Am I in the right place?

I just listened to the Tim Ferriss podcast and they talked about how people are so inflexible, blah, blah, blah. I'm one of those people. My body is "locked" and doesn't want to move. So I buy the fundamentals as suggested, and the first thing I'm asked to do is a crab walk and ape walk. WTF?

How about you show me how to stretch my shoulders and arms enough so that I can even get my butt off the floor. Or show me what to do if I can't rotate my hands so they face in the proper direction?

Is there a more basic course that I've missed?

Hi Curtis,

In the first instance, you can begin stretching these by performing reps pressing as close to the full table position as possible. Deliberate, controlled reps that start to pry it all open.

It is also beneficial to perform crab walks even with your butt dropped, or even on the floor with a furniture slider if need be. Be conservative with the volume doing this as a little goes a long way, and work to keep as much scapular depression and retraction throughout.

In terms of straight-up stretching, besides the many fine weighted mobilities in the handstand course in particular, also the F1 front lever mobility series, the obvious culprit is shoulder extension. This can be worked by placing your hands behind you, on a bench or chair, and squatting down to the desired depth.

Wrist position in crab, as with most support positions in GST, is not a problem. 6 of one, half a dozen of the other, with the only exception being that hands fully externally rotated, that is with fingers pointed straight back, is to be postponed until some biceps/brachialis conditioning is established due to additional stress being placed on the elbows.

I emphasise being a bit conservative with stretching very tight areas; there is a lot of musculature involved that is interfering with your shoulder extension.

Hope that gives you a foothold

Jon, that's an excellent reply. To the creators of this course...

Why is that type of information not included in the videos? If I was just a little less desperate, I would have pulled the trigger on asking for a refund.

Curtis,

1) Relax.  I have done this a few thousand times.   

2) There is a lot to learn and it is going to be a gradual process.  You can aid this journey by trusting the process.

3) At your level working with the movements themselves will be your best first exposure.  Additional mobility work will be gradually added to your training.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

Hi Coach Sommer,

i appreciate your personal reply. After listening to your interview with Tim Ferriss, there's no doubt you're qualified to teach and I mean no disrespect. I only hope you'll consider my comments as feedback on how to make your product better. Looking at other posts made here, I'm not alone about what to do when you're so tight you can hardly scratch you're own nose  

Had your reassurance appeared in the video along with advice similar to what Jon offered, it would have gone a long way to making me feel more comfortable with my purchase. 

I'm glad to hear it gets better. I'm so f'd up I'm beside myself with fear of being so sore and tight at just 45. I look forward to going through the course and seeing positive results. 

10 hours ago, Curtis Penner said:

Hi Coach Sommer,

i appreciate your personal reply. After listening to your interview with Tim Ferriss, there's no doubt you're qualified to teach and I mean no disrespect. I only hope you'll consider my comments as feedback on how to make your product better. Looking at other posts made here, I'm not alone about what to do when you're so right you can hardly scratch you're own nose  

Had your reassurance appeared in the video along with advice similar to what Jon offered, it would have gone a long way to making me feel more comfortable with my purchase. 

I'm glad to hear it gets better. I'm so f'd up I'm beside myself with fear of being so sore and tight at just 45. I look forward to going through the course and seeing positive results. 

I concur with Curtis.... Had I not listened to the Podcast, I would have asked for refund already. Would like to see some of that info in the intro to this method....

@Curtis PennerI agree with you,  @Coach Sommer I realize you are one of the most qualified individuals on the planet and  totally buy into the fact that you know what you're talking about, but I was a little confused after watching the first video and thinking the program would not be helpful for me and a waste because of my completely pathetic attempts at trying to get into these positions (especially crab).

Tim Ferris' audience tends to attract a lot of lifters and guys who like to pick heavy things up who are probably just as tight, if not tighter than I am.  Maybe a disclaimer on the main page of "day one" saying "chill out dude,  just because you can't come remotely close to doing these movements doesn't mean you're not in the wrong place.  We will eventually turn you into a functioning human being from the tight little weakling you are now" will tell some in the demographic we're in the right place.  As a lifter of many years and sufferer of multiple joint injuries from playing hockey through the collegiate level (resulting in joints tighter than gordian knots) it may help stop guys like me from requesting refunds when they first see the video and have a "WTF" moment. 

Happy to know that I was pissed off enough to go into the forms and see that not being able to do these movements is somewhat "normal" and with hard work and dedication you can get to these positions.  I'm definitely pumped to keep going with the course.

Just my two cents but they may not be worth anything!  By the way coach your podcast was awesome.

Good point, Eric.  And the new introduction videos are being filmed tomorrow to address these very items.

Come on guys, after three hours of listening to the podcast haven't I earned a some small measure of trust?!?  

Remember that not everything is always about sweat, burn and strain.  Outside of the physical performance materials, there is also a good bit of anatomy and functionality in Fundamentals that you guys need to learn for easing the transition into Foundation One/Pro+.

Don't worry, I promise to begin kicking your ass(es) soon enough.  Just ask my senior students and the forum coaches. 

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

Hi Coach, 

My 2 cents on the discussion. Making video doesn't scale but you can always add the best notes you can image, easy to edit and adapt. 

Also would be nice to explain how to evaluate if our position is correct. But so far so good, I love feeling the stretch in places I didn't know I had

In a few months there are going to be a lot of people laughing at themselves for asking Coach for a tough workout

Jeesh, good to know I'm not alone. Like many others, I was blown away by the podcast and the Eureka realisation that this is just what I've been lacking and looking for. I have always suspected my mobility is squat (excuse the pun!), but just started Fundamentals this week and I've been humbled by Ape and Crab! Coach, I also concur with the guys to put something on the intro vids to ease us lifters into this mentally, though I know that I'll be laughing at myself in a months time. As an aside, I respect the fact that you cite this as a 3-year journey and that initial improvements will take some time to achieve. We need to get over our addiction to quick fixes, be gentle with our bodies, listen to them and take the guidance on board of those who have walked the path before us. So, I'm committed to this process, borne out by the fact that I'm actually writing this as I NEVER contribute to forums. As a trainer myself, I want to push myself beyond my boundaries so I can support others in doing the same. Here's to the journey!

I have to agree with everyone else. I was really lost with the first few days and I thought I was missing something because there weren't clear directions as to how much (or how little) we're supposed to do with each day. After watching the videos and following along with that minute or two, I wasn't sure what to do with that information. Now that I have an idea, I'm looking forward to working on my mobility, especially the shoulder work. It seems now that you may have two populations here for beginners: lifters/athletes and non-lifters/athletes.

Great to see you responding to the feedback Coach. Your interview with Tim was stellar; us meatheads just need a little guidance when trying to do something new.

Hi Folks – I also found this site through the Ferriss podcast and was very excited to start.  Today was my day 1 and apparently I have the benefit of the new videos, which I did like.  They were clear and precise without a lot of wasted time.  Although they did not suggest doing in place reps if you can’t actually ape walk, I could tell from my ability that would be the best option for me.  Having heard Coach Sommer for three hours talk about how we have to take it slow and avoid injury especially with connective tissue, I’m ok with being given the freedom to choose what I should do.  The idea of an additional notes/thoughts section from the coach would be awesome though.  I’m so glad I saw this thread here.  Last thought is I want to learn exactly what muscle, joint, connective tissue and ROM we are working with each exercise.  If that’s here on the site I’d love to know.  In the meantime, I got a book from the library called The Student’s Anatomy of Exercise Manual (Barron’s) for some visual assistance.