Phase IV

Phase-​IV and Robert Forster helped me to be able to hike and sprint again, after I had all but given up. After many years of incorrect form and exercises, my feet had reached a point where I had trouble walking and standing for long periods of time. Robert showed me how certain exercises I was doing were contributing to my problems, and what I needed to do instead. His skill at analyzing a problem and providing a solution, is very impressive. It shows how his years of experience in working with top athletes enable him to achieve effective results. I had several sessions with Robert and his staff, and I was given a group of exercises and stretches to do at home.
It took time, but eventually the pain and limitations I was experiencing diminished to where I can now hike and sprint again. It’s also helped with my general overall flexibility and mobility. Some of the changes I needed to make were subtle and small, but have produced large benefits. I now have lifelong tools and techniques to support my fitness objectives. I recommend Phase-​IV and Robert to anyone who wants to fulfill their physical goals.

Phase-​IV helped me take my triathlon performance to a level I only dreamed about before. It was well worth the investment.

I wanted to like Phase IV as one of my fitness coaches recommended the place. However, my experience with them has been nothing short of a nightmare. Over two weeks ago I went in to have my Resting Metabolic Rate tested. Unfortunately, I had a negative experience that included errors in the calibration of the device that was used to perform the test, which resulted in a test score that was impossible to achieve. After the test began, Tracy DePriest, the person who performed the test, said that the test would take anywhere from 20 – 24 minutes to complete. She then left the room and came in once to briefly check on me. When the test was over Tracy tried to assure me that my RER was 1.04, which I found out is near impossible to achieve given my current health and fitness state. I would have had to been hyperventilating (for example, breathing very hard post-​workout) in order to achieve this score. I was not convinced that these results were accurate so I emailed Tracy that same day to ask if I possibly didn’t hold the tube correctly in my mouth during the test or if my mild asthma could have affected the results. She said very curtly in her emails, «It should not.» I felt like I was bothering her and so I decided to get a second opinion as I am training for my first half marathon and I am dedicated to doing my best. I even emailed the company of the machine she used to perform the test —
. They confirmed that my asthma wouldn’t affect the results at all.
I found San Diego Sports Medicine and worked with Greg Bourque, MS,
., RETUL Cert. and Matthew Downs, Exercise Physiologist to get a retest done. The RMR results came out much more in line with my actual health and current fitness level. My RER score was 0.79. I decided to take it one step further and perform a VO2 max test just to be completely sure. The test results were that for a woman of my age I tested at a «Superior» fitness level. My max VO2 is 45.8. I feel that I have a lot of valuable information that will now help me get closer to achieving my goal of participating in my first half marathon this May.
Both Greg and Matthew were so attentive, informative, and knowledgeable. I am inspired to continue improving my health and plan on visiting SDSM again this month to get bloodwork done to check my cholesterol levels as I’ve changed my diet. I could not have had a better experience and I would recommend Matthew Downs for any of your testing needs.
I have emailed Tracy DePriest and Arianna Hill at Phase IV several times in the past two weeks and have spoken on the phone with Tracy, Arianna, and Ashley, who have all told me that a resolution is currently being worked out with the owner of Phase IV, Bob. Why does it need to take over two weeks to issue me a refund for $ 143 for this inaccurate test? I am still waiting for a resolution.

I just took an interesting class on stretching but I already knew most of the information. But it was nice to know that what I am doing is the right thing. One of the biggest problem that this place has is that they don’t have good parking. So if they are going to continue with their weekend classes, then they should consider moving to a better location.

I get annoying spam from them. I never gave them permission to send any online communications to me and did not know who they were before I started getting their junk emails. Any business that does these types of inconsiderate things will not have me as a customer.

Robert Forster and his PHASE IV training center is simply the best in the country. Not just a physical therapist, he is a genius with science applied to athletics and injury prevention and recuperation. When you want the best one should feel lucky to A/​have found him and B/​have their expertise applied to your condition. I did my research on Mr. Forster and his team like I do every professional I see. He has pioneered most of the injury-​saving and cutting edge procedures that have combated the insidious nature of body breakdown from exercise and working out. He’s like having a personal tennis lesson with Roger Federer. Sure you can hit with your local pro, but for me, the experience of being with the greatest is a secure feeling I wouldn’t exchange for anything or anyone. I cannot recommend Phase IV highly enough. His staff are just the best across the board. When your chips are down, this is the man you want in your corner on every level. He I often find these sites very easy places for one to express their frustration and anger when it has to do with other things in their lives. He certainly saved me, and I’m a pain in the neck. There should be ten stars here so I could add another five.

