Lifestyle

The Importance of Mobility Later in Life

Published: 2024-09-12

Mobility is a vital part of healthy living. Lack of mobility can have detrimental effects and cause both injuries and hinder your daily living. Read on to find out why mobility is so important as well as to learn an easy mobility routine that you can do right at home.

Why Mobility Is Important

Mobility is important for your body to be able to move correctly. If you can’t move correctly, you are likely to develop muscle imbalances that can cause injuries while being active, but could also cause you to be in pain even when you are not moving. Take a desk worker for example. People who work at a desk all day tend to be hunched forward more, round their shoulders, and have a forward head posture from looking down at a screen all day. If you sit like this for 8 hours for years at end, this posture will become your normal and the imbalances between the muscles in front of your body compared to the back of your body will get bigger and bigger.

How Mobility Can Help

Good mobility can help muscles be less stiff, which in turn can help your movement patterns be smoother, keeping you from chronic pain and muscle aches. Ever wake up in the morning all stiff and achy? Good mobility can help with that. Because mobility can help you move correctly, it can also help you from falling and injuring yourself as you get older which helps you live longer independently. It is, however, something you would have to continually practice, because if you stop doing mobility exercises, you will become less mobile over time. A good mobility workout will incorporate flexibility, strength and balance, and consistently improving mobility will make everything in your daily life feel easier. It will get easier to stand up from a seated position, to get in and out of a car, to walk your dog, carry groceries, and so on. Because mobility decline as you age, it is even more important to prioritize this type of exercise as you get older.

Wondering what the difference is between flexibility and mobility? Check out “Mobility vs Flexibility – What Do They Mean?”

Easy Routine to Do At Home

There are many different ways you can work on your mobility, but here are a few simple exercises you could go through without needing any equipment:

(If you want to follow along with a video instead that focuses on opening up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDAbh4y-JDo&t=88s)

Seated windshield wipers: Sit on the floor with your back straight and knees bent. Let your knees fall side-to-side for about 10 reps.

Hip/hamstring opener: Get into a half kneel position and shoot your hips forward to open up your hip flexors, then shoot your hips back and straighten the front leg for a stretch in that hamstring. Move fluidly forward and back between these two for about 10 reps and then switch legs.

Scapular pushups: Get on all fours and keep your arms straight as you squeeze in between your shoulder blades and then pull apart. Repeat for 10 reps.

Single Leg Balance: Come up to standing and lift one foot for a balance exercise. Try to go for 30 seconds without tapping your foot. If this is easy, lift your foot higher.

If you are looking for a hip mobility routine or an upper body mobility session, check out my YouTube channel: toritraining.official

Conclusion

There are many different exercises you can do to improve your mobility. I have provided a few exercises and videos above, but you could also try things like yoga, Pilates, Stick Mobility, and similar workouts. If you are unsure of what to do and what you need, you can always reach out to me on social media (Instagram/Facebook @toritraining.official) or through email (torihogantraining@gmail.com) with any questions you might have.

References

Harvard Health Publishing. (n.d.). Mobility: Tips and exercises to help you stay active and independent. Retrieved from https://www.health.harvard.edu/topics/mobility#:~:text=View%20All,stay%20%E2%80%9Cin%20the%20game.%E2%80%9D