Flexibility (anatomy)

In anatomy, flexibility is the study of the body and its architecture and capabilities. Flexibility refers to the complex dynamic that permits a joint in the body to achieve a specific range of motion. The science of flexibility explores the body’s limberness, or how it performs when asked to work against its own resistance. In the wake of the cultural fascination with martial arts, yoga, and other forms of meditational exercise, interest in flexibility has widely increased in the twenty-first century. As a result, many training programs that stress the most efficient, and safest, ways to work on the body’s flexibility are readily available on the Internet and in school and community gyms. But flexibility is far more than physical exercise. Kinesiology studies have regularly shown that working on the body’s flexibility—typically periodic but regular stretching, bending, or even directed breathing—positively impacts a person’s mental outlook and emotional well-being. Businesses have begun to recognize the relationship between flexibility and mental acuity, and thus the ability to work a full workday, and have begun to offer brief, informal flexibility sessions during the workday to improve employee productivity and to elevate morale.

Background

Although other types of physical exercise and training—such as building body mass through weight training or improving cardiovascular endurance by walking or running—routinely receive far more attention among athletes, flexibility training dramatically improves the body’s ability to engage in sports and other activities. Because flexibility training is often mistaken for the basic stretching and warm-up routines people engage in before lifting weights or jogging, flexibility remains the most underrated element of a healthy lifestyle. To build flexibility requires a cooperation of mind and body, as the body is asked to maintain precise and controlled movements while maintaining efficient breathing. By controlling and directing the body in such a way, a person increases their ability to address the demands of other more dynamic athletic endeavors without risk of injury. Flexibility has come to be considered an important lifestyle option for virtually any person of any age: professional and amateur athletes, people interested in maintaining basic activity cycles in their daily lives, or people combating the debilitating effects of stress, worry, and aging.

The body and its ability to move are structured on the systemic operation and cooperation of ten joint areas, that is those critical junctures where parts of the body come together joined by ligaments, tendons, and muscle: the neck, shoulders, elbows, lumbar (lower back), hips, waist, wrists, knees, and ankles.

The appropriate range of motion differs juncture to juncture—the lower back, for instance, does not have the need for the range of motion that the elbow has; the shoulder is more elastic than the wrist. In addition, there is no standard or even ideal range of motion. The body’s general flexibility depends on a variety of factors that differ from person to person, including age, gender, weight, lifestyle choices, genetics, height, and previous injury. Even the temperature in the room where a person trains impacts the body’s ability to respond. Generally, women are more flexible than men and younger people are more flexible than older people. Because there is no standard ideal, before engaging in flexibility training, people should evaluate their lifestyle and determine exactly what their necessary range of motion is. Regardless, everybody can benefit from flexibility training. Each person engaged in flexibility training must determine what range of motion is required to conduct their day-to-day life without fatigue, injury, persistent pain, or stress.

Flexibility is measured in three ways. First, there is static, or passive, flexibility in which the muscles elongate and return to an original position without forward or backward motion. Bending at the toes, doing a leg split, going from a seated position to resting the head and shoulders forward to the floor are examples of static flexibility. They involve tight and precise muscle control, as well as compensatory breathing. Active flexibility refers to joint performance when the body is engaged in particular motions. These motions can be relatively simple, like walking or picking up something, or complex and aggressive, like most contact sports. Finally, dynamic flexibility, the most complex measure of the body’s motion, includes specific and precise movements that use momentum as a way to actually expand a joint’s range of motion. To enhance dynamic flexibility, begin with a warm-up that incorporates stretching and controlled movements resembling the activity you plan to perform. For instance, before a soccer game, practicing leg circles can simulate kicking motions. Engaging in dynamic exercises before a workout helps improve movement efficiency. Over time, flexibility gradually increases, thus improving the body’s ability to perform.

Bibliography

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