While movement points of performance that theoretically hold true for every person, reality involves a lot more nuance. Let’s take the upright torso in the squat for example. An upright torso is a high priority in the squat, and in an ideal world, I would like to see everyone who is squatting with a barbell on their back doing so with minimal forward lean. But two different athletes will have two different “ideals” for an upright torso. One, with shorter femurs and a longer torso, may be capable of a torso that is near vertical while still holding true to other squat points of performance. Another, with longer femurs and a shorter torso, will require more forward lean, even with adjustments to forward knee travel and stance width. We can take this a step further and consider an athlete who is a single lower-limb amputee. Torso angle, depth, loading sequence, etc. will all be subject to individual variation. We’re all different shapes, and that means each of us will have a different “best” form.

Our points of performance act as guiding principles, and the message is not that we should concede these points of performance or allow our unique anatomy to excuse us from striving towards a standard. You may have shorter or longer femurs, and that may mean that your best squat looks different than his or her best squat, but you’re not off the hook. The real meat and potatoes of what we do as coaches, and where each athlete’s greatest potential exists, is in applying these points of performance in the context of each individual’s physiology. We’re all unique, and we’re all trying to hold the highest standard. There is no “or.”

- PS

11/18/19

• 3 rounds for time:

• 12 box jumps (24”/20”)

• 24 pull-ups

• 36 push-ups

• 48 squats

• Rest 2 mins