The Importance of Mobility

Mobility may not be something you think about often or consider to be important, but in fact the more mobility your body has, the easier everyday tasks can be.

Joint mobility is described as the passive range of motion that occurs in the articulation between bones, measured as the total angular motion within each joint’s available freedom. For example: flexion, extension, and internal and external rotation. In simpler terms, how freely we are able to move our bodies.

Now you might think this is just another way of describing flexibility, but, in fact, mobility and flexibility are two different things. Whilst flexibility is indeed needed for good mobility, on its own it is not enough, you must also have strength and balance.

So, what are the benefits of mobility, and why is it so important?

First of all, general aches and pains can be reduced with good mobility. Take knee pain for instance, maintaining good mobility in this joint, whether through specific exercises or just generally keeping the knee moving, can help reduce the likelihood of knee pain developing or any pain you already experience.

Secondly, your posture will improve! With your body being able to position itself correctly you will reduce stress on your spine, improving your posture in turn.

From an exercise standpoint, having good mobility means common niggles are less likely to occur. So, taking steps to improve your mobility can have a positive impact on your day-to-day life.

How do you improve your mobility?

This will be dependent on the individual first and foremost. Some individuals will need a greater range of motion in particular body areas than others, and motivation to do mobility exercises differs from person to person. The solution to improving mobility is therefore not one size fits all, each individual needs to consider their own needs.

However, a good place to start is to include mobility exercises into your warm-up before training, with specific drills for the activity you are going to perform. This could help to identify any weaker areas of the body and you can then work on the specific mobility drills for these areas outside of your training sessions. This increased mobility will improve your training and overall quality of life.

I also like to check in with a few basic exercises such as a deep squat, hip flexor stretch, cat-cow, overhead reach etc on a daily basis. This only takes a couple of minutes, but allows me to do a self diagnostic, to see if I have any areas I may need to address in more detail.

Essentially, having good mobility not only helps with your fitness, but can also improve your quality of life. If you listen to your body and make some small changes, such as introducing mobility exercises into your training or everyday routine, I guarantee your body will appreciate it.