In a fitness world obsessed with lifting more weight, showing more abs, and building bigger biceps, a lot of workout enthusiasts forget about—or ignore—the un-sexy parts of fitness.
I mean, who wants to post on Instagram about their nine hours of sleep or gallon of water a day? Meh, I think most of us would rather post our new squat personal records.
You should know, however, you won’t have a celebratory squat PR video to post without good technique. And without good mobility, you won’t have good technique.
That’s right: Today I’m here to talk to you about the importance of working on your mobility, with the help of the experts at Power Athlete.
Power Athlete’s resident physical therapist, Dr. Tim Cummings, PT, DPT, talked with me about mobility and how to improve it via the best mobility exercises, and I’m here to share that information with you today.
Why Mobility Matters
Mobility work should be a big part of the foundation of your strength training routine. Mobility training can improve the starting positions for all of your lifts, help all of your muscle groups and joints achieve a deeper range of motion, reduce your risk of injury while training, and help you stay pain-free on the platform.
Not to mention—good mobility translates to stronger performance.
“It turns out that when it comes to performance in the gym, active mobility produces superior results [than passive flexibility],” Dr Tim says. “A body that has great passive muscle flexibility but is unable to absorb external force appropriately (what Power Athlete calls ‘tensile strength’) is at higher risk of overload injuries.”
And when it comes to optimal performance—on the field, on the weightlifting platform, on the line of duty—active mobility becomes even more important, Dr. Tim says.
Having a normal and healthy range of motion in both the joints and the muscles allows for a margin for error, he explains. “When your arm gets pulled behind your body or you have to unexpectedly stop and cut, that active, strong range of motion (ROM) is what saves you from suffering an injury.”
