19/10/2026
Kinetic linking. Developing strength, power, explosiveness and speed through coordinated movement.
In this video, the highlighted pathway runs diagonally from my right upper body towards my left inner thigh. It illustrates how muscles and connective tissues work together across the body.
The anterior oblique sling describes a relationship between the obliques, abdominal fascia and opposite adductors. These structures contribute to coordinating the trunk and pelvis as we rotate, shift weight and manage load.
Tom Myers' Anatomy Trains describes a related pathway called the Front Functional Line, connecting the upper arm through the pec and abdominal sheath, across the p***c region to the opposite adductor. These are related concepts, although they aren't identical anatomical maps.
Why does this matter?
A powerful punch involves much more than a strong arm. The legs, pelvis, trunk, shoulder and arm need to coordinate. How quickly you produce force, how you sequence the movement and when you accelerate all matter.
In this Functional Patterns step press, I'm training the relationship between the step, weight shift, rotation and press. The aim is to develop the coordination that supports power and speed, while accounting for how my body distributes load.
The pad work shows the taster, ballistic expression of that coordination. Now the emphasis is on producing force rapidly, accelerating into the strike and controlling the return so l'm ready to move again. The highlighted pathway is one connection within a much larger system. The whole body contributes.
This is central to how we approach training at Functional Patterns: bringing strength, power, explosiveness and speed together through movement that connects the body.
