Is Stiffness Your New Normal? It Doesn't Have To Be.
Feeling Stiffer Than You Used To?
Achy joints in the morning? Hips or knees feel "glitchy" after sitting? Are you finding it harder to get up and down? Do gardening or home projects leave you more sore and fatigued than they used to? Does movement make you feel better? Are you dealing with injury recovery or old unresolved issues? Even consider yourself "bad" at yoga?
If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, you would greatly benefit from putting some focus into improving your mobility. We hear a lot about the importance of maintaining cardiovascular health and strength training as we age, yet often we assume feeling like the tin man is just a part of normal aging. I hear this all the time in my clinic. It seems people tend to expect more stiffness and pain as they age, and I want to encourage you not to accept this as your "new normal" but to understand why your body may be feeling stiff, restricted, or imbalanced.
Often, these issues stem from reduced mobility – your body's ability to move freely and with control. Healthy mobility means lubricated joints, less stiffness, and easier, less painful daily movements.
So, what exactly is mobility?
While flexibility is about muscle length, mobility is actively moving a joint through its full range with control and stability. It's a dynamic process that involves not just your muscles, but also your joints, connective tissues, and nervous system working together harmoniously.
Think stretching your hamstring with a strap (flexibility) versus actively lifting your leg high with control (mobility). See the difference?
Why Mobility Matters: The Pain and Functionality Connection
So, why should you care about your mobility? The answer lies in its profound impact on both pain levels and how well your body can perform every day and high level tasks. If it is your desire to live a long and active life, we need to train for it. This is where mobility comes in.
- Reduce Those Everyday Aches: Poor mobility often leads to compensations in movement patterns. When one joint can't move freely, other areas have to pick up the slack, leading to increased stress and strain. This can manifest as nagging aches, stiffness, and even chronic pain in areas like your back, hips, shoulders and neck. By improving mobility, you allow your joints to move as they're designed to, reducing unnecessary stress on surrounding tissues and alleviating pain.
- Unlock Your Functional Potential: Think about simple daily activities: reaching for something on a high shelf, bending down to leash up the dog, weeding in the garden, or even just walking comfortably. Good mobility ensures these movements are smooth, efficient, and less painful. When your joints have a full range of motion, your muscles can work more effectively, leading to improved balance, coordination, and overall functional fitness. Whether you're an athlete aiming for peak performance or simply want to move through your day with ease, mobility is key.
- Injury Prevention: Restricted movement patterns can make you more susceptible to injuries. When your joints can't move properly, the surrounding muscles and ligaments have to work harder to stabilize and control movement, increasing the risk of strains, sprains, and tears. I often see clients who injure their back to also have tight and restricted hips, we need hip mobility to adequately hinge our hips back as we lift. Without this mobility, the back overcompensates and injuries can easily occur. A consistent mobility practice helps to ensure your joints can handle the demands you place on them, reducing the likelihood of getting injured.
Easy Ways to Boost Your Mobility Today:
The good news is that feeling the benefits of better mobility doesn't require hours in the gym or becoming a yoga master. Small, consistent actions can make a big difference. Here are some simple ideas to get you moving more freely:
- Move Your Joints: Incorporate active stretches into your day, think of movements like active heel raises off the bottom step, working gradually into deep squatting positions, combining trunk twists with deep breathing, or actively backstroking your arms to reverse forward shoulder posture. These dynamic movements take your joints through their full range, unlike static stretches where you just hold a position. This improves timing and coordination while providing healthy stress through the tissues. Don't push through pain, respect your joints and move slowly, increasing over time as your body allows.
- Break Up the Time You Sit: Sitting puts our hip and knee joints in a 90 degree position. When we spend hours in this body shape, it makes our hip and knee joints and low back stiff, then squatting lower than 90 degrees or walking can feel tight and clunky. Walking periodically throughout the day is the best way to counteract this stiffness. Park farther away, take the stairs, or walk a longer distance on your way back to your desk. If you sit for the majority of your job, get a standing desk and/or a walking pad. Walk or stand during meetings and times when you are doing less focused work and sit for focused work to bring variety to your daily routine.
- Roll Away Tension: Grab a fascial ball (or a tennis ball) for some self-massage. Rolling the ball over tight muscles can release tension, improve blood flow, and promote better tissue health for faster recovery. Try rolling the ball against the wall behind your hips and pelvis to work out the stiff areas caused by sitting. Progress into lying on a mat with the ball as you are able for a deeper release.
- Find Movement Variety with Yoga or Pilates: These practices are fantastic for building both flexibility and strength through mindful, controlled movements synchronized with breath to enhance your overall mobility.
The Takeaway
Mobility is a cornerstone of overall wellness and continuing to do the things we love, for longer. By prioritizing the ability of your joints to move freely and with control, you're investing in a body that feels better, moves more efficiently, and is less prone to pain and injury. Remember, even small, consistent efforts in improving your mobility can lead to significant changes over time. I guarantee, your future self will thank you for it!
What's one area of your body where you'd like to improve your mobility this month?
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