3 Things To Consider With Mobility
Mobility is a buzz word in the fitness and rehab industry
Its what’s promised when you sign up for a 10 week yoga program and the source of all your problems when you don’t have enough of it. But just because you see somebody able to palm the floor and reach behind their back with ease doesn’t mean they are immune to pain.
Here are 3 things to consider when thinking about mobility: Neurological tone, passive mobility, and active mobility
1. Neurological tone is the amount of “muscle” tension you have in your body that is actually being controlled by your brain. For instance, someone might have limited mobility in their left shoulder ever since an injury, even though it has fully healed.
2. Passive mobility is the amount of mobility gained by stretching muscles without any activation of muscles. Think yoga, getting stretched out by a PT, or reaching down for the floor with your knees straight.
3. Active mobility is the amount of mobility that you have access to by using your muscles for control ie reaching overhead for the highest part of your cupboard or lifting your foot as high as you can to step onto a massive rock while hiking
The problem is that most of us neglect the neurological tone and the active mobility part
So what can you do?
First, we need to reduce neurological tone by reducing stress. You can do this by simply closing your eyes and breathing slowly and fully for 1 minute, in through your nose and out through your mouth. Give it a shot right now!
Other things you can do to reduce neurological tone is get better sleep and take time for yourself to do things you enjoy that’s different from your daily routine
After you’ve done that, then try moving your arms and legs using your muscles rather than a traditional stretch. For instance, instead of stretching by bringing your knee toward your chest and hugging your leg, try bringing your knee toward your chest using the muscles in your hip without using your arms.
This is the active part of mobility and is critical because it improves muscle activation throughout the available range of motion available.
What does that mean?
More control and improved resilience.