There’s an amazing feeling you get when you can move your body with ease. Today I’d like to share some tips with you to improve your mobility that you may find surprising.
Mobility can be restricted for many reasons: injury, lack of movement, loss of strength or balance, chronic diseases like arthritis and diabetes, scar tissue, and obesity.


 
And there are many useful ways to improve mobility ranging from physical therapy, yoga, qi gong, tai chi, myofascial release, bodywork, stretching daily…but here are 4 tips I’d like you to consider.

1. Hydration. Your body must be hydrated to optimize mobility. Your tissues cannot move properly with insufficient hydration. This links not just to your water intake, but also your diet since minerals from your food tell the water where to go within your body! I read an excellent book many years ago called “You’re Not Sick, You’re Thirsty!” by Fereydoon Batmanghelidj that covers this in great detail if you are interested. The takeaway is that every part of your body needs CLEAN water (filtered), about half your body weight in ounces per day, and you need minerals to absorb water properly. Eating a whole foods diet with plenty of high quality protein and nutrient dense plant foods (mostly veggies) and high quality, mineral rich salt is a great general approach to achieve this.
2. Breathe from your armpits. I know that sounds very strange, but in a great interview with Aaron Alexander and Dr. Michael Ruscio (https://drruscio.com/physical-mobility-emotional-flexibility/), they discuss the limitations to “belly breathing”. Here’s a quote from that interview to help illustrate the suggestion to breathe from your armpits versus your belly: “A lot of “belly breathers” are not really engaging their diaphragm and they’re still very limited. They’re just distending; they’re pushing their belly out and in. That’s not effective breathing…{and breathe into} the low back, and the lateral side of the ribs, like breathe into your armpits man. You want the whole system to expand and contract. In a good breath, you’re going to have a subtle medial and external rotation of the arms, of the hips. As you’re laying down and you’re breathing, people can do that, just lay down, just sitting down you can feel it. Breathe in, my arms kind of expand out. Open, open, open. As I breathe out, there’s a subtle medial rotation. Through my spine, I breathe in, and I feel a little extension. My spine literally gets longer. I traction my vertebra. That’s how you feed yourself, and feed yourself at a cellular level.”
3. Just move. That may sound strange considering that lack of mobility makes it hard to move, but less movement begets more immobility. Use it so you don’t lose it! If walking hurts, what about moving in the water? If you don’t feel strong enough to lift heavy things, start lighter or start with moving just your own body in ways that aren’t painful. There are tons of options. Commit to finding a solution. As your mobility improves, you will have even more opportunities. 
4. Embrace a growth mindset. Oftentimes, when we feel limited, it can make us feel like a victim and that life isn’t fair. A growth mindset is when you are open to the possibilities rather than focusing on the limitations. I’m not saying that you don’t have challenges–of course you do, that’s life–what I am saying is that you approach those challenges with as much curiosity as possible. This goes for physical limitations, but did you know there is an association between loss of mobility and lack of emotional flexibility?? They discuss this in that interview I linked to above. An example would be: show up each day with the intention of not letting your past dictate your future—show up with curiosity. Be courageous and communicate from a loving place what your needs and preferences are…and when possible, provide those things for yourself! Having a growth mindset means that you are open to having a different future experience. This openness shifts you from looking at things from the angle of a victim and empowers you with accountability.
    

I hope these tips are helpful for you!
It is my passion to work with people like you whose health symptoms are getting in the way of you living life fully and with a sense of freedom in your body. I can help you to regain your health so you can feel great and free to enjoy life fully.

If you’re ready to discover where your best health has been hiding, I’d love to connect with you!

Apply for a complimentary Unstoppable Health Discovery Session. bit.ly/schedulinghealth (subject to availability).

Until next time, I’m wishing you unstoppable health!
~Rebecca