The fitness and athletic communities have always equated "mobility work" with high performance. It has been linked with enhancing flexibility, building strength, and preventing injury. Here, we'll cover a detailed guide on the need for mobility work for every athlete, how it improves performance and effective exercises you can do regularly.
What Is Mobility Work?
Mobility defines the range to which the joint moves or its ability to cover a full and painful range of motion. Mobility exercises are thus designed to improve the range of motion and, generally, to work toward developing the whole body, with the long-term goal of enhancing athletic performance. Read more about Best Top 6 Exercises of Strength Training for Athletes.
The Importance of Mobility Work for Athletes
We all understand how important a warm-up is to the body before sporting activity, but how much do we know about mobility within sport? Mobility means moving a joint actively through a range of motion. It helps an athlete move efficiently with ease of movement through an active range of motion, increasing their performance and reducing the risk of injury.
Poor mobility puts one off balance and presupposes wrong patterns of movement, resulting in injuries as an outcome. Regular mobility work can regulate imbalance, thus minimizing the risk of different kinds of injuries and contributing to their athletic longevity. Immobile tissues quickly get targeted. It builds the ability to make them stronger overall, so they can train or perform more effectively.
Best Mobility Exercises for Athletes
You can include these exercises for better mobility:
Hip Flexor
This now brings us directly to the question of our hip flexors concerning our day-to-day movement. This exercise can affect everyone, from professional athletes to seniors, who all need strong and healthy hip flexors just to get through daily activities. Do this exercise by kneeling on one knee with your torso upright.
Now bend forward slightly until you feel a good stretch next to the groin, holding this for 2-4 seconds and repeating at least 5 reps. As you progress, you can raise the back leg to make the movement more challenging on the hip flexors.
Groiners
First, to do a groiner, assume a push-up position for your start. Now jump forward, putting weight on your arms, to land your legs right outside of your hands. Jump back into the pushup position to complete one rep.
Cossack Squat
Now, stand with a wider-than-shoulder-width stance and turn one foot out to the side with your toe off of the floor. Make sure you keep your knees completely straight, then squat with the other. Make sure you keep both heels grounded and your spine completely straight.
Fire Hydrants
To do fire hydrants, get down on all fours, your hands, and your knees, facing down towards the floor. Now, take one knee off of the ground, and with a circular motion, bring your knee up to your chest and then back behind you. Do ten rotations and then switch directions and do another ten big rotations with the other leg. Read more about the Best Upper Body strength exercises for athletes.
Get Help from the Athlete's Guild If becoming a better athlete through mobility work is what you want, The Athlete's Guild will help design a routine that suits your needs. With its coach's experience in working out the details of mobility exercises, it'll ensure that one works down to tissues deep in the body for enhanced range of motion, strength, and other improved performances. Also read How Does Sleep Impact Athletic Performance?
Conclusion
Mobility work is an integral part of any athlete's training program. Emphasizing exercises geared at bettering one's joint movement and flexibility can help athletes improve performance and reduce the possibility of many types of injuries. Add some of the major mobility exercises like hip flexors, groiners, Cossack squats, and fire hydrants to your daily routine, and you will feel quite a difference in your athletic journey.
Custom advice from pros like The Athlete's Guild can help you seek out the most in mobility work and perform at the best level in every sport.