Andy Fortuna
Mobility unlocks healing and strength
When we think about strength training and fitness, we automatically think about lifting weights and high heart rates.
What we don’t realize is that before we get to that point, we need access to an unrestricted body.
Our bodies are shaped by our daily activities and habits. Whether we sit in an office all day, do heavy manual labor, stand for long periods, drive long distances, or even sleep in awkward positions…this shapes us. The longer we perform these activities, the better our body gets at adapting to them and forming into them. Rightfully so, we are what we do consistently,
The same is true in our training. Even a skilled athlete will be efficient and smooth 80% of the time (8 out of the 10 repetitions). That means the other 20% of the time, our technique is poor or breaking down. No matter how well we perform in training, 20% of the work will form poor adaptations. If left unaddressed, these adaptations lead to small accumulations that compound and further negatively influence our shape and function.
These accumulations build restrictions, tension, and blockages in our connective tissue known as the myofascial.
The body is held together by this myofascial system of interlinked tissues ranging from head to toe. What affects one area ultimately affects another. So by addressing these restrictions in one area of the body, you improve the function locally as well as distally in another. Only then can mobility and stability be restored and fully transformed into strength.
By breaking down these blockages, our bodies' natural ability to deliver nutrition (via the circulatory system)and remove waste (via the lymphatic system) is restored. Like unwinding kinks from a hose, this restoration of flow ensures a smooth and consistent stream to the whole body; a function that is imperative for daily repair and regeneration.
Mobility as a daily practice is like brushing your teeth. Simply rinsing your teeth is not good enough to maintain and build good oral hygiene. The same is true for our joints. Simply training through a full range of motion in our training is not enough. We must train consistently and specifically through mobility to address any accumulations from training and life.
It is through this unrestricted body that we gain access to and unlock healing and strength.