Basic Mobility Routine

I pieced together this resource for Dr Diana Hoppe (our beloved expert on Being Badass After 40!). It’s a basic mobility routine that she can repeat 3-4 times per week, in order to maintain a healthy range of motion in her hips, shoulders, and everything in between.

Dr Diana and I would like to share this resource with you, her amazing community!

You can follow this mobility routine for injury prevention, for active recovery from your other activities, and for muscle tension relief. If you need more descriptions of each stretch/movement, you can find a short, informative video of the routine at the bottom of the page. Enjoy!

Cheers!

1

2

2

3 Foam Rolling

1- Thoracic Spine - Hold head in hands

2- Lats - Lay on armpit area... move forward/backward or up/down

3- Thoracic Spine Extension - Keep roller still... lean back and wrap vertebrae around roller

4- Quads - Face downward... staying on your elbows as you move forward/backwards, roll from hip to top of knee

2

4 Side lying thoracic rotation

Side lying on the floor, foam roller lying parallel to body. Top leg resting on the roller, arms straight, hands together, head neutral. Keeping knee in constant contact with foam roller, perform big arm circle. First reach overhead. As arm circles back and around, rest back of head on floor and try to open back of shoulder toward the ground. Finish arm circle (down and around) and repeat!

Cat/Cow

Transition back and forth between "cat back" (chin and tailbone tucked, pushing away from ground) and elongated spinal arch

Thread the needle and reach

On hands and knees, reach arm underneath and across body. Shoulder to the floor. Move back through neutral and reach same arm up toward ceiling. Push away from the ground with post arm to help facilitate rotation. Repeat 5 times on each side.

Inner Thigh Rockbacks

From hands and knees, straighten one leg out to the side. Keep weight evenly distributed between knee and foot. Lift tailbone (slight arch in back), and rock hips backwards and forwards repeatedly.

Curtsy Lunges

Standing tall, take a step back and across your body. Sink downwards into a curtsy position. Send hips back to feel a stretch in outer glute. Use a stable surface, if necessary!

Strider lunge to hamstring stretch

From hands and knees, place one foot on outside of both hands. Shift weight forward and sink back hip toward floor into a deep lunge. Hold for 3-5 seconds. Then shift weight backward to stick out butt and make front leg straighter. Hold for 3-5 seconds. Rock between two positions repeatedly. Switch legs!

Cheerleader switches

Sit like a cheerleader on the sidelines (both knees bent to about 90 degrees, one knee out, one knee in).

1- Lean back on your hands to feel a stretch in the quad of your turned in knee. Keeping feet in roughly the same place, lift knees up toward ceiling and lay them down in the opposite 90/90 position. Repeat.

2- Remove hands from the floor and transfer from one side to the other. Add a forward fold / stretch for 3-5 sec on each side.

1

2

VIDEO of Mobility Routine

Follow this short video to see the mobility routine in action!

The video involves a quick description of each movement/ stretch... plus an additional abdominal exercise at the end.