10 Best Mobility Exercises That Can Help Boost Strength and Flexibility
Updated on: June 7, 2024
Reviewed By Anita K., MSc., GCP
These exercises can help you build a stronger, more flexible body, improve your performance, and enhance your physique
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What Are Mobility Exercises
Mobility exercises can increase the range of motion in your joints and enhance muscle flexibility.
They help improve movement efficiency, making everyday activities and sports easier and reducing the risk of injuries.
They involve various movements, including joint rotations, muscle stretching, and bending exercises that promote flexibility and joint health.
Mobility exercises are dynamic, involving movement, or static, where you hold positions to deepen the stretch.
Regularly practicing mobility exercises can enhance injury prevention and recovery, aiding in maintaining functional movement throughout life.
Main Aspects of Mobility Exercises
The main aspects of mobility exercises encompass a range of activities for improving movement capabilities.
- Range of Motion
Mobility exercises focus on increasing or maintaining the range of motion in the joints. That involves moving joints through their complete range in various directions. - Muscle Flexibility
The exercises help loosen and lengthen muscles, which supports better movement and reduces the risk of strains or injuries. - Functional Improvement
Mobility exercises enhance how joints and muscles work together, helping improve your ability to perform everyday tasks and sports-related movements more efficiently. - Injury Prevention
Regular mobility training helps prepare the body for other physical activities, reducing the likelihood of injuries during more intense exercises or daily activities. - Dynamic and Static Stretching
Mobility workouts can include dynamic stretching, which involves moving parts of the body and gradually increasing reach, speed, or both, and static stretching, where you hold a position for some time.
Why are Mobility Exercises Necessary in Fitness Training
Mobility exercises are a crucial component of fitness training for several reasons
- Enhanced Range of Motion
Mobility exercises help to increase the range of motion in joints, which is essential for performing exercises correctly and safely.
A greater range of motion can improve strength and performance, allowing for complete and more efficient movements during workouts. - Injury Prevention
Mobility exercises reduce the risk of injuries from tight muscles and restricted joints. Regular mobility training can help your body handle the stresses of more intense workouts and daily activities. - Improved Posture and Alignment
Mobility exercises often target areas that contribute to poor posture, such as tight hips, shoulders, and back.
Regularly performing mobility exercises can help correct imbalances and align the body properly, helping to optimize performance and health. - Enhanced Athletic Performance
Athletes can benefit significantly from mobility exercises, as they enhance the functional range of motion needed in sports.
That leads to better agility, speed, and performance, and reduced risk of sport-specific injuries. - Better Recovery
Mobility exercises can aid in the recovery process after intense workouts by helping to maintain blood flow. That can reduce muscle stiffness, and decrease the likelihood of soreness. - Increased Longevity in Training
Maintaining joint health and muscle flexibility through mobility exercises can help fitness enthusiasts and athletes train effectively for longer periods.
Mobility becomes increasingly important as the body ages, helping to maintain physical independence.
Best Mobility Exercises For Enhanced Strength and Flexibility
The best mobility exercises target multiple joints and muscles to improve flexibility, range of motion, and functional movement.
The following are some effective mobility exercises that can support your training regimen.
Leg Swings
Leg swings are dynamic stretching exercises that help warm up the muscles and joints in the legs and hips.
Leg swings are mobility exercises that improve flexibility in your hips and legs. They also promote a greater range of motion in the hip joints. That can enhance movement efficiency and performance in sports and daily activities.
Leg swings can form part of a warm-up routine before engaging in sports or more intense physical activities.
To perform leg swings,
- Stand upright and hold onto a stable object like a wall, chair, or fence for balance.
- Swing one leg forward and backward, gradually increasing the range of motion. Keep your posture upright and avoid bending at the waist.
The motion helps loosen the hip flexors, hamstrings, and glute muscles. It also gently stretches the lower back.
Side-to-Side Leg Swings
- Stand sideways to a support like a wall or a chair, holding it for balance.
- Swing the leg closest to the support across the front of your body and then out to the side, moving in a pendulum-like motion.
The variation targets the adductors or inner thigh muscles, and abductors or outer hip muscles, enhancing lateral mobility.
Arm Circles
Arm circles are simple and effective warm-up exercises that target the shoulders, arms, and upper back. They are excellent mobility exercises for improving circulation in the upper body, making them a popular choice for athletes, gym-goers, and anyone looking to loosen up their shoulder joints.
Arm circles can help alleviate stiffness and tension in the shoulder area, which is common among those who sit at desks or perform repetitive tasks.
How to Do Arm Circles
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and extend your arms straight to the sides at shoulder height.
- Start by making small circular motions with your arms, gradually increasing the size of the circles.
- Continue for about 10-20 seconds.
