Any exercise that you include in your regular routine should have an intrinsic value and add to your overall health and fitness. When portions of an exercise cause pain and injuries, such as hyperextending while doing lunges, you may need to remove the activity from your workout or learn proper techniques. When starting a new exercise or developing problems with a current activity, check with your doctor before making changes or trying to remedy the issue yourself to avoid additional complications.
Did you ever have a friend that could bend his thumb all the way back to his wrist or can you do it yourself? If so, you've witnessed at least one effect of being "double jointed." The term double jointed describes a ...
Your lower leg is made up of two bones that connect together below your knee: the tibia and the fibula. The tibia is the larger of your two lower leg bones and absorbs much of the shock when you perform high-impact activities, ...
The term can also refer to other parts of the anatomy. For example, ligaments are said to be flexible. Flexing a ligament too far, however, can result in serious injury. Range of motion, in medical terms, generally refers to ho...
Long-term immobility in persons disabled by paralysis or physical conditions that prevent them from moving an arm, a leg or other part of the body, may result in increased disability and complications. If you don't move your mu...
Regardless of your specific break, you are probably experiencing pain and loss of range of motion. As you recover, doing yoga may help. Consult with your health care provider before practicing yoga.
Whether you are an elite athlete, a weekend warrior, or a general fitness enthusiast, there are necessary components required when you put together a complete workout program. Identified here are eight different areas of emphas...
The human shoulder is an amazing piece of machinery. No other joint is as complicated or allows as much range of motion. As a consequence, the number of injuries and conditions that affect the shoulder region are equally numero...
The deltoid is the large triangular muscle that covers the shoulder joint. The deltoid aids in the movement of the shoulder, which is essential in swimming, so more-than-average flexibility and range of motion is important to a...
Not all joints move. By definition, a joint is the point where two or more bones meet. The design of most joints allows for mobility, while a few others remain stationary. Joints that move have specific types of movements they ...
Weak quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes can promote injury by forcing the knees to take more pressure than they should. Without proper stabilization, many injuries are possible. Using knee wraps for deadlifts supports the joint ...
Hypermobility is the condition in which your joint over-extends beyond the normal limits. This can be the result of a traumatic event or a global syndrome that affects all of your joints. The treatment is similar in all cases a...
Special exercises help strengthen the wrist and increase range of motion in the joint. Rehabilitation begins shortly after cast removal or after you have healed from surgery to repair the bone.
Because it is so mobile, the shoulder is also vulnerable to injury. When injured, Codman pendulum exercises may be recommended by a health care professional as part of therapy to relax the muscles in your shoulder, relieve pain...
Extensors in your body refer to muscle groups and tendons that increase the angle between two bones or joints when they are contracted. These include extensors in your hands, fingers, arms, shoulders, spine, hip and legs. Since...
Exercising these muscles regularly helps increase your shoulder joint's range of motion and muscular strength, and may prevent certain shoulder injuries that are common among athletes who execute overhead striking and throwing ...
Registered Kinesiotherapists, or RKTs, utilize kinesiotherapeutic exercises to promote effective and safe rehabilitation of injuries, physical limitations and muscular deficits. Performing kinesiotherapeutic-type exercises at ...
The word static means without movement. You use static strengthening exercises to improve muscle tone and strength when you cannot easily move a joint through a range of motion. Your quadriceps are a muscle group that forms the...
Exercises for a fractured tibia aim to expedite the healing process as well as improve the range of motion in your ankle and surrounding joints. Depending on the severity of the fracture, you will begin exercise and rehabilitat...
If your joints are overstressed, they may deteriorate and become painful. If they are not stressed enough, they may degenerate and lose their range of motion, according to yoga and anatomy instructor Paul Grilley. When you prac...
The meniscus helps to cushion your knee joint and provide stability. Exercises that rehabilitate a torn meniscus first concentrate on restoring your knee joint's range of motion, then advance to strengthening your knee's suppo...
You must work your biceps through a full range of motion and develop the supporting musculature to avoid injury. Perform both multi-joint, or compound, and isolation exercises for maximal development of your biceps. A combinati...
More specifically, this look takes place in the gastrocnemius, which has a lateral and medial head. The other portion of the calf is the soleus, which sits in front of the gastroc. An isometric exercise involves no range of mot...
However, some exercises or moves may cause damage to your body if you don't perform them correctly. Hyperextension of some muscles, especially those found in your hip joint, upper front and rear thighs are important in sports a...
The American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons states that TMJ problems are common and cause numerous symptoms, including earaches, headaches and reduced jaw range of motion. Nutritional supplementation may be help...
Residual limb exercises strengthen and stretch the muscles that support your artificial limb. Exercises help improve your joint range of motion, bed mobility, body symmetry and prevent muscle atrophy in your artificial limb. Do...
