These two terms get a lot of use in the fitness world and that is for good reason. Both, mobility and flexibility play pivotal roles in how our body’s look, feel, and perform. When they are both done regularly they can lead to decreased tension in muscles, decrease in pain among joints, and can assist in good motor patterns. I firmly believe that both deserve a high amount of attention in any workout program. Although mobility and flexibility are both very important it is good to know the difference between the two.
FLEXIBILITY
Flexibility is the ability of a muscle or joint to move freely allowing greater ranges of motion. Think of flexibility as non-load barring and being able to stretch and move particular muscle groups with relative ease.
MOBILITY
Mobility on the other hand is strength within a specific range of motion of a muscle. This allows your muscle to be able to control a movement through the entirety of a range of motion. Many people are very mobile in specific areas and lack it in some others but the main goal is to achieve overall mobility throughout the entire body.
There are some very effective ways to work on your mobility and that is by doing main compound movements (pushups, pull-ups, squats, deadlifts, bench press) with FULL RANGE OF MOTION. If you are not already doing so, move the weight down a bit, get comfortable with the new motion and progress in that new range of motion.
Another way you can work on mobility in specific areas is by targeting or isolating specific areas. Maybe your shoulders need more work than your legs or vise-versa. So prioritize the areas that need more work but make sure to not neglect anything!
BONUS TIP: When attempting to become more flexible take a revitalizing yoga class or hold stretches for minutes on end where you feel that you lack flexibility. Once this is done and your body is becoming accustomed to the new stimulus, do some very light-weight exercises that emphasize that flexibility to gain mobility in those weaker areas!
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