Mobility for lifters.

This week's blog is, yet again, by James Kennedy. It's somewhat timely as well, as we are looking to announce the return of Grace's Yoga for Strength Athletes in the Barbell Club - more on that later. 

Firstly, the article!

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Mobility is an oft-overlooked and poorly understood component of powerlifting, strongman and weightlifting. Firstly, to clear up some confusion straight away, mobility is different to flexibility. Mobility refers to the ability to move through the full ROM with full control and proper technique. Flexibility is the ability to move through a range of motion without actively using the associated muscle group (e.g. static stretching).  Mobility is specific to the movement you are about to do or do regularly - whether you perform a squat through a full ROM with proper control and technique, for example. 

Squat Mobility

Within the squat movement, the ankle, knee and hip are the joints involved in the movement, so improving ankle, knee and hip mobility is essential. Generally, most lifters don’t have a problem with knee mobility and when they experience knee pain it’s due to limited ankle or hip mobility. 

Beginning with ankle mobility, a great exercise is dynamic downward dog. Starting from your hands and knees, press firmly into your hands and feet, raising your knees off the floor into an inverted ‘V’ position. From this start position, bend your left knee whilst pushing your right heel down to straighten the right leg. Then swap from side to side as if you’re walking on the spot. This exercise will stretch out your calves and hamstrings, whilst strengthening the ankle joint. 

A second ankle mobility exercise is the step-back weighted ankle mobility drill. Taking two dumbbells or kettlebells, take a large step back with one leg but keep both feet flat. Bend the knee of the back foot and hinge at the hip to lower the weight slowly to the floor. You should feel a slight stretch in the back ankle. Repeat on both sides for sets of ten. 

For hip mobility, there are several drills which can help. The 90/90 hip stretch is a great exercise to incorporate into a squat warm-up, especially if you’ve spent a long time sitting that day as it targets both internal and external hip rotation.  To perform the 90/90 hip stretch sit on the floor and bend one leg in front of your body with your knee bent at 90 degrees, keeping the outside of the leg in contact with the floor. Position your other leg beside you, with your hip rotated inward and knee bent at 90 degrees. Hold this position for 30 seconds and then switch sides.

Hip mobility can also be improved by utilising a hip circle. A hip circle placed around the knees or ankles can be utilised to help strengthen the glutes and hip muscles. A great drill  for targeting the hip abductors is to start in an athletic stance - feet shoulder-width apart with knees bent and weight over your midfoot. Take a step to the side and slowly bring your foot back. Alternate between the right and left legs. 

The final component of hip mobility is glute and core strength. To help improve glute strength and activate the muscles used in the squat exercise glute bridges and clamshells are two exercises which can help. To perform glute bridges lie on the floor with your back flush against the floor. Push against the floor through your feet and push your hips towards the ceiling, squeezing your glutes at the top of the movement. Perform 10-20 reps. 
Clamshells target the gluteus medius, which helps stabilise the pelvis. To perform them, lie on your side with your feet and hips stacked, with your knees bent at 90 degrees. Draw your knees in toward your body until your feet are in line with your glutes. Keeping your feet together, raise your top knee as far as you can, before slowly returning to the start position. Repeat for 10-20 reps on each side. 

A final great exercise is the cossack squat. This exercise helps develop hip, knee and ankle mobility. Start with a wide stance, with your feet pointing forwards. Squat down to a full deep squat on one side, keeping both heels down. At the bottom position, the squatting leg is fully flexed at the ankle, with the knee out over the toe. The other leg should be straight, with your heel on the floor and your toe’s off the floor. Stand back up to the central position and repeat on the opposite leg. Perform 10 reps per side. 

Bench Mobility

Mobility issues in the bench press tend to be linked to shoulder and thoracic mobility issues. The inability to properly extend through the thoracic spine and retract and stabilise the scapula is a common cause of injuries within the bench press; if you constantly get minor pec strains and tears poor mobility could be the underlying cause.

