3 Signs You're Not Mobile Enough
Mobility is one of the biggest crazes to hit the world of functional fitness, and it's easy to dismiss the hype as 'just another fad'. An effective mobility routine doesn't take much time, but it can dramatically improve your health and performance. Here are three signs you need to spend more time on your mobility:
You Take Too Long to Recover
How quickly does your body recover from a tough WOD? If you regularly suffer from extended bouts of DOMS or constantly feel exhausted, it's a sign you need to invest more time into your recovery.
Recovery from exercise involves a range of activities, and mobility is one of them. Unless you have a sports massage therapist on speed-dial, you should structure your mobility following an intense workout to address any muscle tightness or trigger points.
Self-myofascial release, using tools such as foam rollers and mobility balls, is one of the most effective ways to do this. This breaks down any knots in the muscle and improves blood flow, restoring the proper range-of-motion to speed up your recovery.
You Keep Getting Injured
A recurring injury is a sign that something isn't quite right with your body. Often, this can be traced back to limited range of motion, which can lead to muscular imbalances and problems maintaining correct movement patterns.
If you keep getting injured, ask for your coach's help in identifying the cause of the problem, or seek advice from a qualified physiotherapist. If the problem relates back to your range of motion, make sure you commit to regular, corrective mobility drills to address the cause of the problem and prevent future recurrences of the injury.
To stay ahead of the game, you should always pay attention to your coach when they identify limitations with your range of motion. Catching these limitations early, and correcting them with your mobility routine, can often help you prevent the injuries altogether.
Your Performance Has Hit a Plateau
Unless you have the perfect range-of-motion across your entire body, ultimately your progress will be limited somewhere down the line. Even when you're not at risk of injury, and can still perform movements safely, inefficient patterns of movement may limit both speed and load.
Instead of fixating on the need to lift heavier, or perform faster, spend some time addressing the quality of your movements. Spend some time with a movement specialist, who will be able to identify the areas you need to focus on. For example, if you want to get better at running, work with someone who specialises in running technique.
Once you know where your restrictions lie, you can include the relevant corrective mobility drills as part of your daily routine.
