Restore: the hips program
assessing and training hip joint mobility
standing hip – controlled articular rotations
The acronym? C.A.Rs, or simply: CARs.
Assessing and training mobility of our HIPS begins here with CARs, which as stated above, is an acronym for “Controlled Articular Rotations.”
What are Hip CARs? What is our focus?
We will use CARs for two primary purposes:
1. To ASSESS our individual hip joint range of motion.
2. To TRAIN to improve that range of motion.
CARs are BOTH a mobility assessment protocol AND a method for training mobility.
In case you’re curious about the definition of CARs, here it is:
“Active, rotational movements at the outer limits of articular (joint) motion. In other words, moving a single joint through its outermost rotational range of motion.”
If you missed this very short 48-second video titled: “What Is The Primary Purpose of Doing Controlled Articular Rotations?”, check it out below right now.
Think about it:
How valuable would it be for your long term hip-joint health if you could move them through their full range-of-motion each day?
The answer is, incredibly valuable!
Something worth considering:
A functional exercise isn’t functional, if the joints in question aren’t functioning as they should be.
Doing Hip CARs enables us to learn where we are with each joint.
For example, do you possess less ROM than you should have? Adequate ROM? Or somewhere in between? Pain? Ability to dissociate or not?
So often when we move a certain part of our body, we “think” we’re dissociating that portion and not moving any other, but in many or most cases, there is some compensation which ends up reducing our ability to separate out a certain joint or body part and move it independently of the other nearby parts.
We NEED articular (joint) independence BEFORE we can have articular interdependence.
This is the central premise behind doing CARs daily. In other words, doing these well and religiously will positively impact every other single thing you do as an athlete and human being.
Done on a regular basis, CARs will:
- provide signaling for tissue remodeling to allow for maximal tissue elongation and range of motion maintenance.
- engage and train all articular mechanoreceptors on a regular basis.
- prevent maturation of fibrotic tissue.
- delay or prevent the onset of osteoarthritis/arthrosis.
Remember: Doing Hip Controlled Articular Rotations (CARS) IS HOW YOU WILL LEARN ABOUT YOUR HIP JOINT RANGE OF MOTION.
This is the first step in your own self-assessment of hip joint range of motion.
IMPORTANT:
You will not only use CARs for an assessment, once you get to the PLAN portion of this program, you’ll see that I have you TRAIN with CARs on a daily (or as often as possible) basis.
CARs is one nearly IDEAL way to continue to expand and explore hip joint range of motion.
And as a result, keep and even improve hip joint health!
By now you should be getting a good overview of what CARs is all about. Keep reading. Keep learning. And keep watching the video. In fact, keep coming back to these videos for ongoing learning.
Moving ahead…
Next: THREE IMPORTANT Videos
1. The first is your instructional video for HIP Controlled Articular Rotations (CARs).
2. In the second, I quickly cover two critically important training elements within CARs: dissociation of the hip joint, AND co-contraction and radiation of tension.
3. The third is a deep-dive review of HIP CARs where I explore how you will get the most from your training.
(*If you’re crunched for time right now, go straight to the 9:50 mark to hear how important it is for your sport performance, to get the most from your CARs training!).
Make sure you listen in to the entire video as it will enhance your understanding of the HOW and WHY that is so important for success.
Video 1: Controlled Articular Rotations for the Hip Joint
In this next video, I discuss the MOST important training “element” that we must pay close attention to, to be able to get the benefits of CARs.
Do NOT MISS this video!
Video 2: Two KEY training elements that are absolutely essential when doing CARs
In this next video, I do a “deep-dive” into the HIP CARS Continuum and on the HOW and WHY for this training.
DO NOT MISS this video!
Video 3: Exploring how to get the most from CARs
Dr. Andreo Spina, who is the founder of Functional Anatomy Seminars and the creator of this training system called CARs, gave a talk to the medical staff of the Chicago Cubs baseball team, discussing this concept of “use it or lose it.”
Referred to as: “The tissue remodeling speech, e.g. mobility longevity, connective tissue remodeling, and movement,” I recommend you listen if you can. It will help clarify the purpose of this training!
Use it or lose it.
This simple but profound phrase relates to virtually everything you could possibly think of with the human body.
Each of our joints has an inherent range of motion. IF we don’t use a particular range of motion, it goes away.
Every cell in our body “turns over” and over the course of a ~3 year period of time, every cell in our body has reformed and changed.
If a new fibroblast (responsible for the signaling necessary to create new cells which will have the capability of the cell it is replacing), doesn’t get the message that certain responsibilities (or ranges of motion) are required, that range (or responsibility/capability) will be lost.
These concepts of “Use it or lose it” are what CARs is all about.
I’ve recorded an audio review to share some additional thoughts on CARs and how they can be used to help you become a better human being. And to enhance your training. To listen to that audio, GO HERE to listen right now or save for later (it’s about 10 minutes).
I WROTE extensively about HIP Controlled Articular Rotations for RESTORE: The Foundation Program. I introduce CARS in that program. To READ (and print a PDF if you would like) what I had to say in that program about CARs, CLICK HERE!