Before you buy into conventional medical advice that suggests you sit still or get surgery to deal with joint pain, try functional training. You might find you have the power to touch your toes, do that squat, or even stand on your hands all on your own, and without pain.

Prefer Video? Watch: A Video breakdown of the Physically Feeble Fallacy

Table of Contents:

• What is the Physically Feeble Fallacy?
• Examples of the Physically Feeble Fallacy
• Example 1: You Can’t Touch Your Toes
• Example 2: You Can’t Squat
• Example 3: You Shouldn’t Lift Weights
• Example 4: You Need Surgery to Fix Your Joint Pain
• Example 5: Your Arthritis is the Problem
• Why So Many People Buy Into the Physically Feeble Fallacy
• How to Turn the Tables...

Pain relief, confidence, and better athletic performance can all come from correcting bad posture. Learn how to hold your body more efficiently with functional training.

Table of Contents

• What are the Mental and Emotional Effects of Bad Posture?
• What Are the Physical Effects of Bad Posture?
• Good Sitting Posture
• Good Standing Posture
• Good Athletic Posture
• Bad Standing Posture
• Does Bad Posture Really Matter?
• What Causes Bad Posture?
  • Common Activities that Lead to Bad Posture
• How to Fix Bad Posture with Functional Training
  • Hunchback Posture
  • Anterior Pelvic Tilt
• 4 Keys for Good Posture

What Are the Mental and Emotional Effects of Bad Posture?

Some of the clearest effects of poor posture are related to mental health. For many...

When you’re facing chronic pain and joint discomfort, don't get caught in the trap of looking for a quick fix. Functional training, which focuses on solutions for pain through muscle and movement pattern development, is a better long-term solution. 

Table of Contents

• What Are RIIPS?
• Rest
• Ice
• Injections (Steroid + PRP)
• Pills
• Surgery
• When RIIPS May Help

_{This post contains affiliate links for book recommendations. This does not affect the price you pay, and Upright Health receives a small commission that supports the development of future content.}

What are RIIPs?

When you’re dealing with chronic pain from muscle or joint imbalance and dysfunction, it’s easy to think your only options are...

Some chiropractic adjustments can ease pain in the short-term. But for long-term relief of chronic pain, without becoming dependent on expensive treatments, focus on addressing muscle imbalance and dysfunction.

Table of Contents

• My Personal Experience with Chiropractic Treatment
• Finding the Right Chiropractor for You
• Why You Should Focus on Functional Training for Muscles, Instead of Chiropractic Treatment
• 3 Reasons to Question Seeing a Chiropractor Forever

_{More matters than just your spine. Photo by Joyce McCown on Unsplash}

Maybe you've been seeing a chiropractor for the last few years to help treat chronic pain. Or maybe you just started up with one and he or she is telling you that you need to get adjusted once or...

There are often other, more effective, less invasive and risky solutions for treating joint pain and reclaiming your mobility and life. Let’s start with functional training.

Table of Contents

• My History with Orthopedic Surgery Recommendations
• With Joint Pain, Correlation Doesn’t Equal Causation
• Orthopedic Surgeries are NOT Based in Fact
• How Orthopedic Surgery Results are Reported
• Why Orthopedic Surgeries Continue, Despite the Evidence That We Don’t Need Them
• How Insurance Companies Contribute to the Problem
• The Risk of Drug Addiction with Orthopedic Surgery
• Orthopedic Surgeons Still Have a Monopoly on Joint Pain
• How to Fix Your Joint Pain Without Orthopedic Surgery
• Closing Thoughts on Orthopedic Surgery for...

Use functional training to heal and repair these key causes of chronic pain and movement impairment.

Table of Contents

• A Quick Primer on How to Identify Muscle Imbalances
  • The 2 Types of Muscle Imbalance
• How Do You Fix Joint Muscle Imbalances?
• How Do You Fix Symmetry Muscle Imbalances?
• A Quick Primer on How to Identify Muscle Dysfunction
• How Do You Fix Dysfunctional Muscles?
• Sensations to Pay Special Attention to When Fixing Muscle Imbalance and Dysfunction
• 1) Sharp Sensations in the Muscle You’re Activating, or Uncontrollable Jitters
  • 2 Strategies for Activating Weak Muscles
• 2) You Feel the Wrong Muscles Activate
• 3) Pinching or Jamming at the Joints
  • 3 Strategies for Fixing Joint Jamming
  • Apply Observation and...

Use functional training to root out and repair these key causes of chronic pain and movement impairment.

Table of Contents

• Types of Muscle Imbalances
  
  • Joint-Muscle Imbalance
  • Symmetry Muscle Imbalance
• Why do Muscle Imbalances Matter?
• Why the Impacts of Muscle Imbalance are Difficult to Study
• A Note for Skeptics
• How to Identify Muscle Imbalances
• Muscle Dysfunction vs. Muscle Imbalance
• Where do Muscle Imbalances and Dysfunctional Muscles Come From?
• How to Identify Muscle Dysfunction
• Apply Functional Tests to Your own Dysfunctional Muscles
• What is Normal Muscle Function?
• Aim for “Uncommon” Muscle Function
• The Role of Bones in Muscle Dysfunction and Imbalance
• What’s the Point of Finding Dysfunctional Muscles and...

ATM = Always Think Muscles. When you’re trying to get to the root of your joint pain, don’t forget to assess muscle function around the joint. Chances are, this is where your challenge lies, and that functional training can help you overcome it. 

Table of Contents

• Understanding Joint Pain
• Why the Orthopedic Theory of Joint Pain is Wrong
• Your Labrum, Meniscus, and Intervertebral Discs are Just Not That Important
• Why Most Joint Pain is Really Muscle Pain
• Joint Pain and Post-Workout Muscle Soreness 
• Joint Pain and Pushing Muscles Beyond Their Limits
• Joint Pain and Consistent Muscle Pain
• 3 Ways to Think About and Resolve Joint Pain

Here’s a controversial statement: joint pain is really...

Muscle imbalances and dysfunction can cause chronic pain, and fixing those imbalances and dysfunctions can be painful. The good news is that, in most cases, the pain is just a temporary step on the road to long-term relief and not a sign of damage or a need for drastic measures like pills, injections, and surgeries.

Table of Contents 

• Chronic Pain and Muscle Dysfunction and Imbalances
• The Relationship Between Pain and Damage
• What Your Pain is Telling You
• Common Causes of Pain When Addressing Muscle Dysfunction and Imbalances: Activating Weak Muscles
• Strategies for Restoring Range of Motion After Activating Weak Muscles
• Common Causes of Pain When Addressing Muscle Dysfunction and Imbalances:  Shortening Chronically Short...