- Transition into larger, more deliberate circular motions after completing the small circles.
- Continue the motion for about 10-20 seconds.
- Repeat the small and large circles in clockwise and counter-clockwise directions to ensure balanced mobility.
Variations of Arm Circles
- Rotate your arms forward, starting with small circles and increasing to larger circles.
- Reverse the direction, rotating your arms backward.
Cat-Cow Stretch
The Cat-Cow Stretches are gentle and excellent mobility exercises for increasing flexibility in the spine and core muscles.
It consists of two complementary movements: the “Cat” pose and the “Cow” pose, performed in a flowing, rhythmic sequence.
The exercise helps to warm the body and improve posture and balance. It also relieves back pain and calms the mind.
Steps to follow
- Get on your hands and knees in a tabletop position. Ensure your knees are set directly below your hips and your wrists, elbows, and shoulders are lined, and perpendicular to the floor.
- Your spine should start in a neutral position, and make your head a natural extension of your spine, looking downward.
Inhale for the Cow Pose
- Lower your belly toward the floor as you inhale, lifting your chin and chest upward.
- Your gaze should lift toward the ceiling without straining your neck.
- Gently compress the spine to increase spinal flexibility and stretch your neck and the front of your torso.
Exhale for the Cat Pose
- Round your spine upward toward the ceiling and tuck your chin toward your chest as you exhale, ensuring you engage your abdominal muscles to support the spine.
- The pose stretches the back of the torso and neck, providing a gentle massage to the spine and belly organs.
Flow Between Poses
- Alternate between Cow as you inhale and Cat as you exhale, flowing smoothly from one pose to another.
- Ensure you move with each breath, but you can also hold each pose for a few breaths to deepen the stretch.
Hip Circles
Hip circles are mobility exercises for loosening and warming the hip joints and surrounding muscles.
The movement helps increase the range of motion and decrease hip stiffness. That makes the exercise popular with athletes, dancers, and anyone who experiences hip tightness from sitting for long periods.
How to Do Hip Circles
- Stand with your feet slightly wider than hip-width apart.
- Place your hands on your hips to help maintain balance.
- Slowly push your hips forward, then gently move them to one side, backward, and then to the other, creating a circular motion. Imagine drawing a circle with your hips.
- Keep the movement controlled, smooth, and large enough to feel the hips stretching but not so large that it causes discomfort.
- Complete several circles in one direction, then switch and perform the same number in the opposite direction.
- Aim for 8-10 circles, or more, in each direction to warm the hips.
Dynamic Lunges
Dynamic lunges are functional exercises that involve movement and stretching, making them effective mobility exercises for improving flexibility, strength, and balance.
Unlike static lunges, which involve a stationary position, dynamic lunges incorporate movements, helping to activate multiple muscle groups and improve the range of motion.
Dynamic lunges can form part of warm-up routines to prepare the body for more intense physical activity.
Steps to follow
- Stand with your feet together and your hands on your hips or sides.
- Maintain an upright posture with your shoulders back and down.
- Step forward with one leg, lowering your hips until both knees are at about a 90-degree angle.
- Your back knee should hover just above the floor, and your front knee should be directly over your ankle, not pushed out over your toes.
- Push off with your front foot and return to the starting position.
- Repeat the movement by stepping forward with the opposite leg.
- You can walk forward across a room or in place, stepping back to the starting position each time.
Variations
Twisting Lunge
- Add a twist toward the front leg as you lunge to engage your core and increase the stretch in your hips and torso.
Lunge with Reach
- Reach overhead with your arms as you step into the lunge. That incorporates a full body stretch and enhances balance.
Thoracic Spine Rotations
Thoracic spine rotations are mobility exercises for increasing the range of motion and flexibility in the thoracic spine— the middle and upper sections of your back.
The exercise can improve spinal health and function, as the thoracic spine plays a crucial role in upper body movement and stability.
Thoracic spine rotations can help alleviate stiffness, improve posture, and reduce the risk of pain or injury in the back and neck areas.
Step to follow
- Begin seated or kneeling, or you can perform the stretch lying on your side. One common method is the quadruped position on hands and knees.
- Align your wrists under your shoulders and your knees under your hips.
- Place one hand behind your head or on the back of your neck.
- Keep your elbow pointed toward the side and rotate your upper body, leading with your elbow, to turn your chest and head upward toward the ceiling.
- Rotate as far as possible, ensuring the movement comes from your upper back and not, your lower back or hips.
- Hold the peak rotation for a few seconds, then slowly return to the starting position.
- Repeat several times on one side before switching to the other side.
Thread the Needle
The “Thread the Needle” exercise is popular in yoga and physical therapy, for increasing flexibility and mobility in the shoulders, chest, arms, and upper back. It primarily targets the thoracic spine but also helps to stretch and release tension in the surrounding muscles.
