Hypermobility versus Flexibility

Here’s the deal: the term ‘flexibility’ refers to muscles while the term ‘hypermobility’ refers to ligaments.  Muscles and ligaments are two distinct types of tissues which perform very different functions in the body. Here’s a quick anatomy primer:

• Muscles are contractile tissues that cross over one or more joints in your body. When a muscle contracts, it causes movement of the joint it crosses.
• Ligaments, on the other hand, are short bands of fibrous connective tissue that connect bone-to-bone and effectively “fasten” our joints together. Ligaments do not contract or create movement in the body. Instead, ligaments serve as the “seat belts” of our joints. They are our back-up system to stabilise our joints if our body moves in a way that would otherwise take a joint beyond its normal range of motion.

When we stretch, our intention should be to lengthen our muscles, NOT our ligaments.  Muscles return to their original length after a stretch is released – a property called elasticity. Ligaments do not return to their original length as well as a muscle does. If over-stretched, they will permanently stay at that new length and are referred to as “lax”. Lax ligaments no longer stabilise our joints and can be a source of injury and pain.

OVERSTRETCHING OUR LIGAMENTS IS UNCOOL

Although many people have been told that they’re hypermobile, only a small percentage of the population actually has a condition of generalised, all-over joint hypermobility. In reality, most people who consider themselves hypermobile simply have a specific number of joints whose ligaments have become lax.  This is usually the result of the joint being habitually loaded beyond its normal range of motion, which is what happens when we “flop into our joints” over and over again without any muscular support. Once you have the ability to hyperextend a joint, you will always have that ability, because you can’t “stiffen” your ligaments back up once they’ve become lax. This is a really importance concept to remember!

HYPERMOBILITY = LACK OF FLEXIBILITY (…WHAT?)

As surprising as it sounds, hypermobility often goes hand-in-hand with tight muscles. Our bodies tend to to move via “the path of least resistance”. It’s always easier to move your body where you’re already mobile than a place that is stiff and tight. Think of your favourite stretches vs the ones you don’t like so much. If a person with lax ligaments attempts to stretch their muscles, their body will sneakily rearrange itself into familiar and easy “hypermobility land”, therefore bypassing the intended muscular stretch and loading the ligaments instead.  The result is that we perform stretches that reinforce hypermobility in these joints and the muscles (that needed to be warmed up) don’t get stretched at all.  The best way to to override this tendency of the body is to learn and practice intelligent alignment.

IF YOU DON’T HAVE HYPERMOBILITY?

Many dancers who don’t have hyperextension feel like they got the short end of the genetic stick. However, in general “tight” dancers are likely to have a longer and less injury prone career. They also tend to be able to develop strength better and be better jumpers.

IF YOU DO HAVE IT?

It is important to remember that the more hypermobile you are, the more strength you need to control it. You should be spending your conditioning time working on stability and joint control. Yes this is hard, but it is going to benefit you in the long run and help reduce risk of injury. Hypermobility is often more of a curse than a gift – it requires a lot of dedication and focus to control.

QUESTIONS?

If you have any questions about hypermobility and learning to control it, feel free to message me through Facebook or email me. Those in the Greater Geelong area or the Bellarine Peninsula – I am available for workshops and consultations via appointment. I also consult in Melbourne regularly (one Friday a month) – feel free to contact me for an appointment.