It is always exciting to see the progress our athletes make both on and off the course throughout the year. Some of our athletes have been involved in our programs from a very young age, while others have started their journey with us in later stages of development. No matter the amount of time an athlete has been with us here at GPC we take it back to basics when the Academy year resets (coming up in just a little over a month!), and stress the importance of mastering the foundational movements that will be necessary for success in the gym. This phase of training is arguably the most important as it gives the athlete the opportunity to reassess, and reconnect, with their body and build on their overall physical function. Without taking the time to assess the progress we’ve made we will not have any idea as to where the link in the chain breaks.
The reason I bring this up is to educate you as to how the exercises we are performing in the workouts and corrective exercise programs are selected. Just as a fourth grader has to earn their way to the fifth grade, as an athlete you also need to show you have earned the right to move on to the next progression of exercise. The system we use to progress each athlete is referred to as the 4×4 matrix.
The concept of the 4×4 matrix is to progress each athlete through variations of an exercise using different exercise positions (each with increased stability requirements) and different types of resistance with the goal of becoming as functional as possible. From lying down on the ground (our most stable position) to standing on one leg (one of the most unstable positions), we are able to determine just what level your movement begins to compensate. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again; function dictates form! This is the backbone of our philosophy at GPC. If you progress too quickly through an exercise before your body has developed the platform necessary to support this more complex movement, you are at a much higher risk of injury and, over time, could even develop poor movement patterns as a result of the compensations being made. Trust in the process of exercise progression and appreciate the benefits you are gaining in the long run.
See you in the Zone!