/2026

Most people train strength without ever learning stability first.

The DNS Star challenges your ability to control movement through the trunk, shoulders, and hips all at once — which is exactly why it’s so effective for lifters and athletes.

If you feel unstable overhead, shaky under load, or constantly compensating during movement, this is a great drill to add into your routine.

Control creates strength. Stability keeps it there.

05/15/2026

Unstable shoulders don’t need more random band exercises.

If you can’t control load overhead, the shoulder will eventually let you know.

A lot of shoulder issues come from poor stability, poor positional control, and trying to force strength through ranges the body doesn’t actually own yet. Throwing weight overhead without control is a great way to keep irritating it.

The goal is to build strength with control—especially in overhead positions where the shoulder and scapula need to work together efficiently.

These are examples of what can be used—not a one-size-fits-all plan.

Own the position before you load the position.

05/10/2026

05/08/2026

Back pain is rarely just a “back problem.”

A lot of people do prone press ups thinking they’re some magic fix—but if the low back is compensating for stiffness, weakness, or poor control elsewhere, symptoms usually keep coming back.

Very often, the hips, core, or thoracic spine aren’t doing their job, forcing the low back to absorb more stress than it should.

The goal isn’t just to stretch the back. It’s to improve movement quality, build strength, and increase tolerance so the back stops compensating.

These are examples of what can be used—not a one-size-fits-all plan.

Train the system, not just the symptom.

04/28/2026

Rotator cuff training should reflect how your rotator cuff actually works.

These muscles help stabilize the shoulder when you LIFT YOUR ARM.

Given this information, why would you only train it with your arm at your side? This is arguably the position at which your shoulder needs the LEAST support from the rotator cuff.

Rotator cuff exercises need to involve the less stable positions (overhead, lifted out to the side, etc.) to train its ability to stabilize in these positions.