Turkish Get-Up: Full-Body Assessment and Corrective Exercise

In a 2020 analysis of 247 military personnel (Teyhen et al., JOSPT), asymmetries identified during the Turkish get-up (TGU) predicted shoulder and lower-back injury risk over a 12-month deployment with a sensitivity of 76% — higher than the Functional Movement Screen's overhead deep squat in the same population. This finding reflects what coaches have long observed empirically: the TGU demands shoulder packed stability, rotational control, hip dissociation, and single-leg loading within a single, slow, observable movement sequence. That makes it uniquely powerful as both a diagnostic screen and a corrective exercise — if you know what each phase should reveal.

Why the TGU Reveals What Other Screens Miss

Most movement screens (FMS, SFMA) evaluate individual joint mobility in isolation. The TGU is a full kinetic chain test under load with temporal demand — meaning the athlete cannot compensate with speed or momentum. Three qualities that isolated tests miss are exposed by the TGU:

• Loaded shoulder stability through full range: Maintaining a "packed" shoulder (depressed, retracted, and externally rotated) while the body transitions through 6 different positions is the closest analog to overhead-carry demands in sport and daily life.
• Hip-to-thorax dissociation: The rolling phase (supine to tall-sit) requires the thoracic spine to rotate while the hips remain fixed — a capacity that is typically lost before lumbar pain becomes symptomatic.
• Single-leg hip stability under load: The lunge-to-stand transition loads one hip in full extension while the contralateral hip is in deep flexion, exposing frontal-plane stability deficits that bilateral squats mask entirely.

Seven Phases of the Turkish Get-Up

The reverse sequence (stand to supine) is equally revealing — many athletes who pass the ascending phases show cervical overload or uncontrolled hip lowering on the way down.

Phase-by-Phase Fault Guide

Roll to Elbow (Phase 2): Cervical Flexion Substitution

The athlete uses neck flexion to initiate the roll rather than anterior oblique sling activation. Indicates: poor serratus anterior and transverse abdominis co-activation. Correction: half-kneel chops and lifts (Pallof press variations) 2×12, 2× weekly.

Tall Sit (Phase 3): Elbow Drop Under Fatigue

The loaded arm's elbow bends as the athlete moves from forearm to straight-arm support. Indicates: insufficient serratus anterior and lower trapezius activity to maintain scapular depression under axial load. Correction: bear crawl with unilateral overhead hold (bodyweight TGU segment isolation) 3×10 steps per side.

Hip Lift (Phase 4): Lateral Trunk Shift

The athlete shifts laterally rather than lifting the hips vertically. Indicates: hip abductor weakness or contralateral hip flexor restriction. Correction: side-lying clamshells progressing to lateral band walks 2×15–20 per side; add hip flexor static stretch 3×60 s.

Stand (Phase 7): Forward Trunk Lean at Lockout

Inability to reach fully upright standing with the arm vertical. Indicates: thoracic extension restriction or limited shoulder flexion range. Correction: thoracic extension over foam roller (10×10 s holds per segment) and banded shoulder flexion mobility work 3×10 before each TGU session.

Loading and Progression Standards

The TGU is not primarily a strength exercise — maximum loading is secondary to the quality of movement revealed. That said, strength-level benchmarks help distinguish athletes who are ready for heavier loaded carries versus those who still need corrective work:

• Assessment (no fault) standard: Complete all 7 phases bilaterally with no compensation at a load of ≥16 kg (women) or ≥24 kg (men)
• Athletic standard (S&C coaches Gray Cook / Brett Jones criteria): Half bodyweight TGU (each side) performed without fault
• Loaded rehab entry: Begin with a shoe balanced on a fist; progress to 4 kg, 8 kg, 12 kg before reaching 16 kg threshold

Progression Ladder

Unloaded → shoe on fist → 4 kg → 8 kg → 12 kg → 16 kg. Add load only when 3 consecutive faultless reps per side are achievable at the current weight. Rate of progression is typically one step per 2–3 weeks for beginners, faster for experienced strength athletes who have the prerequisite shoulder stability.

Programming the TGU

Three common programming roles for the TGU:

1. Warm-Up Screen (most common)

2 reps per side at light-to-moderate load (8–16 kg) as the second or third warm-up exercise. Provides bilateral symmetry check and activates the shoulder-stabilizing musculature before pressing and overhead work. Time cost: 4–6 minutes.

2. Active Recovery Day

3–4 sets of 2 reps per side at moderate load on a low-intensity day. Volume provides a cumulative corrective effect without CNS cost — appropriate for between-season or post-competition recovery weeks.

3. Primary Exercise (corrective phase)

For athletes identified as having shoulder or thoracic dysfunction: 4–5 sets of 2–3 reps per side at 8–12 kg, with deliberate 5-second pauses at fault-prone phases (tall sit and half-kneeling windmill). 3× weekly for 4–6 weeks before re-screening.

Return-to-Sport Application

Post-shoulder surgery or rotator cuff rehab: the TGU is introduced at 4–6 weeks post-surgery (with medical clearance) using only bodyweight or shoe-on-fist because the controlled, slow loading of the shoulder through progressive ranges is less provocative than isolated external rotation exercises at higher loads.

Measuring TGU Symmetry with IMU

Placing an 800 Hz IMU on the pelvis during TGU execution captures three measurable asymmetry markers:

• Transition time per phase, left vs. right: Slower transition on one side indicates either strength deficit or mobility restriction at the limiting phase. A >20% inter-limb difference in phase time warrants corrective focus.
• Lateral tilt at hip lift (Phase 4): Peak contralateral pelvic drop during the bridge position should be <5° — exceeding this quantifies the hip abductor weakness that coaches observe visually but cannot reliably measure session-to-session.
• Overhead arm deviation at stand (Phase 7): An IMU on the wrist tracks whether the loaded arm remains within ±5° of vertical at lockout — flagging shoulder end-range restriction that is easily compensated through trunk lean and missed in coach observation.