Fitness and exercise have a lot of different components, and while some help you build muscle, burn fat, and increase energy expenditure, others promote recovery and increase your range of motion. Mobility exercises fall into the latter category, supporting long-term fitness endeavors.
What are mobility exercises?
Movement exercises improve the body’s ability to move and function while reducing aches and pain and relieving stiffness and discomfort. They support all other forms of exercise, increase the range of motion of all your joints, strengthen tendons and ligaments, and promote better stability and function of your muscles.
Not to be confused with flexibility or stretching, mobility exercises help your body move in all directions and allow your joints and muscles to perform certain exercises more freely and easily. On the other hand, flexibility allows your muscles to stretch longer than they could before, and it requires both, Negative and active action.
These two types of exercises complement each other, and although some of the movements may look similar, their aim and purpose are different and that is why they are performed in slightly different ways.
What are the benefits of mobility exercises
The benefits of exercise are endless, but there are a few important reasons to include mobility exercises in your diet:
Mobility exercises reduce your risk of injury
Mobility exercises help Reduce injuries and sprains By improving the strength and stability of your joints. It also helps increase her natural lubrication and allows her to move freely and without stress. This reduces stress on the muscles around you, which reduces the risk of injury or premature fatigue.
To this point, mobility exercises It is highly recommended for the elderly Whose risk of falling and frailty grows with each passing year. The more movement of the hips, knees, shoulders and ankles, the lower their risk of serious injury and bone fractures, which improves their overall quality of life.
Mobility exercises support other exercises
When your range of motion increases, you can perform certain exercises with ease, allowing for greater progress and fitness results.
Just imagine yourself doing Walking lunges. If your hips are too narrow, your legs and lower back will tire very quickly and you may have difficulty balancing while walking. The better your range of motion, the easier it will be to be able to improve your stability and balance, however, challenge yourself Heavier dumbbells. This helps you Increase your strength and reach your fitness goals.
Movement exercises help reduce pain and muscle soreness.
Another important benefit of motion exercises is their ability to help reduce common aches and muscle stiffness, improve recovery and reduce pain. Back, neck and general joint pain is mostly caused by a general imbalance in the body due to weak muscles and tendons. This makes certain areas of your body take over, and the weaker part compensates, resulting in pain from which it can easily pass. acute to chronic.
Movement exercises help reduce pain and stiffness and loosen up muscle sorenessand promote easier and faster recovery time so you can increase your workout volume and make progress.
The best mobility exercises
Once you enter the world of mobility exercises, you will realize how many exercises you already know and may have performed before without even knowing that they are meant to increase your range of motion. Here are some of the best movement exercises for different areas of your body to include in your workout routine.
Movement exercise for the hips – yogic deep squat
Probably one of the best movement exercises for the hips involves What is called a squatting yogi. This dynamic pose helps you harness the strength of your upper body to control the movement of your hips, opening them up and improving movement to your personal comfort level.
Come to a standing position with your feet slightly wider than hip-width apart. Bend your knees and lower your hips all the way into a deep squat. Open your knees and bring your palms together, using your elbows to push and open your hips. Try to keep your spine as straight as possible and look forward to relax your shoulders and leave some room for your neck.
You can control this position using your elbows, choosing how much and how long you want to push. Stay for at least three long inhales and exhales, feeling your hips expand slightly with each exhale.
Lower Back Movement – Dynamic Downward Dog
The lower back is another important area of your body that you need to work on in addition to the hips. Your pelvis is a A major part of your skeletal system It takes a lot of stress and pressure throughout the day, whether you’re sitting, walking, jogging, or even standing in line at the grocery store. In order to keep it healthy for years to come, you need to work on the mobility and flexibility of the surrounding muscles.
A great kinetic exercise for your lower back is the Downward Facing Dynamic Dog. This popular yoga pose is known to relieve chronic pain and allow for better stretching of your body lower back muscles. When movement is added to this static position, it improves lubrication of the hips and knees, creates space for the pelvic bones, and brings some relief to the muscles around them.
Come into a plank position, with your wrists below your shoulders. Inhale and lift your hips up, push your hips diagonally back while straightening your legs and arms, forming an inverted V with your body. Once you feel comfortable in the position, begin to bend one knee and then the other, alternating as fast or slow as you like. Stay here for at least five long inhales and exhales.
Shoulder movement exercise – prone swimmers
The range of motion of your shoulders is often neglected by regular fitness exercises. That’s why it’s important to include at least one movement exercise for your shoulders in your upper-body routine.
One of the best ways to do this is to perform as exposed swimmers. This exercise begins with lying on your stomach and raising your arms above it. Activate your core muscles to prevent your lower back from constricting and to stabilize your breathing.
Inhale and exhale, circle your arms down and back, bend your elbows and place the top of your palms on your back. Inhale, and on your next exhale, extend and rotate your arms all the way back to the starting position. Be sure to Shoulders relaxed and away from your ears, creating more room for your neck and reducing any potential tension. Go for a full five reps, doing an under-rotation and vice versa.
Ankle Mobility Exercise – Heel Stretch
It all starts with your ankles and an injury or sprain may prevent you from performing any other exercise, often making it difficult to carry out any of your daily tasks. to improve movement of your ankles is crucial, especially if you are an active individual.
Stand in front of a wall or other stable surface and spread your palms out, supporting your weight. Inhale and raise your heels so that you are standing high on the soles of your feet. Exhale and bring your heels back down. Repeat 20 times and you can go as fast or as slow as you want. If you want to challenge yourself, stand on the edge of a step, and as you bring your heels back down, extend your heels down, crossing the step. This will stretch the Achilles tendon and strengthen the movement of the ankle as you lift your heel.
Movement exercise for the knees – squats against the wall
Knee injuries are some of the most common in the fitness world, and adding quality mobility exercises to your routine can help tremendously. An easy way to strengthen your knees and the tendons around them by performing Wall squatting or wall sitting.
Round your back to a flat wall surface and take two steps forward. Lean back so that your upper back touches the wall, then slide your spine down while bending your knees until your thighs are parallel to the floor. You may need to walk your feet slightly in order to create a 90-degree angle from your hips to your calves.
Put your arms on your thighs or challenge yourself He holds a medicine ball And focus on your breath. Activate your core muscles and keep your spine flush with the wall to protect your lower back. Stay here for 5-10 long breathing cycles or set the timer for 1 minute.
Now that you’ve added mobility exercises to your routine, you may not have much time left to stretch. Here are some Fast and effective stretching exercises To help you.