Fieldguide: Functional Movement Screen
I get a lot of questions,
What is this FMS screen you do?
How can it help?
So I thought I would give you an insight behind the curtains of one of the more common assessment and screening tools we use to help build strong more robust capable bodies.
At Fieldwork Health we have two rules:
Rule number 1: Do no harm
Rule number 2: Be as aggressive as possible without breaking rule one.
This aligns well with one of my main focus points when designing a training program, being how can I prevent any injuries?
I ask myself this because if someone becomes injured in my training regime then it will be harder to achieve their goals.
Whether their goal is pain free movement, rehabilitation, fat loss or strength, if they get injured then none of these goals are achievable as you can’t train.
This is where the functional movement screen comes in:
It essentially is a quick and easy way to screen fundamental movement before you train it.
If you train with a baseline of poor quality movement the risk of injury is significantly increased.
If however you correct baseline movement with a methodical corrective exercise strategy the risk of injury is significantly reduced.
Simply put, the screen will identify what movements you are ready to train full steam ahead and what movements need some corrective training strategies before you advance.
This will also help you advance further and avoid potential barriers/road blocks down the track.
The FMS looks at fundamental movements, mobility and motor control within basic movement patterns. It's designed to uncover any movement deficiency and asymmetries such as mobility or stability problems.
Once revealed it enables further assessment to get to the bottom of your body.
By screening these patterns the FMS identifies functional limitations and asymmetries.
These are issues that can contribute to the cause of why an individual may experience pain or discomfort on a regular basis.
It's designed for all healthy, active and inactive people who want to increase their physical activity.
It screens both essential elements of mobility and stability to reveal any limitations.
With increasing desire to be fitter, stronger and more athletic people need to realise the importance of having fundamental movements down before advancing to higher level activities.
Once the FMS has revealed a dysfunction, an appropriate exercise strategy can be implemented to correct the problem.
I highly recommend getting an FMS screen for the reasons above.
The screen may score completely normal and that’s great if it does. However, if it reveals a weakness that is also great! It enables an appropriate corrective exercise strategy which can easily be built into your current program.
Instead of waiting for an injury and treating the symptom and hoping everything will improve we need to first do our best to identify potential precursors and eliminate compensations they cause.
“Don’t wait until you can’t move well to appreciate the importance of moving well!”
If you would like to book in for a functional movement screen with myself, the next step is to find a spot online by clicking here or by contacting our reception on (08) 6468 6825 who can help with any questions you may have.
Recent Blog Posts
