Remember when you could go (exercise) at a moment’s notice? If something hurts, you would only then consider doing prehab or some semblance of a warm-up.
Many people, myself included, often wait until we experience pain to pay attention to our bodies. At that point, we’re not preventing injury; we’re in the process of recovering from one. If you’ve been training for a while, you might have noticed an important truth: it’s not just the big lifts that maintain your strength—it’s the prep work you do before that also matters.
Enter prehab.
Prehab isn’t just some physical therapy buzzword. It’s the preventive maintenance that keeps your body resilient, allowing you to continue lifting, moving well, and doing what you love for the long haul.
Whether you’re 40, 50, or beyond, prehab isn’t optional—it’s essential. And no, it doesn’t have to take forever or be boring. Here, I’ll delve into what it is, why it works, and how to incorporate it into your training.
What Is Prehab & Why It Matters
Prehab is short for “preventative rehabilitation.” It is about doing a little focused work now so you won’t be hurt later.
Think of prehab as the smarter, more intentional cousin of the warm-up. While the standard warm-up gets your body moving and your heart rate up, prehab targets the small stabilizer muscles, tight tissue, and joint restrictions that, left unchecked, can throw a spanner in the works and derail your progress.
Here’s the key difference:
Rehab is reactive. You’re fixing a problem that already exists.
Prehab is proactive. You’re addressing restrictions and movement issues before they become a source of pain.
Prehab is not just for pro athletes or physical therapy patients. If you have a body and want to keep getting after it, prehab applies to you, especially if you’re looking to stay strong and move well often. You don’t need to overhaul your whole routine, either. Just 5 to 10 minutes of targeted prehab work a few times a week can make all the difference.
Prehab Benefits
Let’s be honest—your body doesn’t recover as well as it used to. You can train hard and achieve gains well into your 40s, 50s, and beyond, but this is only possible if you acknowledge the wear and tear that comes with, well, your age.
Healthier Joints
Prehab drills, such as shoulder-controlled articular rotations (CARs), hip mobility flows, and chest openers, help maintain or improve joint mobility, preventing issues before they arise.
Less Pain
No need to “tough it out” because minor issues could turn into six-week layoffs. A little glute activation here, some shoulder control there—suddenly, your shoulders don’t ache after pressing, and your back feels great on deadlifts.
Better Movement
Prehab reminds your body to move well under load, which means stronger lifts, smoother reps, and fewer joint and muscle compensations.
Improved Mind-Muscle Connection
Are you tired of feeling like your glutes or core aren’t online? Prehab routines bring those muscles online before you train. That means better activation, control, and exercise carryover.
Prehab Tools & Exercises
Many exercisers can go down the prehab rabbit hole and do every exercise under the sun before they touch a weight. That’s not the point of prehab. The fact is to target the areas that need extra support to keep you in the game.
A few tricks, tools, and go-to movements are all it takes to give your joints the love they need.
Foam Roller or Massage Ball: These are great for releasing tension in tight areas, such as your quads, glutes, and upper back.
Mini Bands and Looped Resistance Bands: These are prehab gold. Use them for glute, rotator cuff, shoulder, and core exercises.
Your Bodyweight: Breathing side planks, scapular push-ups, and hip mobility drills help build awareness and strength.
Prehab Exercise Examples
Shoulder CARs: Controlled articular rotations (CARs) enhance shoulder joint stability and mobility, keeping your overhead lifts pain-free.
Passive Leg Lowering: This exercise is excellent for strengthening the hamstrings and hips, particularly if you spend most of your day sitting.
Prying Squat: This mobility and core stability combo prepares your entire lower body for action.
Dead Bug Variations: Great for core stability and teaching your body to brace under load.
Half-Kneeling Pallof Press: A solid anti-rotation core exercise that trains your obliques, glutes, and shoulder stabilizers in one shot.
Open-Book Thoracic Rotation: Improves upper back mobility and rotation to support better posture and overhead movement.
Sample Prehab Routine
You don’t need to spend 30 minutes fiddling around on a foam roller. Just 10 minutes of prehab work, like the one below, will help you move better, train harder, and avoid those nagging injuries.
Foam Roll (1–2 minutes total)
Quads (30 seconds per side)
Glutes (30 seconds per side)
Thoracic Spine (roll slowly from top to bottom) 10-15 rolls
1A. Passive Leg Lowering – 2 sets of 10 per side
1B. Shoulder CARs – 2 sets of 5 slow reps per direction
1C. Breathing Side Plank – 2 sets of 20–30 seconds per side
1D. Prying Squat with Breathing – 2 sets of 30-60 seconds
1E. Open-Book Thoracic Rotation – 2 sets of 5 reps per side
Wrapping Up
I hope we’re all here to get stronger, train harder, and stay in the game longer. But none of this happens by accident. It happens when you treat your body like it matters before something breaks, not after.
Prehab is the behind-the-scenes work that lets you show up stronger, move with less pain, and keep stacking wins in and out of the gym. The best part? As in the example above, you don’t need much time or equipment. I’m bringing prehab back; the warm-up doesn’t know how to act.
Want Help Putting This Into Action?
If you’re tired of training through pain, feeling stiff, or guessing what your body needs to stay strong and mobile, I’ve got your back.
With my online coaching, you’ll get:
You’ll integrate prehab and mobility routines into your weekly training.
Workouts you can do at home.
Personalized guidance for pain-free progress
Support, structure, and accountability to keep you moving forward
Let’s injury-proof your body so you can keep training for the long haul.
Click here to get started today.
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