STRETCH: We've All Underestimated the Power

I first heard the name "Joe Hippensteel' was from my dad who has been a long-time friend of Tom Rolland, a fisherman podcaster and entrepreneur, heavily invested in the fitness and cross-fit community; Tom interviewed Joe Hippensteel about his life's work, "Ultimate Human Performance". Hippensteel's methodology teaches flexibility is the foundation for all fitness, a pretty radical concept for a culture that has puts stretching at the bottom of their list when it comes to health.

Joe Hippensteel has been frustrating medical professionals all over the world for decades. Physical therapists and doctors have stuck to traditional ideologies and teachings, while Hippensteel sought out alternative methods for pain free performance and intense progression. His motivator, first, was his passion for the decathlon, arguably the most difficult sport due to its wide range of events over a grueling two day period. His commitment to the sport is unmatched to anything I had ever heard of before. Hippensteel reflects on his days of training over sixty hours a week, every week, in order to out preform athletes with natural genetics and talent. His height and weight put him at a considerable disadvantage, but where he lacked physically, he made up for in dedication and discipline. Instead of reverting to Preformace enhancing drugs and steroids, Hippensteel decided to train twice as hard and long as his competitors, even sleeping in his car for months at a time so he continue his ten hour day on the track regiment. After constant injury being unsatisfied with his progress, Hippensteel got creative; through trial and error, he one day discovered his pulled muscles were starting to loosen and feel better after stretching long and past discomfort. He started developing his methods of stretching from there, finding the ranges of motion where he no longer felt pain, and implemented trigger points to assist in reaching the necessary ranges of motion, a method he now calls "Hipp 86". With years of trial and error, he perfected his system and improved his Preformace drastically. There have been only a handful of athletes who have progressed at such extreme rate as Joe Hippensteel, all of which were trained by Joe Hippensteel.

After Perfecting the Ultimate Human Performance Method, Hippensteel built a career off of saving people from pain and injury regardless of lifestyle. He has worked with professional athletes and teams as well as elite military. Through training Navy Seals, saving hundreds from surgery and/or retirement, Joe met David Goggins, often referred to as the toughest man alive. Goggins is known for extreme mental strength; he transformed his life losing one-hundred pounds in less than three months in preparation of joining the navy seals. He is an ultramarathon runner, distance cyclist, and triathlete, as well as a public speaker and author. Goggins 2019 best seller, "Can't Hurt Me" exemplifies his extreme mental and physical endurance. In his book, he attributes Joe Hippensteel as the person who saved his life. Years of extreme physical endurance left Goggins with extreme, debilitating tension. Hippensteel taught him how to stretch so that Goggins could continue his intense lifestyle. Ultimate Human Preformace has grown tremendously in awareness since Goggins' book. People worldwide have sought out help and/or to become certified.

Like many others, I can say that Joe Hippensteel changed my life. Going into college, I was pulled into all different kinds of interests. After changing majors three times, I decided on physical therapy. While vastly different from my original photography route, I had found a love for health and fitness. After getting my associates, I decided to take a semester off, nervous about the time and student loans I was about to commit to. I started to feel lost on what I wanted, but through God's perfect timing, I learned about Joe Hippensteel, his methods, and a seminar taking place in Florida within two weeks. Skeptical and with lots of questions, I was given Joe's number; after one phone call I was ready to pack up and see this for myself. I went in believing that many of the testimonials had to be exaggerated until I watched as so many in the room, day after day, experience real, visible progress. The people in the room were so diverse: a couple from London, he owns a world renown restaurant and she is a popular nutrition author, a rancher from Washington State, a European documentary film maker, and Belgium rocket scientist, and so many others coming from all over the country/world with such different backgrounds and lives. Pain has no prejudice; no matter age, gender, color, size, career, or lifestyle, humans eventually and inevitably hurt.

Currently, Joe Hippensteel is finishing his own book, collaborating with film makers to create a documentary, being interviewed on a number of podcasts, having studies done to prove and post the research in scientific journals, and continuing to help his diverse cliental. His seminars and certification process changed the way I view pain. I have implemented these methods in my own life and have experienced the noticeable difference in pain, soreness, strength, and energy. Holistic methods can be iffy to a lot of people, it was to me, but if it works every time, there is no denying. It also works for a reason that makes sense. The term "muscle lock" simplifies everything we thought we knew. Anyone and everyone can benefit so do your research as needed, email me or go through Ultimate Human Performance for questions, and take control of your life for good.