In celebration of ‘Mobility May’ it seemed only fitting that we talk about mobility.  Mobility and flexibility, or lack of,  is one of the most common reasons golfers come to our facility.  Most people think that mobility and flexibility are the same, when in fact they are two very different concepts.  Flexibility is the ability of a muscle, or muscle group, to lengthen passively through a range of motion.  Mobility is the ability of a joint to move actively through a range of motion.  Mobility also takes into account the component of motor control with the nervous system, or how you control that range of motion.  Mobility training is much more effective than traditional stretching because it addresses movement and how well you can control that movement. 

Even though mobility is a crucial component to moving well, not all joints are meant to be mobile.  The Joint By Joint Approach describes which joints need to be mobile and which joints need to be stable.  Essentially every other joint is mobile and every other joint is stable.  Foot is stable, ankle mobile, knee stable, hip mobile, lumbar/pelvis stable, thoracic mobile, scapulothoracic stable, shoulder mobile, cervical stable, upper cervical mobile.  

Rules of Mobility

Be sure to check out our Instagram or Facebook pages, @swingrxgolf, for more mobility tips.  We will be posting a new mobility exercise each day throughout the month of May.