My wonderful wife bought me both the Supernova and Gemini during Rogue’s Matte Black Friday sale for Christmas, but I have to wait until Christmas to play with them!  It’s been hard holding out the past couple weeks! 

🙂

I passed my CSCS in early 2006 and purchased the study materials directly from the NSCA. I finished my BS in Exercise Science that spring.  Honestly, I think what I was taught in class had little to do with me passing.  If I remember correctly, everything you will be tested on comes from the NSCA’s resources.  I read the entire textbook with highlighter and notepad in hand.  I had to tape the book back together by the end.  Listened to all the materials and read everything else in the package.  It was a tough
test, but definitely doable.  This is pretty much the package I bought. 

http://www.nsca.com/Store-Detail/?CID=2147488944

It was much cheaper 7 years ago!   

Good luck!

Honestly, I think I stated this backwards the first time. (It’s been fixed for anyone else looking at this post)

If your hips stay solid with bracing on, it IS NOT a mobility issue.  You can achieve proper depth with a stable midline and have all the ROM required to do so. 

If your hips tuck under with bracing, it IS a mobility issue.  When you achieve proper depth you go into posterior pelvic tilt (butt wink) and this is what is shutting your abs down, in my opinion. 

Try doing the same movements as a body weight squat and see if you get the same results.

Overall, you first need to be organized and extremely stable under load.  The WHOLE time too.  If you are losing stability in the bottom, make sure you are really screwing your feet into the ground and maintaining that initial tension.  Secondly, you need to have the ROM to perform deep squats.  You have already pointed out what needs the work; anterior hip, ankles, and hips.  For now, I would squat higher, to a box or free, until you can fix the butt wink.  Then add a little more depth when you are sure you can maintain neutral.

Jorge,
   Yes opening the anterior hip can help with butt wink.  You can determine if butt wink is a mobility issue or stability issue by kneeling on all fours on the floor.  Make your knees as wide as you normally squat and rock back until your butt sits on your heels.  Either film this or have someone with a good eye watch your hips.  Start by doing it with no ab bracing at all.  You should see your hips butt wink.  Next, brace like you would with a squat and go again. IF your hips stay solid with bracing it is not a mobility issue.  IF they still wink, you are most likely looking at mobility.  You can also play with this to see what your ideal squat width is.  This is a Dr Stuart McGill strategy (I think. He uses it to determine stance width).  I’m not sure if you can find a video of this online.

   Hope this helps.

Irina,

This is a great video that pertains to your issues.  Watch how much difference Jill makes in just a couple minutes in regards to her shoulder tightness.  I love this mob.

http://www.mobilitywod.com/2012/11/jill-miller-and-your-dys-supple-neck/

Here is another winner to free up your neck/shoulder junction.  If you are new to pulling movements like deadlifts, cleans, and
snatches, your upper traps can become very tight and affect your
shoulders.  The lax balls can be pretty harsh so beware.  It works wonders though.  Kelly had us do this hugging a 45lb bumper at his seminar in May.

http://www.mobilitywod.com/2013/04/soft-tissue-of-the-upper-back/

Good luck.

I’m glad you asked these questions.  I forgot to add that I smashed the glutes (everywhere it felt gnarly) and smashed the quads (rollers, barbell, partner) anytime this flairs up and for the most part every time I mobilize the lower body.

So glute stuff.  Smash the heck out of them.  As for training them, I have tried more direct training (glute bridges, scorpions, etc) but have better results with sumo stance work.  Sumo deadlifts and sumo stance 2 kettlebell swings work wonders for my glutes.  If you were dominant on one side for a long time there is a good chance the glutes on the opposite side fell behind.  I played competitive basketball for close to a decade and was left leg dominant for jumping so the right glute fell behind.

The core will help keep the pelvis stable too.  I lean towards Dr.Stuart McGill’s philosophy on low back health/core strength so I focus on plank variations.  I also throw in anti-extension movements like the ab wheel, and anti-rotation movements like Gray Cook’s lift and chop.  The big one here is to avoid any type of traditional side bend movements.  The QL’s primary role is hip hiking and this can cause complications.

If you have any more questions please keep asking.  I will check back here every day or too.

Dovey,
 
This is a problem I had and thanks to KStar and others, have not had any real problems with since.  My SI issues started 4+yrs ago and I also saw different professionals with zero results.  Eventually with all of KStar’s videos, my PT friends, and my background, I put together a plan that worked for me and have had nearly 0 issues the past 2-3yrs.  I will lay it out for you in hopes that it will help.

In May of this year (2013) I asked Kelly at his seminar how often he sees SI problems and he said all the time.  He also said it is almost always over extension/tight anterior hip.  Every time I have checked anterior hip flexibility in someone with SI pain they are missing most of their ROM.  The QL is also a known cause of SI pain due to up slipping the ilium.  I would look at these 2 areas as your main cause of trouble, the QL (quadratus lumborum) and anterior hip.  So here goes.

1.  If the joint is out of place it needs to be put back in place first.  You are already doing this with your yoga block and squeezing it between your knees.  I know KStar has a video on this but I can’t find it.  This video shows the exact same movements that we were shown during his seminar for the reset.  If I can’t get it back into place myself I will go to my chiropractor and then attack the tightness when I get home.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGbkpGiLS1c

2. Attack the anterior hip!  I did the couch stretch and banded couch stretch up to 5 times a day, 2 minutes per side until I was finally out of anterior pelvic tilt.  If you are getting adjusted by a chiropractor and having it go back out as soon as you sit, it tells me your anterior hip is short. 

http://www.mobilitywod.com/2010/09/episode-29-use-your-tv-to-time-your-pain-hips-and-lower-leg/

and

http://www.mobilitywod.com/2011/04/episode-235-recover-your-anterior-with-the-super-couch/

3.  Attack your QL!  Again this is the exact same movement we were shown at the seminar.  If your QL is too tight it will eventually pull your hip upward (this is an up-slipped ilium).  I eventually realized that a spasming QL was the driver of my SI problems almost every time.  Throw an extremely tight anterior hip into it and I ended up with an up-slipped ilium with anterior tilt.  My up-slip was severe enough that it was super easy to see in the mirror.  If you feel out of place but aren’t sure, look up how to palpate the Anterior Superior Iliac Spine and place a dot on each spot.  You should be able to see the difference in height from side to side if you are out of place.

http://www.mobilitywod.com/2013/02/the-ql-is-not-a-boneeven-in-the-matt-chan/

To sum it all up: 1. If it’s out of place put it back in place.  2. Tight anterior hip causes SI pain  3. Tight QL drives the up slip.  Be diligent with your treatment.  The old KStar prescription was 5x/day, 2min/side.  Also, look at your sleeping posture.  If I sleep on my left side, it cause my right QL to spasm.

I know this is daunting, but there is hope.  This was the majority of my lower body mobility and still is.  I hope this helps.

Monique,