On Wednesday nights, physical therapist James Chung teaches a class called Kinstretch inside of MOTIVNY, a movement and physical therapy studio nestled behind a wall of floor-to-ceiling windows on Downtown Manhattan's Mott Street. As Chung himself is getting back into running and training for a 10-mile race as a personal goal in the new year, he knows that the foundations for a solid stride start with mobility—which is exactly what Kinstretch is all about. 

It’s something I was personally resistant to at first. You mean to tell me that I’m going to take a full hour out of my day to “work out” without actually feeling like I’m doing a workout? No shoes? Minimal sweat? It sounded, honestly, a little soft. But after a few weeks, I was drinking the Kool-Aid—and I was able to hold certain positions that felt Tom Cruise-level impossible just weeks prior. More importantly, my knee tendonitis started to calm down. 

It was quickly making more sense, in other words, why has become a ubiquitous fitness buzzword, and why more and more studios are adding focused group classes into their regular offerings, including big names like Equinox and Crunch. 

Loosely, mobility is a combination of strength and flexibility. Flexibility is passive, specifically how far you can move a specific joint or stretch a muscle. Whereas mobility is the active control of that range of motion. Think of it this way: Nathan Chen, one of the best American male figure skaters of our time, can easily swing his leg backward before hammering through gliding quadruple jumps. Mobility is him being to hold the leg in that backward position, without added assistance or momentum.

Physical therapist Jess Chang, who works with clients out of MOTIVNY, has noticed this trend—and says the causes are probably multifaceted. “Over the pandemic, wellness just became something that so many really focused on in a new way,” she says. “Work from home culture has also resulted in non-ergonomic setups that aren’t ideal for our bodies, which means more issues in the body that people are starting to notice. People are tired of pain, and that’s where a mobility practice can make a major difference. Think of mobility as self-care for your joints, which need the blood flow that comes through movement in all different planes of motion.” 

If you're curious, it's possible—and probably advisable—to start small, with something that feels achievable and digestible. (If there aren't any studio courses near you, consider following along to a workout on YouTube.) But schedule it like an important meeting that you can’t miss. “Mobility work is kind of like brushing your teeth—but for your joints,” says Chang. “No matter how much you brush your teeth, you’ll eventually eat again and then you have to do it again the next day. The effects will add up over time.” She recommends about 10 to 15 minutes per day.

And of course, just like with any new habit, the most important thing aside from actually starting is knowing your “why”—which will help you keep showing up. “So some self reflection on what your goals are for picking up the practice, aside from that you feel like you ‘should.’” It could be training for that 10-mile, hitting Olympic lift PRs, or simply experiencing less pain after a long workday. 

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