Live Mobility Assessment | George Bryan

This live assessment walkthrough is not about the individual outcome. It's about how to observe, cue, and interpret movement in real time. Use it as a reference for administering your own assessments with clarity and consistency.

1. Bodyweight Squat — Posture & Readiness

What to watch:

• Foot contact: full foot grounded, no heel lift
• Knee tracking: knees moving over toes without collapse
• Spine: neutral from pelvis through thoracic region
• Depth: hips reaching at least parallel without compensation

Coaching insight: The overhead variation is not a separate test — it's a stress test. Adding the club overhead immediately reveals thoracic and shoulder limitations that may not show up in the standard squat. Many athletes will "own" the squat but lose quality once thoracic demand is introduced.

Key reminder: Don't rush the progression. Let the athlete stabilize before adding complexity.

2. Windmill Rotation — Thoracic Capacity & Asymmetry

What to watch:

• Ability to hinge first before rotating
• Quality of rotation through the thoracic spine
• Differences between backswing-side and follow-through-side rotation
• Stability at the feet and knees during rotation

Coaching insight: Asymmetry here is common in golfers and not automatically a problem. The value lies in recognizing it, understanding how it relates to deceleration and durability, and deciding whether it needs intervention.

Key reminder: You are not chasing symmetry for symmetry's sake — you're assessing usable rotation and control.

3. Split Stance Rotation — Separation & Stability

What to watch:

• Front foot pressure and knee alignment
• Pelvic stability during rotation
• Ability to reach range without lateral shift
• Smooth dissociation between hips and torso

Coaching insight: This test often confirms patterns already seen in the squat and windmill. Loss of stability here usually points back to hip control or foot mechanics — not the spine itself.

Key reminder: If the platform fails, the rotation will never be clean. Always solve stability before chasing range.

4. Glute Bridge — Impact Readiness

What to watch:

• Hip height and symmetry in the double-leg bridge
• Hamstring dominance vs glute engagement
• Pelvic control during single-leg variation
• Side-to-side differences in endurance or control

Coaching insight: Ask the athlete where they feel the effort. Sensation matters. A strong bridge held in the hamstrings instead of the glutes tells a different story than one driven by posterior chain coordination.

Key reminder: Single-leg differences often explain swing-side preferences and long-term loading patterns.

5. Single Leg Hold (Superman) — Balance & Integration

What to watch:

• Foot behavior (relaxed vs gripping)
• Knee–hip–ankle alignment
• Pelvic rotation or drop
• Spine maintaining neutral under load

Coaching insight: This is where everything comes together. Small wobbles are informative, not failures. The goal is to understand how the athlete stabilizes under complexity, not to eliminate all movement.

Key reminder: Watch the whole chain. The visible error is rarely the root cause.

Coaching Perspective

A live assessment is as much about observation and communication as it is about scoring. Use the athlete's feedback, movement patterns, and transitions between tests to build a complete picture.

The goal is not perfection — it's clarity. Clarity allows you to:

• Choose the right training emphasis
• Set realistic progressions
• Build trust through visible, explainable outcomes

Administered well, the DRVN Mobility Assessment becomes one of your most powerful coaching tools — not just for diagnosis, but for buy-in and long-term development.