Am I too old to improve my flexibility?

Are you looking at the way other people seem to move somewhat effortlessly, expressing their flexibility without even being aware of it? But as much as you’d like to be like them, you’ve resigned yourself to the fact that at your age it’s just too late to do something about the fact that your body seems to be getting more creaky by the day. You wake up with a sore back more mornings than you don’t, your joints are aching at the end of the day and it’s getting harder to tie up your shoes laces. It bothers you, but everyone your age seems to be feeling the same, so you figure its just part of getting older. You’re still a little envious though of the guys you see getting after it seemingly without their body falling apart.

You are not alone. But it makes me sad to see how many people just put up with the fact that their bodies feel more and more restricted, that everyday tasks like getting up and down from the floor or reaching for a glass in the overhead cupboard are getting harder. Let alone being able to participate in the activities and sports they love. Yet a lot of people just accept it as part of ageing, and I’m not talking about people in their sixties and seventies here. Don’t you want a body that supports you doing all the things you love, rather than one that holds you back and has you sitting on the sidelines?

Truth is – your body and the way it moves will change as you get older, either for the better or for worse. To make it worse, well that doesn’t require much. The less we do, the faster we lose our strength and our flexibility. Just like our endurance – if you stop running for a few month, your endurance will take a dive. But just like you can build that up again with training, you can also improve your flexibility. To improve the way you move requires work, but it is absolutely doable.

The key to being able to improve on your current ability to move and build strength & flexibility is consistent work and a structured plan. How much change you’ll see and how long it will take depends on a few factors including your starting point, training history and age, how often you train and at what intensity. It is important to set the expectation that flexibility – no matter what age you start – is a process that takes time and doesn’t happen overnight. Years of neglect won’t be undone in the matter of a few weeks or even months, it’ll take time. But the sooner you start, the sooner you will feel the difference. The other thing that we should be aware of is that while we can all improve our flexibility, not all of our bodies are capable of the same levels of flexibility across all joints. Just something to keep in mind, but don’t let that stop you – there is a lot that can be done for all of us.

Now that I am closer to 40 than I am to 30, I am the most flexible I have ever been. Not just compared to my 20 year old self, but even as I child I didn’t have some of the ranges I can now move freely in. I have worked with many clients who have gained flexibility they never had in their 40’, 50’s and even 60’s. So it is possible if you want it enough to make the time for it.

I would suggest not trying to fix everything at once, but prioritise what is most important and make some progress on that. Once you do, you can then place that on maintenance and move onto the next thing you’d like to address.

Let’s get flexy,
Kat