There’s a common problem in our industry that doesn’t get talked about enough.

Clients either stay in rehab too long or jump back into performance too soon, and both approaches miss what the body actually needs in between.

If someone stays in rehab too long, they get dependent on low-level exercises that don’t challenge them enough. But if they rush back into performance training too soon, they compensate, get tight, or re-injure themselves.

So what’s the solution?

After working with thousands of clients and mentoring hundreds of coaches and clinicians, I’ve developed a 3-phase process that bridges that gap between rehab and performance.

This system helps you restore movement, rebuild strength, and reinforce performance—without losing mobility or function along the way.

Phase 1: Restore

Every client starts here.

The goal of the restore phase is to shift the center of mass, restore joint range of motion, and teach the body how to yield again.

Most people come in with their weight too far forward—hips, ribs, and ankles locked up with tension. Before loading anything, I want to help them unweight their system and open up the backside of the body.

That’s why this phase focuses on controlled, constraint-based exercises. I often describe it as using “training wheels” for movement.

For example, the knee wall hinge is one of my go-to exercises. By pressing the knee into a foam roller, you keep the back of the hip open while learning to hinge without compensating. This builds awareness and restores joint motion safely.

We’re not just unloading here—we’re retraining movement quality.

Phase 2: Rebuild

Once we’ve created space, it’s time to rebuild strength within it.

This phase still maintains the range of motion we gained in restore, but now we start to load the body more and reinforce internal rotation at the hips, knees, shoulders, and ankles.

Internal rotation is how we put force into the ground—it’s essential for both athletic performance and daily movement.

The key is to progress without collapsing the space we’ve created. Many clients (and even coaches) make the mistake of compressing their system as they get stronger. They lose mobility, their assessments worsen, and the cycle repeats.

A good example here is the cross-body cable hinge. It removes some of the constraints from the restore phase, forcing you to maintain position while managing external forces. By pushing into the inside edge of the foot, you drive internal rotation up the chain, keep the hip open, and develop strength through real movement mechanics.

This is where clients start to feel like they’re training again—but with better control, awareness, and intent.

Phase 3: Reinforce

Finally, we move into the reinforce phase—where intensity and load increase, but alignment and control stay intact.

The focus here is holding onto the range of motion and coordination we developed earlier while training heavy.

A great example is the kickstand trap bar deadlift. It allows you to load the hinge pattern heavily without reverting to old compensations. By maintaining a staggered stance, we can keep the pelvis and ribcage organized while still pushing real weight.

At this point, the exercises may look like traditional strength training—but the biomechanics behind them are intentional. We’re reinforcing efficient movement, not just chasing numbers.

Why This Matters

When done right, rehab and training should look almost identical—just scaled for intensity and intent.

The biggest mistake I see in the industry is treating them as separate worlds.
In reality, they’re on the same continuum.

If we can restore position, rebuild strength through controlled load, and reinforce it under intensity, clients don’t just recover—they perform better than before.

I break this all down in even more depth over on YouTube. You can watch the full video here.

If you want to see how these phases are applied across every major movement pattern, check out the Rebuild Blueprint- a 12-week program that’s already helped over 800 coaches and clients bridge the rehab-to-performance gap.

Check out the Rebuild Blueprint