Kettlebells as part of the warm-up: Skills, mobility and activation

What if there was a warm-up movement that would at the same time..

A) Stimulate mentally and require focus and concentration?

B) Enrich the nervous system in the form a new skill?

C) Create mobility especially in the hips and the thoracic spine?

D) Create stability in the core and the shoulder girdle?

E) Activate the small muscles of the foot?

Steve Macioci from Crossfit Ignite taught me one movement that would fit the description. 

The Turkish Get-up 

Key points to Turkish-get up warm-up:

1. Think of the TGU as a SKILL, not a resistance exercise ( try the shoe version first)

2. Focus on the details of each phase in order to achieve the desired flexibility/activation goal

When was the last time you learned a completely new skill?

Learning a new motor skill, whether a simple or a complex one, can enhance our capacity to improve the sport specific skills. Diving into details of learning a new movement that seems to have nothing to do with your sport skill directly can unlock unexpected resources from your body.

The researchers have found out that the process of learning a motor skill increases substance called myelin, that is wrapped around the nerve fibers. The more myelin insulation the nerves have the faster and more accurately the signal in the nerve fiber moves. Basically, the more myelin the greater the mastery of a skill.

Keep building the myelin!

Tommi

"Only those who have the patience to do simple things perfectly ever acquire the skill to do difficult things easily." (Unknown author)

Comments

[Geoff Neupert - kettlebell afficionado]

Tommi - nice job on the explanation. Have you tried a half-empty water bottle for the TGU instead of the shoe? It's the next level up from the shoe... Give it a shot - it'll really re-enforce that myelin!