The Surprising Reason I Used A Balloon In Shoulder Rehab

In this video, Charlie explains why balloons, “despite being the single most ridiculous thing that’s popular in training,” actually do have a role.

He tells the story of a colleague who had a major shoulder reconstruction, stalled out in rehab, and was training really, really slow with very light dumbbells.

Slow training has value. It helps develop connective tissue.
But at some point, performance has to come back.

And that’s where physics matters: Force = Mass × Acceleration.

Charlie shows how using a balloon created a version of the dynamic effort method: incredibly light load, tons of reps, and the confidence to move fast without fear.

Not nervous-system magic, blowing up balloons on your back, nor is it a shortcut. Rather, it is just understanding tissue, speed, and why acceleration matters in rehab and training.

Sometimes balloons are absurd. Sometimes balloons actually have a role.