The exercise is excellent for those who experience stiffness due to prolonged sitting or repetitive activities that strain the upper body.
Steps to follow
- Get into a tabletop position on your hands and knees. Ensure your knees are directly under your hips and your wrists under your shoulders.
- Raise one arm to the side and upwards toward the ceiling, opening your chest as you inhale.
- As you exhale, “thread” that arm underneath your body toward the opposite side, with your palm facing up. Let your shoulder and side of the head gently rest on the mat.
- Keep your other hand in its original position, or stretch it forward on the mat for additional support and stretch.
- Hold the position for a few breaths, feeling a deep stretch in your shoulders, arms, and upper back.
- Press through your supporting hand, and return your threaded arm to the starting tabletop position.
- Repeat the movement on the other side.
Downward Dog to Cobra
The sequence from Downward Dog to Cobra is a common yoga transition that stretches and strengthens various parts of the body, while also helping to improve flexibility and circulation.
The combination involves moving from a downward-facing dog, an inverted pose, into a cobra, a backbend.
The pose is excellent for opening the front body while strengthening the back body and is often used in yoga flows to enhance spinal mobility and balance muscular engagement.
Steps to follow for the downward dog to cobra pose
Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)
- Get on your hands and knees and align your wrists under your shoulders and your knees under your hips.
- Press your hands into the mat, tuck your toes, and lift your hips upward and back, creating an inverted “V” shape with your body.
- Keep your head between your arms, and try to press your heels toward the floor.
- Engage your core and ensure your back is straight.
- Hold the pose for a few breaths to deepen the stretch in your hamstrings, shoulders, and calves.
Transition to Cobra (Bhujangasana)
- From the downward dog, inhale and shift forward into a plank pose.
- Exhale as you gently lower your body to the floor, keeping your elbows close to your sides.
- Place your hands under your shoulders on the mat.
- Pressing your pelvis into the floor, inhale and gently lift your chest off the ground by straightening your arms as much as is comfortable. Keep your elbows slightly bent to ensure you do not lock them.
- Open your chest forward and up, engaging your lower back muscles, but avoid crunching it.
- Keep your gaze forward or upward, ensuring your neck naturally extends from your spine.
Butterfly Stretch
Butterfly Stretches are simple yet effective mobility exercises for increasing flexibility in the inner thighs, hips, and lower back.
It is popular with athletes, dancers, and anyone looking to improve their lower body flexibility or relieve tight muscles. The stretch is particularly beneficial for activities that require good hip mobility.
Steps to follow
- Sit on the floor with your spine straight and tall.
- Bring the soles of your feet together in front of you, drawing your heels as close as comfortable to your body.
- Hold your feet or ankles with your hands.
- Gently press your knees toward the floor using your elbows or hands. The goal is not to force the knees down but to feel a gentle stretch in the inner thighs.
- Maintain an upright posture, avoiding the tendency to slouch forward. Keep your shoulders relaxed and back straight.
- You can lean forward from your hips, keeping your back straight, for a deeper stretch. Lean forward as much as possible without rounding your back.
- Hold the stretch for about 20-30 seconds.
- Repeat 2-3 times, gradually increasing the depth of the stretch with each repetition as you become more flexible.
Scapular Push-Ups
Scapular push-ups, aka., scapular protraction and retraction exercises, can strengthen and mobilize the scapulae shoulder blades.
The exercises focus on the movement of the shoulder blades without bending the elbows, isolating and targeting the muscles around the shoulder girdle, particularly the serratus anterior.
Steps to follow
- Get into a standard push-up position with your hands directly under your shoulders. Your body should form a straight line from your head to your heels.
- Keep your arms straight and locked at the elbows.
- Lower your chest toward the floor by allowing your shoulder blades to come together or retract.
- Push away from the floor by spreading your shoulder blades apart or protract. Control the movement and only involve the scapulae moving back and forth.
- Maintain a strong core throughout the exercise to keep your body stable and straight.
Final words from LiveLife
Mobility exercises can improve your range of motion and flexibility and boost your strength.
Make them part of your training regimen to help you achieve a stronger, more flexible body.
They can pave the way for improved performance and prevent injuries, helping you build a healthier, more resilient physique.
References
- Treacy, D., Hassett, L., Schurr, K., Fairhall, N. J., Cameron, I. D., & Sherrington, C. (2022). Mobility training for increasing mobility and functioning in older people with frailty. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2022(6).
- Granacher, U., & Hortobágyi, T. (2015). Exercise to Improve Mobility in Healthy Aging. Sports Medicine (Auckland, N.z.), 45(12), 1625-1626.