Become more flexible quickly and effectively through joint mobility work?

How do I train to be able to move freely?

The “No Brain No Gain” approach is the enemy of better movement

To become more mobile, we need to take a radically different approach to physical training and our relationship with our bodies.

Here, no “no pain, no gain”.

In fact, we want to develop a better connection between the body and the mind , in other words, we refine the link between your nervous system and your muscles, tendons and joints.

We cannot therefore afford to have a forceful approach at the risk of injuring or even breaking the body.

Here, no soreness the next day, no sweating or even shortness of breath.

What we are willing to accept is a simple inconvenience but nothing more .

It seems strange at first to think that I'm going to train but not sweat, or reach exhaustion or muscle fatigue, but that's what will happen most of the time, and that's a good thing.

Again, joint mobility training is work that requires your full attention .

You can't do an exercise and at the same time think about paying your rent at the end of the month, the emails you have to send or the text messages you just received on your cell phone.

It's counterproductive if you do that.

This is also why a 2-hour mobility session makes no sense since your brain will get tired long before then.

Quality is superior to quantity

You understand, what matters here is quality .

No reps, no sets, no numbers.

We try to work on duration, sensation.

For example, address each movement of each joint and repeat this movement for 60 to 90 seconds or until you feel supple, loose, relaxed.

The goal is to make each movement as perfectly as possible .

We try to breathe well, relax and move gracefully, focusing on our posture, the way we engage our core.

We try to segment each joint, move each vertebra independently of each other, move the shoulder from all angles, try to rotate the hip, flex the toes as much as possible...

It's like trying to move every limb of a wooden dummy.

Dragon Squat Demonstration by Roye Goldschmidt, Movement Israel

The body is very intelligent and will always respond to the demands you place on it.

If you want to improve your mobility, move better, more freely, in a fluid, light, elegant way, it is not by adopting an extremist mentality, nor by rushing the movements that you will achieve it.

Feed your body with quality thoughts and intentions and it will produce quality in return .

Set specific goals

Addressing mobility is very similar to the work an engineer might do.

For me, it's problem solving .

Before you begin, you need to define one or more specific objectives to achieve.

If you don't know where you're going, you won't know what to work on, why, or how.

Saying “I want to feel better, freer” is far too vague.

It is best to take a systematic approach by answering simple questions like these:

• Do I have joint pain? If so, these are the areas that need to be treated first.
  
  
• In what movement scenarios do these pains appear?
  Having shoulder pain when trying to do a dip is not treated the same way as having that pain when trying to do a pull-up.
  
  
• How important is this movement for my physical practice?
  
  
• Do I have any history, injuries, trauma related to an accident…?
  
  
• How much does this affect my other joints, my posture...

Here are some questions that are worth answering before you begin your training.

After that, you will be able to define a precise protocol , choose the right exercises, organize your training sessions in advance and be able to plan for the weeks or months to come.

One Size Fits All?

As you can see, we all have different bodies, needs, limitations, abilities, motivations, and goals.

So no “One Size Fits All” here .

It is better to contact a professional and try to approach this work like an engineer: define the problems to be solved, try to reduce them to the smallest possible entity and try to solve these one after the other.

Coach Slim working with a student on his hip mobility

If you don't have the means or the desire to invest in your health in this way, we at the Nomadslim Movement Academy try to help you by offering training in movement and joint mobility to learn how to unlock your body and free it from its limitations and joint pain.

It's an opportunity to learn more about how your body works and to have a protocol, a general mobility routine to implement in your daily life to already feel better, more aware, freer.

This is a great start to your journey towards physical independence .

Regular, low-intensity workouts

By definition of intensity, if you go at your maximum effort during a workout, you will necessarily need rest to recover .

Indeed, for your body to adapt, there must be a recovery phase after your training phase.

You stress the body a little, it rests, it adapts, you can push the cursor further next time.

With mobility work, this way of working makes no sense.

It is completely counterproductive.

Indeed, if you put your body in the red zone , you won't be able to do anything the following days, you will be stiff, tired, demotivated.

Since you are working the nervous system, if it is unusable, you will say goodbye to your session and therefore to your progress.

This effort-recovery-adapt mentality is not suited for joint mobility .

It's more consistent when you work on fitness.

It's like the difference between training a Formula 1 driver (mobility) and improving the Formula 1 car (weight training, CrossFit, gymnastics, etc.).

Work smart for longevity , not ego.

Coach Slim in the middle of a meditation exercise after a mobility session

Create discipline

No magic formulas, no crazy promises, no products to buy, no supplements to ingest, no magic pill, no miracle results, nothing very sexy unfortunately,

only discipline, courage, self-esteem and love, mental strength and the will to end the pain, to live better and to be happy every day.

Our tip for maintaining your discipline is to never miss two sessions in a row .

It's simple: when you miss a session on Monday and another on Tuesday, you'll see that by Wednesday, your pile of excuses, frustrations and discouragements is so high that you need to make an even greater effort to get back into the swing of things.

Instead of doing this emotional yo-yo every week, simply try to do your session every day, even just a little bit, otherwise, skip a session to recharge and start again the next day.

You're not tired, sore, or too bored after a mobility session, so it's much easier to develop greater discipline.

It's also a quality that you'll see transferred to other areas of your life, such as at work or with your relationships...

discipline is freedom .

Give me the exercises

A consistent mobility training program attempts to address every joint and movement to help you achieve your goals.

Let's take the example of Samir, an MMA fighter I worked with in the past.

He wanted to improve his hip mobility for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

His problem: he can't make a triangle with his legs without having a lot of trouble lifting his leg above his opponent's head to grab his head and shoulder from a position on the ground, lying on his back.

He felt "stiff, blocked, stuck, frustrated" at not being able to move as he wanted, and this greatly diminished his performance in competition.

We therefore established together a precise protocol to work on the flexion and external rotation of the right hip, its weakest point.

A key position was to reestablish his deep squat and his ability to actively rotate his hip outward .

We used two exercises as a priority: a simple progression with the wall, then a vertical bar to reach the deep squat position.

Nothing static , we try to get into this position and get out of it in small jolts.

A second exercise, the Horse Stance, widely used in Kung Fu, in which you spread your legs and try to lower your hips to knee height while keeping your back straight.

A few little rocks and pushes on the knees, then we started to see progress.

After only 9 weeks of work , no more pain and Samir is now very comfortable with his triangles.

You therefore understand that the exercises have no importance if they are not organized and arranged in such a way as to respond to a specific problem .

Slowly but surely

The biggest point of confusion among people when it comes to joint mobility training is how long it takes to see visible results .

Again, it depends on all the previous parameters: what is your current mobility, what are your goals, do you have any injuries or traumas, are you already very active, do you have discipline...

Back Bend Demonstration by Coach Slim

Based on my experience over the past 3 years and the many students I have had, I think it can be estimated that it takes 3 weeks for you to feel better in your body, even if only mentally, and you are more aware of your body.

You will solve one of your major problems after 8 to 9 weeks of regular work ,

Finally, maintain, most often, a discipline over the long term and integrate mobility into your daily routine after 16 weeks of work.

Often, after 6 months, you have reinvented yourself and your movements have nothing to do with what they were before.

A few months of adopting new habits for a better life is a small price to pay, don't you think?

A final word from your mobility coach

To work on your joint mobility, you will have understood, this requires

time, effort, dedication and above all a state of mind oriented towards good movement, well-being and good living.

Don't hesitate to take a look at the Nomadslim training courses,

or individual coaching to start your adventure towards physical autonomy.

See you soon my move, move well.

Nomad Slim
Founder of MOUVERS