Recently I’ve had the amazing opportunity to vacation in Cancun before summer sizzles out, and thankfully while there I to the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza. Being one of the “New” Seven Wonders Of The World, it really made me think how they physically built these amazing structures.
Sure the tour was great, but no one knows exactly how these temples were constructed. Whether it was aliens or not I don’t know, but let’s assume they physically pushed these massive stones around with some sort of leverage. They may have constructed some pulley system, but when it comes down to it their bodies were built to physical peak and here’s why exactly….
HIP MOBILITY!
Why do I mention this? Well mainly because whether they pushed these stones or pulled them, a large group of the Mayans were built to do some work. Hip mobility has a lot to do with the flexibility and range or your hip motion, but more importantly whether or not you can harness the power your hips truly have.
Think about it this way, how many times throughout daily living do we flex or extend our hips? Well, there’s no specific number I can give you but I can tell you it’s A LOT. Just to name a few…
-picking up something off the floor
-Going up and down the stairs
-Sitting up from a chair
So it’s pretty clear that hip power along with mobility is a huge part of our lives whether we think of it that way or not. Think of hip power as our personal leverage when paired up with core strength. So how exactly did the Mayans have such powerful explosive hip mobility? They didn’t live a lifestyle that crippled them!
Think of it this way; not only does our way of life create postural distortions being hunched over our computers all day, but the lack of physical fitness and weight gain alone breakdown the way our bodies are supposed to work!
It’s true that when they say “if you don’t use it, you lose it”
Clearly your average American isn’t as physically fit as they should be mainly because of the sedentary lifestyles we live. Sure, we could build temples 10x the size and enormity of the Mayans, but surely not with the minimal amount of tools they had at their fingertips!
So What’s The Point?
Sure, our lives aren’t becoming physically more challenging any time soon – but if we train like a Mayan worked and utilize our hips more as opposed to doing more bicep curls we could enjoy the benefits of physical abilities which include:
-A stronger core
-Improved hip explosiveness and strength
-Less lower back pain!
How Do We Jump Start Our Hip Mobility?
Progressing isolated movements into more dynamic movements that involve you to drop your hips or pop them forward are key. One example of this would be taking a shoulder press and adding in a hip extension with a twist.
Another great way to boost our hip mobility is to do strength focused hip movements with a compound exercise, such as a dead lift. As bad of a reputation the movement gets, it’s one of the best things you could add into your program. Realistically speaking, the dead lift is nothing more than picking something up and putting it down….but properly!
This Really Is just scratching the surface when diving into hip mobility, but it goes to show how essential it is. We may never develop the strength and power that a Mayan would’ve required to create the massive temples, but regardless proper hip mobility is a key part of our fitness.
Dedicated to your health and fitness,
John Casto
571-354-0603
john@actionfitnessinc.com
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