Athletic performance is an impressive combination of muscle contractions guided by the central nervous system that cause joint actions to move in a specific manner, therefore accomplishing specified tasks. These tasks can be as simple as walking or as complicated as a jump serve.

The athlete’s body is capable of performing countless movement patterns. All movement patterns include 10 main joints within the human movement system and have very specific responsibilities that are narrowed down to stability or mobility.

  1. The foot is tasked with stability.
  2. The ankle is tasked with mobility.
  3. The knee is tasked with stability.
  4. The hip is tasked with mobility.
  5. The lumbar spine is tasked with stability.
  6. The thoracic spine is tasked with mobility.
  7. The cervical spine is tasked with stability.
  8. The shoulder is tasked with mobility
  9. The elbow is tasked with stability.
  10. The wrist is tasked with mobility.

According to the National Association of Sports Medicine, mobility is defined as the ability to move freely and easily. Stability is the ability of the body to maintain postural equilibrium and support joint movement. Notice the pattern in the kinetic chain, from foot to wrist as the joints stack, they alternate from stability to mobility. This pattern creates an ideal platform for dynamic human movement. This is crucial to overall athletic performance.

A disruption in this pattern can create dysfunction in the entire body, leading to poor performance or injury. You might see a disruption in this pattern from overuse, chronic repetition from playing one sport, or muscle imbalances. A disruption can be as simple as stability joints becoming too mobile or mobility joints becoming too stable. For these reasons, it’s highly crucial to maintain the integrity of the joints’ original purpose and function.

Now that we understand the role and responsibilities of each joint, we can break them down with corrective exercises to maintain or build the integrity of each location. Let’s look at ankle mobility for instance. I was once told that all injuries start from the ground up. That’s why having healthy feet and mobile ankles is the first crucial piece in injury prevention. If mobility is limited at the ankle, the shock of landing force will be absorbed somewhere up the kinetic chain. This could contribute to knee pain or injury, hip pain or injury or even low back pain or injury. I find this to be especially true for plyometric athletes – those that are jumping often (i.e., volleyball players).

Think about it. When you land from a jump squat, approach or jump serve, if your ankle has limited flexion, or is stiff, you are unable to flex, or bend, your knees and hips to a greater depth – thus absorbing less shock. Having the ability to cushion your landing because of an appropriate amount of ankle mobility can greatly improve weight distribution, force distribution and even help to increase your load, thus gaining more ability to explode!

To ensure your human movement system is moving in the direction of optimal performance, sign up here to get this free video to increase your ankle mobility.

Check out YAX Online for volleyball specific, performance breathwork videos.  Click HERE to get started. Use code JVA30 at checkout for 30% off monthly, 6 month or yearly options! Get your free yoga breathwork video here.

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About the Author

Patricia Bomar is the co-owner of Yoga Athletex LLC with her sister, Kalynn Evans. She was an athlete from the age of 4, playing multiple sports competitively at the club level for 14 years. Her college years included club and intramural sports. She earned her B.S. in Sport Management from Texas A&M in 2007. While studying she worked under the TAMU Track & Field coach, as a personal trainer following the NSCA – CSCS program. At the time she was also a volleyball and softball coach and was an avid member of CrossFit. In 2013 she earned her 200 hour yoga certification and in 2015 earned her 300 hour yoga certification. Currently she has earned the ERYT500 standard. Shortly after, she became certified in Functional Movement Systems (FMSC). In 2017, she acquired her NASM – CPT certificate and continues to attend several intensives and workshops to stay up to date with current exercise science. Her latest certification was the fitness nutrition specialist (FNS) acquired through NASM. She is currently an official education provider for the National Academy of Sport Medicine, Athletics and Fitness Association of America and the Yoga Alliance. With over 17 years experience, Patricia has a strong passion for bringing the healing benefits of yoga to her fellow athletes for injury prevention and increased performance.