Their programs WORK. I have imbalances/​issues that greatly affect my running. After going to Forster Physical Therapy I was referred to Phase IV to do a run gait analysis. I did this with Ron, who gave me exercises/​drills and a plan to implement them. I now run much more efficiently and with much less jarring on my knees and back. I pay much closer attention to my form on my runs and it has helped immensely.
I then went to meet with Aishea, where we discussed their enduro running and strength programs. I decided, what the hell, I pay boatloads for running shoes and gear and have been a runner for 20 years… maybe its time to invest a little money into my actual running and not just fancy gear. Its not cheap, but neither are my running shoes or all the money I’ve spent in physical therapy rehabbing from running injuries, so for me it boiled down to what I wanted to invest my running dollars in.
Holy cow– the enduro plan changed my life. I had run 2 marathons and always ended up significantly injured and unable to run for months at a time. Here they tested my VO2max and Aishea created a running program for me with specific instructions regarding heart rate zones and effort, to help me run properly and efficiently. It has now been a year since I started doing the enduro (with the strength training) and its the first year of my life to run consistently with zero injuries. I also lost a good amount of weight (without changing my diet), and my average pace came down significantly. I just ran the LA Marathon (with an enduro plan for my training, of course!), which marks my first time training for and running a marathon completely injury free.
You have to put the work in, but if you implement what they prescribe, IT WORKS. I can’t recommend their services enough!

I had a wonderful experience with Phase IV. Edwin and Holly were extremely professional, supportive, and caring. Both of them guided me and gave me expert instruction on how to increase flexibility and strength. I did exactly what they told me to do and got excellent results.

I visited Phase IV after doing a few months of physical therapy at Forrester Physical Therapy (great!). I really enjoyed the running gait analysis and gym. If you want to see the same instructor, amek all your appointments at the same time. I was very pleased and recommend Ron and Edwin. You only get what you put in so if you work hard and follow the régime, you will get better with their guidance.

After my first season of endurance sports…2 half IM, 2 marathons and countless sprint and Olympic Tris, I developed a bit of a lower back/​glute/​upper hamstring/​hip pain and tightness. I was referred to Phase IV by an authority on IM training and coaching who used to be an employee.
I live in San Diego, but decided to make the trip to Santa Monica to get a proper diagnosis as to what was happening with my hip. Vince at the front was awesome and set me up with an appointment. I was told to make and appointment with the owner… think his name is Bob… but they made me an appointment with Ron Berry instead. It would cost $ 230.00 which sounded really high, but I would pay anything to eliminate this pain. He was about 10 minutes late, but once he got started he put me through a barrage of tests to figure out my imbalances.
I started to get excited, as it became obvious that certain muscle groups were not as strong as they should be. After about 30 minutes Ron said that he had to go out and start working with his next appointment. When he came back, he said we had to go out of the room that we were in and into the main workout room so that he next client would not get mad. Finally the appointment was over. He handed me a 10 page packet of papers that read like this… Neck: stiff or lose on a scale of 1 – 10: 3. As I was leaving I asked him if he could pin down exactly what was wrong with me and what I could do to resolve it. He told me it could be my big toe that was stiff, it could be my right knee that would not totally straighten out, it cold be my hip that was tilted, it could be my glutes that were weak, or it could be a sciatic nerve problem in my back. I asked him to show me some stretches, and he said I would need to sign up for a 4 part program to get any stretches of exercises.
After I got home I felt cheated out of my $ 230 since I had no more info now than I did when I started. I called up and talked to Vince again and again he was very understanding and helpful and said the owner did not want anyone to feel like that did not get their money’s worth. He was supposed to call me, but instead I got a call from an incensed Ron Berry insulted that I said he did not help me. He said that I should «stretch my big to, stretch my hamstring, stretch my hip and improve my posture, and I would get better»…Isn’t that what every person should do regardless of injury??? He also said that, «he gave me all the info and that if I did not get it, than I was not listening hard enough and that was MY problem!!!» and then he hung up on me.
Bottom line… Phase IV was a… waste of time… waste of money… and an overall terrible experience. Can’t imagine how a place like that stays in business. Why not just offer me my money back and let me move on???

My personal goal of increased running fitness and improving my marathon time lead me to choose: running gait analysis, full season strength training, blood lactate analysis & Enduro (running) programs.
These programs are not cheap and I will admit that it affected my expectations; unfortunately, I didn’t feel especially taken care of. I felt like no one but Vince at the front desk really remembered who I was. Even though I had written down and specifically stated that my goal was the LA Marathon, this fact seemed elusive. Perhaps this was because a different staff member prepared and demonstrated the strength training program every time I went in. But all my information was on file, so a little prep prior to my appointments to know what I was training for would have gone a long way. Communication with the therapist planning my running program was also difficult for some reason. Maybe it was bad luck, but for the amount of money and personal time I invested into the training programs, I expected more.
That being said, their programs work. I have better running form, more running endurance and fitness and got to the starting line in the best shape of my life. I had also just spent the last 4 months running 3 times a week and strength training 2 – 3 times a week, so I had better be in the best shape of my life. All of the physical therapists I worked with were professionals and everyone at Phase IV was nice.
The running gait analysis had me running on a treadmill while one of the experts watched and then made specific corrections to my running form. After some form exercises and corrections, a multiple angle video was made of me running how I was used to, and then after making the corrections to show how my form could be improved. Overall this was helpful, but it was a one shot deal.
The full season strength program was a series of 4 different months of strength training exercises geared towards improving strength and conditioning for running. I found this to be the most difficult but also the most effective program. One of the trainers would walk you through all of the exercises for the phase that you were in to make sure that you were doing them correctly, and there were a LOT of different exercises.
My running program was a gradual ramping up of long runs on the weekend coupled with increasing interval and endurance runs during the week. I was used to the long slow runs but was really happy with the mix of weekday runs and found them effective.