Dynamic Chiropractic notes that today, manual muscle testing is used orthopedists, neurologists and physical therapists across the world. Manual muscle testing allows medical specialists to observe and record range of motion an...
Numerous muscles cross your hip joints, providing weight-bearing support and facilitating abduction, adduction, extension, external rotation, flexion and internal rotation ranges of motion. The hip muscles allow you to execute ...
Increasing your flexibility can provide you with many benefits. Flexibility training can improve your posture and freedom of movement, increase your relaxation, reduce your risk of injury and release muscle tension and soreness...
A goniometer is a device that measures the range of motion in a joint. This simple device resembles a mathematical compass, with a flat plastic disc and measurements attached to two plastic legs, one labeled stationary and one...
When you lift your knee, raise your foot into the air while lying down, or arc your leg upward while performing leg, buttocks or hip exercises, you're flexing your hip joint. A number of muscles are responsible for this abilit...
You also can use the bands for stretching. The bands offer up to 100 lbs. of resistance equivalent to weights. FlexBands give you isotonic resistance. Isotonic means that the resistance changes throughout the movement of exerc...
Many of the postures and motions gently utilize the range of motion in your joints, like wrists, ankles, shoulders and knees. Because qi gong has minimal impact on your joints and can be performed by almost anyone, it is being ...
Gyrokinetic exercise involves performing a series of continuous, flowing movements that take your joints through their full range of motion. When performed on machines with resistance, this type of exercise is called gyrotonics...
The most mobile of all joints in the human body, the ball and socket joint consists of a rounded surface that articulates with a concave surface. The shoulder joint and the hip joint are large ball and socket joints.
It happens so quickly that you can't see the entire movement. Slow it down and you see how their body rotates at the spine and shoulder, moving together through a large range of motion in order to produce the torque needed to t...
Joints vary in flexibility depending upon the type of joint. A ball-and-socket joint such as your hip joint, for example, has a greater range of motion than a hinge joint like your elbow. Except for the joint socket itself, the...
Developed by Dr. Shizuo Inoue, the original Chi Machine was inspired by the undulating action of the goldfish tail. By oscillating the feet in a motion that mimics the swimming motion of fish, proponents claim the machine provi...
Osteo Bi-Flex is a nutritional supplement that purportedly helps in renewing cartilage, lubricating the joints and supporting range of motion within the joints. A health care professional should be consulted before taking any n...
There are many benefits associated with optimal flexibility levels. When testing flexibility, the range of motion is measured when placing a muscle group in an elongated, or stretched, position. Flexibility is joint specific; t...
The tool used to measure range of motion is called a goniometer, which is basically a protractor with two arms that extend out. Range of motion is measured in degrees, and it describes how much movement is possible at a given j...
Your legs have a variety of large muscles that function to help stabilize your body while standing and move your ankle, knee and hip joints through their intended ranges of motion. The main leg muscles include the gluteus maxim...
Joint range of motion exercises need to be included in your exercise and/or physical activity routine. The exercises help to keep your joints from becoming stiff and assist you in leading a more fulfilling, functional life. Mak...
Braces come in all shapes and sizes, and some even have complicated hardware designed to help doctors make gradual adjustments or restrict the range of motion in order to prevent further injury. Minor braces are sometimes avail...
There are three main types of joints. Synarthroses are joints that do not move, such as those that connect the bones of the skull. Amphiarthroses are joints with a limited range of motion, such as where the ribs connect to the ...
Hypafix is a perforated sheet of sticky tape with a non-woven cloth topside. The bonding agent used to create Hypafix is considered a low-allergy adhesive. According to Smith & Nephew, Hypafix has the ability to conform it...
The spine contains a large number of joints. Individually, these joints tend to have very limited ranges of motion. However, collectively, these joints allow for an impressive range of total spine motion through a variety of pl...
A tendon is a strong band of tissue that connects a muscle to a bone in the body. Tendons assist the muscles in moving the skeletal bone joints. A fluid-filled sheath surrounds the tendon, protecting it from injury. The synoviu...
The body is formed with a variety of joints allowing bone-on-bone movement. The amount of this movement is range of motion. Range of motion differs within each joint and is dependent on the structure of the joint itself, the so...
Range of motion is the amount of movement that you are able to do at each joint. This may differ among individuals due to bony structure and mobility, as well as soft tissue tension. Injury restrictions can also limit your abil...
A joint's range of motion is the angle through which a joint moves from the anatomical position to the extreme limit of the motion in a particular direction. Having an optimal range of motion allows you to move freely without p...
This condition arises when your shoulder is immobile for an extended period of time from an injury or surgery. The lack of motion causes your shoulder joint to become sore and stiff. Specific corrective exercises can be used to...
Ligaments are the connective tissues which hold bones and joints together. If they are over-extended, twisted or otherwise stressed and stretched beyond normal range of motion, a sprain occurs. Since all the body's weight is su...
