On Day 5 of the mobility series, we will look to strengthen the muscles involved in rotating through the trunk and spine. As we rotate through the spine, you will notice movement coming from the shoulders and hips to accommodate trunk rotation,

We begin by exploring our ability to reach across the body with the upper extremities from right to left and top to bottom. Next, we will begin performing some crucial isometric resistance exercises to improve our overall range of motion by activating our muscles using the sponge ball and TheraBand. These exercises are designed to activate weak muscles and help you uncover muscle weaknesses as you move from one side to the other. Experience rotations from a supine, prone, seated, and standing position.

We will revisit the warm up to see if our mobility has changed. You will notice how much better your torso can move once associated muscles are stronger. Get into positions more quickly and easily with less pain and stiffness. This is a quality of healthy muscles. Regular practice of this mobility workout will help you move better with more speed and efficiency.

Keep in mind that there are many things that affect our rotation ability such as:

1. The strength of our spinal muscles for stabilization
2. The orthopedic health of each individual vertebral level.
3. The orthopedic health of shoulder and hip joints.
4. The ability our muscles have to work to shorten to contract to create the trunk rotation in an orchestrated fashion.
5. The position of the hip (ie: flexed, extended, rotated)
6. The position of our shoulders (ie: overhead, neutral, externally rotated).
7. The resistance coming from the TheraBand or sponge ball.

** Our ability to walk, run, jump, lift, and bend every day is inherently related to rotation and proper rotational stability. All human movement is rotational., whether you are performing movements that require trunk rotation and rotational stability. The most basic human movement of walking involves a rotational element, as we swing our arms and legs forward and back in circles.

Performing rotational exercises will improve core stability, muscle development, and total body coordination. Any excessive or unwanted rotational movements of the spine can adversely affect the hips and knees in movements like overhead squats, back squats, pull ups, etc

Purchase the equipment used in this video from Amazon:

Small Pilates Sponge Ball: https://amzn.to/3Sgrr8r
Theraband: https://amzn.to/3c2lfOq
Yoga Mat: https://amzn.to/2ZDSMrH

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