REDUCE PAIN,
INCREASE MOBILITY

"I’m new to SMM as of last week.

I’m a regular 47 year old stay at home mum and I do CrossFit. I started when I was 40 and it’s a huge part of my life.

Over the past few years I have not looked after my mobility so it has slowly decreased so much so that now I have discomfort walking for any length of time (which is a pretty basic requirement), single sided back pain & hip irritation on the same side being on the top of my list, but stupidly so, I have ignored all the signs and now I’ve ended up with terrible Sciatic pain.

Any fellow CrossFitter will understand how addictive this sport can be and it requires every muscle to work in synergy. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea but as a female it is hugely empowering & it is amazing the things are bodies are capable of.

I started SMM last week and have been doing two sessions daily, straight away it highlighted all of my weak areas, the worst being the Kickstand Squat and lunges due to lack of ankle mobility & internal rotation due to rounded shoulders.

At first I found most of the exercises very stiff but was able to get through them, now a week on I can’t believe how much better I feel.

After listening to Tom's talk on “No one can solve this, only you” everything clicked into place: I’ve been spending wasted time on Glute activation drills when all the time my hip Adduction was the problem - lack of Adduction has ruined my knees, weakened my core, shut down one Glute and collapsed my foot arch.  

I have a lot of work to do on re-levelling my pelvis before I can pick up a Barbell again, but there is no time like the present.

Thank you so much Tom and Jenni for all your hard work putting the videos together, I have managed to piece together the strengthening exercises I need to repair my body.

Now I have discovered SMM I can’t use age as an excuse, it just takes a bit longer to recover and you have to train accordingly... I may even be mobile enough to compete again!"

I started SMM about 6 weeks ago. My issue was that I had a sciatic type pain down my left side. Every day I was stretching and doing yoga to try and relieve the pain, but I was getting nowhere. All I wanted to do was get back to my football/GAA training for the new seasons. 

After 6 weeks of SMM consistently doing the programme 4-6 times per week (adding the Hip CARs which Tom gave me too) I am back to my sport and in better condition than I was last season where I played every game. I literally cannot believe it! 

My sciatic pain feels more like a deep tightness in the left glute which seems to loosen up after SMM. Hopefully if I keep this going and it will be eliminated completely, however the progress is immense. 

For anyone else starting out, please stick at it and be consistent with it. Don’t do it half assed and dedicate the time to doing the movements as correctly as you can. 

I got a lot of pain in other areas at the start as well including the middle of my lower back, but I think that was my body adjusting to these new moves, so if you feel worse after the first few sessions don’t be disheartened. Trust the process.

When I first contacted Tom, I thought I was on the road to hanging up my goggles with neck and back problems. I’ve had the programme for about a month and followed it about twice a week.

I’ve now been for 2 hour lake swims and it’s all been good! Bit achy but I can rotate my shoulder, no pain when swimming, no pins and needles, I can turn my neck better and I can walk out instead of crawl because my back hasn’t locked up.

I’m feeling much more positive about continuing swimming and lifting x

My friend and I had a giggle with the camera whilst swimming!

Big, big, big thank you Tom Morrison! I started on 25th August because I had been struggling all summer, unable to run with a painful achillies caused by a naggy calf... but it improved massively in week 1 and is hardly noticeable now!

And I did my first triathlon yesterday! It was only a 5k run in the tri, but no niggles... and after trying EVERYTHING all summer... I'm over the moon! THANK YOU!!!

"When I contacted Tom after Nationals last year my squat PR was 337.5kg. Now it's 345kg and I think it's looking a lot more symmetrical.

My body has never felt this good in the lead up to and during competition.

Thanks for your help!"

"I prolapsed a couple of disks a few years ago. Years of rehab couldn’t completely eradicate the pain or help my movement.

Tom Morrison comes along and boom, I’ve competed in strongman comps, been running and I’m pain free and move so much better.

Tom deserves happy endings forthwith rest of his life in my humble opinion!"

"I have been doing SMM for 9 sessions now over 2 weeks. It's very difficult and enlightening!

I weight train and train handstands. I have the most horrible right shoulder ever. But the program has already started to ease the pain.

Today I was training handstands, and for the first time ever felt a good burn in the middle of my back, which is typically a "dead zone" for me. I usually do everything with my neck and levators. Plus, my shoulders felt light and easy.

This was amazing and awesome. I am so very encouraged by this work and also by all the posts from you all following the program.

Thanks Tom Morrison for your teaching!"