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Originally Posted On: Improve mobility and flexibility with these activities | When Women Inspire

You’re not alone if you’re moving less than usual. It’s been quite the year and a sedentary lifestyle can result from stress and anxiety relating to the pandemic, as well as staying home more than usual. To improve mobility and flexibility, these activities can help you.

Indeed, mobility and flexibility are often qualities people overlook, especially if you are working toward becoming stronger or improving your endurance. Nonetheless, safeguarding your mobility and range of motion is crucial to living a healthy life.

Without them, you are more prone to injuries and health conditions. You can start working toward them with the easy tips below.

Do some stretching for better mobility and flexibility

Stretching isn’t only something to do at the end of a workout. Instead, it should be a major part of it. After all, without proper muscle mobility, your workouts won’t be as effective or enjoyable.

Stretching and improving the mobility of your muscles on a regular basis can help you keep them strong, flexible, and healthy. If you exercise without stretching, your muscles will become tighter and shorter over time. In turn, this will limit your range of motion and make it harder for you to move freely.

You can decide to do light stretches before and after dedicating time to more strenuous activities. Also, you can use the time while watching tv to elongate your muscles and improve your flexibility.

Start practicing yoga

Yoga is an extraordinary practice that can bring endless benefits to your life. It won’t require you to have any previous training, and there are many variants out there. Pick the one that fits best with your preferences.

When practicing yoga, you will be boosting your flexibility, stability, balance, and strength immediately. Seeing this practice as a journey is crucial to appreciate your body’s progress after class.

Yoga as exercise has become an increasingly beloved practice. That’s largely because the moves are accessible by everybody; you can simply them for beginners or make them more complex for those who are more advanced. This allows you to work on your specific goals.

Use breathing and meditation to improve mobility

Breathing and meditation are not factors generally considered when trying to increase your muscles’ length and mobility. Nonetheless, they play a major role in helping you gain awareness of your body and mind.

Indeed, deep breathing and moving with your breath are recurring concepts in disciplines like yoga and pilates. However, your breath can also help you have better control over your movements. In turn, this allows you to explore deeper depths of stretching.

Alongside your breathing, meditation practice is useful in understanding how your body and mind work and interact. Meditation is something that you can do any time of the day and without any equipment.

Start your day with a quick walk (or run)

Going for a walk in nature or for a quick jog is an excellent way to bring your heart rate up for a bit, fill your lungs with fresh air, and increase the current range of movement of joints and muscles. While you don’t necessarily need to go far or run fast, you can just enjoy the benefits that moving brings you.

If you are dealing with other conditions, such as obesity or blood pressure, running can help you lose weight and feel more energetic. Also, this activity help lower stress, reducing the symptoms of anxiety and mild depression. Start with a short run today, if you’ve had the approval of your doctor.

To improve mobility and flexibility, think about your lifestyle

Your lifestyle can also have a great influence on range of motion and flexibility. Firstly, the fact that we spend hours sitting down has been seen to be negatively affecting our hips and joints mobility. Additionally,  a sedentary lifestyle can lead to issues with your posture and ability to move freely.

Change your lifestyle by swapping your current desk for a standing one. Or, invest in a high-quality ergonomic chair. And, of course, don’t forget to move around as much as possible while at your office, whether it’s located in the home or not.

Speak to a professional

Sometimes, certain underlying conditions can impact your mobility, flexibility, and range of motion. For example, if you have spinal or joint-related conditions, you might struggle to enjoy your full range of motion. If you have been noticing some symptoms, immediately check in with your doctor.

A professional such as https://scoliosisinstitute.com/ can help you identify what condition is currently standing between you and the ability to move freely. These treatments are also designed to help you regain your freedom of movement and flexibility while fitting your lifestyle and preferences.