Athletic Body in Balance

I had bilateral hip replacements almost 20 years ago. The subsequent years were filled with self-rehabbing, martial arts practice, discus throwing, and strength training. Slowly attempting to build fitness on top of "new" hips and older injuries. The end result was that i waddles like a duck, couldn't touch my toes and had so much pain in my shoulders that i couldn't shave my face without discomfort. Now I won't tell you that this single book helped me cure all of that, because it didn't. But the movement screens in the book and the concept of asymetry opened my eyes and helped to bring all of my other training together into a program for future health, instead of just trying to compensate for past injury and a lack of professional rehab. If I was living in Mr. Cook's hometown I would certainly be trying to take him to lunch and make him my new best friend.

Dr. Cook developed the Functional Movement Screen (FMS) system. Since I began reading his books and using his FMS system, I have completely changed my personal training paradigm. I have given up on single joint, seated, and lying exercises, as well as exercise machines, which do nothing to integrate the entire body through the core. I have gone to full-body functional training which demands core activation and stabilization, and balance.I think that if you read this book you will understand why I changed my training. Dr. Cook does a great job of explaining why we need movement-based exercises as opposed to muscle-isolating exercises. This book is one of his early works, written before he completed work on the FMS, but all of his basic ideas that went into the FMS are here.

Game changing book, written for laypeople to understand their own mobility and stability issues.The beauty of this book is that it provides a self assessment test that anyone can do, and after this, exercises/stretches to correct weaknesses, improve flexibility and stability, and build from there. I've been using his methods for 4 weeks, and when done in the thoughtful, deliberate manner he recommends, it works. Figure that wherever you are presently-you didn't get there overnight-so, no surprise, time and correct effort and mental thought are the keys to getting better.Gray's talk at Google, which is on YT is worth a listen.

Excellent. Need weeks to read and apply all of the useful info. I wish I had this book years ago.

Good book for anyone interested in getting and maintaining fitness. No junk, bull, or hype. Buy it if for no other reason that the five mobility tests in the second chapter. Find out how mobile you really are!

This book sets the baseline for how to train properly. Many of us have been looking at fitness backwards by building upon one's strengths. Gray Cook teaches us to look at our weaknesses and correct the weakest of the weak, in order. By doing this, can we truly become strong. By doing this, our bodies will become balanced. Thus in turn, we can improve everything within our sports and our lives. A classic!

This book is a good introduction or refresher for someone looking for examining movement. It is really a self-assessment with key component of the movement screen for those who have that background. I utilized this as a precursor to studying for the FMS myself. Which, it is really useful for looking at providing progression and/or regressions for yourself or your clients/patients.

I suspect that his later books have more detail. This one has recommendations but is short on explanation and background. It is more of a "do this" type of book. When it was written it was ground breaking but at this point (2015) there are better resources, including some of Gray's more recent work.

Great book, looking forward to using it in my jumps coaching

Completa metodologia de treinamento, do inicio ao fim. Com ele muitas falhas durente a pre-temporada podem ser evitadas, livro muito completo

断続教育のクレジットが必要だったため、購入。FMSのさわりとして難しすぎづ丁度いいテキストかな。期待しすぎるとちょっと物足りないかもしれません。

Gray doesn't get to the point. I found that there was a lot of unnecessary stuff and that he constantly repeated himself. the content was ok, but I felt like the techniques were limited to everyday people and not athletes.

Gray Cook is my hero. He has dedicated himself to instructing exercise professionals on functional movement assessments and unique techniques for correction. As a trainer, I have learned so much from him.