To address these issues there are several mobility drills which can be done. The first is the banded pull-apart. The basic variation is to take a resistance band with your palms facing up (supinated grip) and extend your arms straight out at shoulder height. Pull the band apart and aim to get it to touch your chest around the base of your pectoral muscles. This exercise targets the rotator cuff and will help develop the muscles which stabilise the shoulder during the bench press. 

A more advanced variation involves beginning with the band overhead. Instead of starting with your hands at shoulder height, elevate your hands above your head. Then perform the pull-apart, touching the resistance band to the same point on your chest. This variation works the muscles which rotate the scapula in both the horizontal and vertical planes, improving scapular mobility and stability, which are essential for the bench press. 
Thoracic extension is also essential for the bench press. This, combined with hip flexibility, is what controls how big your arch is. Being stable when you arch for the bench press is also essential; if not your arch can collapse as you perform the exercise. 

The first exercise to improve thoracic mobility is the cat-camel exercise. Starting on your hands and knees, with your hands underneath your shoulders and knees underneath your hips, sink your bank towards the floor and lift your head at the same time to make a curve with your spine. Slowly reverse the position, tucking your head and driving your upper back high as if a string is pulling your shoulder blades towards the ceiling. That’s one rep. Repeat 10-20 reps. 

A second exercise to help improve thoracic mobility is the dynamic wall t-spine extension. Begin by placing your palms at shoulder height on a wall, window ledge or smith machine, with your arms fully extended. Keeping your hands on the wall, push your hips back to lower your chest, arching the segments of the spine. Hold the bottom position for 30 seconds and repeat 2-3 times. 


Deadlift mobility

Of the big 3 power lifts, the deadlift has the lowest mobility requirements. The conventional deadlift is sometimes limited by thoracic mobility, which can be targeted using the cat-camel stretch and the dynamic wall t-spine extension. The sumo deadlift has higher hip mobility requirements than the conventional deadlift. Alongside the hip mobility drills outlined for the squat, two additional hip mobility drills can be used for developing the required hip mobility for the deadlift. 

Firstly, is the kneeling glute activation. Start on your knees, with your hips stacked over your knees. Then, slowly sit back onto your heels while maintaining a tall torso before using your glutes to drive yourself back into a kneeling position, squeezing your glutes at the top. Repeat for 10-20 reps. 

The second mobility exercise is the active frog. Assume the frog position and slowly rock back and forwards, stretching and strengthening the hip abductors. If you are new to the Sumo deadlift, this exercise is excellent for helping your hips handle the transition. 

Sample Routine

We’ve provided a basic, 10-minute, mobility workout that can be done before a workout or as part of your daily routine. These exercises target general mobility for the big 3 - squat, bench and deadlift - and will keep you mobile and strong for your training. 


Exercise


Cossack Squat
20 reps

90/90 Hip Stretch
45s per side

Dynamic Downward Dog
20 reps

Weighted Ankle Step Back
10 reps per side

Couch stretch
45s per side

Supinated grip band pull
20 reps

Active thoracic extension
45s

Cat Camel
20 reps 

Summary
These mobility exercises will help you develop the muscles and joint stability that will help minimise your injury risk. Generally, the muscles used to stabilise the joints are not directly trained during powerlifting and muscular imbalances can develop. These mobility drills will help strengthen the muscles responsible for stabilising joints during powerlifting. These drills can be used individually, as warm ups for the individual power lifts or as a daily mobility routine to help enhance recovery and allow you to keep progressing with your powerlifting career.

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I hope you've enjoyed this week's blog! 

As mentioned above we are in the process of resuming Grace's Yoga for Strength Athletes, so if you want to be involved let me know and we'll keep you updated on where we're up to. 

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Also! 

You may have seen that we've announced a Charity Deadlift-Only competition. 

(Just) Stand Up to Cancer - Deadlift Only - you can find more information here.

Or if you want to enter -