Functional Exercises to Improve Your Stability and Mobility

Function is an important component of a healthy lifestyle. Without function, we are unable to perform activities of daily living, leaving us dependent on others for assistance and unable to work toward other goals in health, fitness and performance.

One thing you will often hear me say to my athletes is: Looking at the body from the ground up, it follows a pattern of stable and mobile joints, alternating as we ascend upward.

Functionality is a product of two these important components, which are stability and mobility.

To improve the function of the entire body, we start from the ground up by using exercises that will challenge the stability of joints that are meant to be stable, while increasing the mobility of joints that are designed to be mobile.

By using this method, injuries can be prevented and function improved (or restored).

Workouts & Functional Exercises for Improving Stability and Mobility

Practice the following exercises as part of a dynamic warm-up (one set of 8 reps for each move). These will develop your stability and mobility while also gently increasing your heart rate.

If you are new to exercise this is a good workout on its own. Complete one to three sets of five to 10 repetitions of each.

(As a barefoot advocate I highly recommend you perform these exercises without shoes.)

Foot Stability - Stationary Runner

With one foot grounded and the knee slightly flexed, move the body slowly through a running action while maintaining your balance.

Ankle Mobility – Standing Plantar-/Dorsiflexion

While standing, rock slowly from the toes to the heels, working your ankles through a full range of motion.

Knee Stability – Lunge Matrix

Perform lunges in a clockwise motion, moving from a traditional forward lunge to a diagonal lunge, lateral lunge, reverse lunge and crossover lunge. There is no need to go to great depths, because this exercise focuses on increasing the strength of the muscles and connective tissue surrounding the knee joint while also improving range of motion at the hips.

Hip Mobility – Walking Hip Openers

While walking, move one knee out, up and around at the hip joint and then switch to the other leg. Maintain a forward-walking motion and avoid rotating the shoulders. Be sure to perform this exercise in the reverse direction, as well.

Lumbar (Lower back) Stability - Lateral Bird Dog

From a bird dog position, drift the extended arm and leg out away from the mid line of the body while maintaining the position of the spine and hips.

Thoracic (Chest) Mobility – Supine Rotational Reaches

Lying supine (on your back) on the ground, cross one leg over the other, pressing the knee into the floor or mat. Keep the shoulders on the ground, if possible, and alternate arms reaching up toward the ceiling.

Chest-Shoulder Stability – Scapular Push-ups

From a prone (on your stomach) plank position on the elbows, pull you shoulders back and down (shoulder pack). While maintaining a straight line from head to toe, drop the chest down by allowing the shoulder blades to come together in the back. Then push the chest back up and stretch the shoulder blades apart while maintaining the shoulder-pack position. This exercise can also be performed on the knees.

Shoulder Mobility – Prone I.Y.T.W.O

Lie prone (on your stomach) on a mat, point your toes away from your body and fully extend your elbows and fingers, let you palms face each other. Now as you exhale and pull you shoulders back and down and hold this position while doing each of the letters I , Y, T, W and O as illustrated in the pictures.