Help! I'm Hypermobile

Hypermobility & Strength Training: Listening to Your Body with Coach Karima

Help! I'm Hypermobile

Show Notes

Listening to your body is hard – ESPECIALLY when you're hypermobile and struggle to feel things in the first place.

On this episode I'm joined by strength and longevity coach Karima Adi (@caffeinated_curves) to talk about our shared experiences with strength training while navigating chronic health issues.

Karima opens up about her own personal journey as a hypermobile person – from falling in love with the barbell, to learning how to balance pushing her body and listening to it. Although she recognises each client’s individuality, her personal experiences with joint hypermobility help to inform her perspective as a strength and movement coach.

Today, Karima works with hypermobile clients to help them navigate their fitness journey safely and sustainably while honouring the individual needs of their body. And in this episode, she shares exactly how she does it.

Karima has been my coach for over a decade, and last year we co-hosted a workshop together on lower body strength training and hypermobility. So this conversation was a long time coming!

I hope this episode meets you wherever you are in your journey, whether you're hypermobile or just starting out with strength training.

THANK YOU for listening, and remember: incurable does not mean untreatable ❣️

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

📚 Join the waitlist for the May 12 2026 release of Help! I’m Hypermobile

(and get your free PDF companion guide in the meantime):

hypermobilityhq.com/book

📸 Follow me @hypermobilityhq on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube

⭐ Follow Karima on Instagram @caffeinated_curves

🎙 Learn more about the podcast:

hypermobilityhq.com/podcast

💌 Guest info, media, and resources:

hypermobilityhq.com/blog

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

Medical disclaimer: This podcast is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your training, exercise, or healthcare plan.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

#Hypermobility #hEDS #Hypermobilitystrengthtraining

More from Help! I'm Hypermobile

Apr 14, 2026

What does it really look like to be a working model with hEDS, chronic illness, and disability?

Mar 4, 2026

Is it really “just” an ankle sprain? WE’RE BACK (again!) and this episode, I’m joined by physiotherapist and clinic founder Charlie Goodchild @physio.coach.london to talk about ankle sprains and hypermobility, and why these injuries are often more complex than they seem. For people who are hypermobile, (including those with hEDS or HSD) ankle sprains can be more frequent, slower to recover, and sometimes part of a bigger picture involving joint instability, proprioception challenges, and recurrent injury. We explore why standard advice does not always work for hypermobile bodies and what a more informed approach to rehab can look like. Charlie shares practical insights on ankle instability, strength training, rehab progressions, and how to stop the cycle of repeated sprains. We also discuss how to know when an ankle injury needs deeper assessment rather than being dismissed as “just a sprain.” In this episode, we cover: * Why ankle sprains are common in hypermobility • The link between hypermobility and chronic ankle instability • Why getting a boot might save you a lot of future ankle-related grief • Charlie’s personal journey navigating ankle sprains and eventually ankle surgery • When to seek further assessment or specialist support

Feb 4, 2026

Dealing with hEDS/HSD and co-occurring conditions, including scoliosis, is anything but easy.

Jan 21, 2026

What if the problem was never that you weren’t trying hard enough, but that your hypermobile body needed a different approach to strength training?

Jan 7, 2026

Author, speaker, and chronic illness advocate Lorraine Ansell and I talk about learning to live with and love your body while living with chronic pain and complex health challenges. Through a discussion of her book The Surrender Agenda, we explore Lorraine’s experience of living with hEDS, including navigating serious health events and profound personal loss, and how years of wondering why she wasn’t “strong enough” led to a reckoning with identity, self-worth, and the belief that pushing harder is always the answer. This is a conversation about invisible grief, losing trust in your body, and the slow, often uncomfortable process of learning to care for yourself with kindness. In this episode, we dig into: • Learning to live with (and perhaps even come to love) your chronic pain • Navigating difficult health and life experiences, including retinal detachment and miscarriage • Why The Surrender Agenda was exactly the book I didn’t know I needed This episode is for anyone living with chronic illness, navigating grief or medical trauma, or wondering how to stop being at war with their body while still living fully. If you would like to learn more about Lorraine’s book visit https://www.lorraineansellauthor.com/ You can also find Lorraine online on Instagram and Tiktok THANK YOU for watching, and remember: incurable does not mean untreatable ❣️

See all episodes →