With everyone under lockdown, a lot of emphasis is currently placed on strength and cardiovascular work. People want home workouts, people want to go out and run and that’s to be encouraged but it’s also important to continue to work on mobility too.
We tend to factor in mobility drills into our strength sessions to simply improve movement quality, enabling us to perform better and to get into positions more effectively.
But when at home, in today’s situation with no real dedicated time to train, mobility can be neglected. Here are some really effective stretches and mobility drills to perform at home and in the gym once they are back open!
1 – HIP FLOW Building on the traditional hip flexor stretch is this “hip flow” sequence incorporating a t spine rotation too. Aim for the knees at roughly 90/90 before rotating up towards the ceiling.
2 – FROG STRETCH This is a nice static hold for the adductors and the groin. Start with the knees as wide as you can get them, the toes pointing out and the back as neutral as possible. Drop to the elbows and gently sit back.
3 – GROINER w/ REACH Your typical groiner drill is bringing the foot up to the outside of the hands from a press up position. With this reach variation, gently work the elbow towards the floor before rotating and reaching up towards the ceiling.
4 – FIGURE 4 w/ DROP Most people are aware of the classic “figure 4” style stretch for the glutes. This variation includes a drop and hold on the floor, which I feel, hits the glute medius and lumbar/QL region of the back. Play about with the positioning on this one!
5 – WALL PEC STRETCH It’s important to continuously work on opening the chest and pecs up in todays society, with a lot of us “tight” in that area creating that rounding of the upper back. Posture plays a role in our performance, strength and confidence. Use a corner of a wall to stretch the pecs. Again, play about with the positioning, but start at roughly 90 degress at the elbow.
Give these a shot and stay STRONG and MOBILE at home!
