What is mobility? 

Mobility refers to the ability to move freely and easily. In the context of human movement, it involves the range of motion in joints and the functionality of muscles and other body structures. Mobility is crucial for daily activities, maintaining independence, and preventing injuries. It contributes to overall health by enhancing flexibility, posture, and balance. Regular mobility exercises can improve joint function and reduce the risk of musculoskeletal issues.

Mobility training simply refers to anything that improves your mobility. We often think this means stretching, and it can, but mobility can also include dynamic stretching, yoga, pilates, cardio, massage and more. Mobility is essentially anything that improves your range of motion, and helps your move better. 

How is mobility different from flexibility training? 

Mobility involves proprioception, the body’s perception of position and movement. Mobility includes the ability to move a joint through its full range of motion, coordinating muscles, joints, and the nervous system. 

Flexibility is the ability of muscles and tendons to stretch passively through the joint. Flexibility is the lengthening of connective tissues. 

In our workouts, flexibility and mobility are often linked, especially in formats like yoga that involve both stretching and movement. While they are similar and both important, the main difference is that mobility is the ability of joints to move actively through their range of motion, while flexibility is the ability of soft tissues to lengthen and stretch passively. Optimal mobility requires flexibility in the muscles, tendons, and ligaments, as well as stability and strength. 

Why do we need mobility training?  

Mobility has become trendy in recent years, but it’s always been important to our overall health. Whether you’re a regular exerciser, athlete, or fitness newbie, most of us don’t get enough specific mobility training. 

When we improve our mobility, our workouts pay off: we lift heavier and more efficiently, run faster, jump higher, and generate more power. We also move better and feel better in our daily activities. Mobility training helps counteract all the sitting many of us do, whether that’s sitting at our desks, in our cars, or in front of the TV or computer screen. When we intentionally work through planes of motion and movement patterns, we move more effectively. When we move more effectively, we have less pain and tension, a lower risk of injury, improved energy levels, and generally feel better overall. 

How often do we need mobility training?

If you’ve followed my monthly programs and workout calendars, you know our Day Four workout is an Active Recovery Day. This is where we take a break from heavy lifting or high-intensity cardio and move in ways that improve mobility and flexibility while helping us recover from the week’s other workouts. This can be yoga, Pilates, barre, or cardio mobility, but all help increase range of motion, give you a good stretch, and give your body and brain a break from intense workouts. 

Is once a week enough for mobility training? Having at least one dedicated day for a longer mobility session can help, but adding mobility into your other workouts is super beneficial too. I love adding what I call “Sneaky Mobility” into workouts, maybe a strength exercise that improves range of motion, your dynamic warm-up, or a circuit that fits a mobility-specific interval between strength and cardio. 

How do we get mobility training? 

There are many ways to get mobility training beyond a full 30- or 40-minute mobility workout. Five minutes of mobility exercises when you first get out of bed can help wake up your body. A short bedtime yoga flow can help ease tightness from your day. Quick movement breaks during a busy workday can help keep you focused and energized. I encourage you to think outside the box when it comes to getting mobility in, especially if you’re someone (like me!) who likes to move fast and work hard during workouts and often gets tempted to skip warm-ups and cool-downs.  

The bottom line is we want to keep moving and moving well for a long time! In addition to strength training, cardiovascular training, and endurance work, mobility training not only keeps us feeling good, but it also keeps our other workouts fresh and fun! 

Check out my FREE Mobility Workouts HERE, and join us in the BodyFit Athletic Club for this month’s mobility series!