Tip Joint Mobilizations for Heavy Lifters Search Skip to content Menu Menu follow us Store Articles Community Loyal-T Club Loyal-T Points Rewards Subscribe to Save Search Search The World s Trusted Source & Community for Elite Fitness Training Tip Joint Mobilizations for Heavy Lifters Hate traditional stretching Limber up with these simple drills by TJ Kuster January 31, 2019April 5, 2021 Tags It Hurts Fix It, Mobility, Tips, Training If you've been training heavy, your joints are going to get angry sooner or later. Maybe you have cranky shoulders, tight hips, bad knees, a painful lower back, or all of the above. If you've had enough of constantly feeling broken down and you're ready to ease your pain and regain mobility, try some self-administered joint mobilizations. What are joint mobilizations? Think about them as a series of stretches that open up your joints to allow fluid to move between them. This will decrease pain and increase mobility. In a way, it's like lubing up your joints. Simple Joint Mobilizations My favorite method for this (demonstrated in the videos) involves tying one end of a band to a sturdy anchor, the other end to a limb of the body. Once you're "tied in," slowly move away from the anchor to apply distraction to the desired joint. Once you feel a slight stretch, begin doing slow oscillating movements to allow the muscle to relax and promote the movement of fluid between joints. You shouldn't feel much of anything except for a slight distraction and a little relief. Don't overstretch the band or your muscles will "guard up" preventing your joint from opening properly. Joint Mobilizations for Your Shoulder Gently pull the arm attached to the band with your free hand. Perform small oscillating circular motions. Joint Mobilizations for Your Lower Back Joint Mobilizations for Your Hips Quick Warning If you're hypermobile, have acute inflammation, have a joint fracture or ligament rupture, avoid doing joint mobilization. Also, don't get dependent on these or any other prehab movements. Joint mobilizations should be used when you feel excessively restricted or overly compressed/compacted from doing heavy lifting. Doing them on every joint before and after every lifting session is excessive. Sources Hall & Brody: Therapeutic Exercise: Moving Toward Function, 2nd Edition 2005, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins Hertling D, Kessler RM. Management of Common Musculoskeletal Disorders: Physical Therapy Principles and Methods. 4th ed. LW&W, Philadephia, 2006. Konin, Jeff G, and Brittany Jessee. "Range of Motion and Flexibility." Physical Rehabilitation of the Injured Athlete, by James Rheuben Andrews et al., Elsevier/Saunders, 2012. Get The T Nation Newsletters Don' t Miss Out Expert Insights To Get Stronger, Gain Muscle Faster, And Take Your Lifting To The Next Level related posts Training The Exact Reps That Make You Grow Most of the reps you do are garbage reps. They add volume but they don't grow anything. Here's a new approach to making every rep count. Bodybuilding, Training Tom MacCormick July 6 Training 4-Week Chest Specialization If your chest is weak, you can't expect it to grow by only working it once every five to seven days. Here’s a better plan. Chest, Training Mike Samuels June 17 Training Tip The Fighter s Lunge Step back with one leg. As you come back up, lift the dumbbell with the thigh: flex your hip and raise your knee just above a 90-degree angle with the floor. Bodybuilding, Exercise Coaching, Legs, Tips Nick Tumminello May 30 Training Tip The Case for Smith Machine Squats If your main goal is building big quads, then it's perfectly fine (and perfectly safe) to use the Smith machine. Here's why. Legs, Squat, Tips, Training Nick Tumminello June 27