Mobility Tests: The 7 Key Assessments for Functional Movement, Injury Prevention, and Performance

What are the 7 tests for mobility?

Assessing mobility is crucial for understanding movement potential, identifying limitations that can lead to injury, and optimizing athletic performance. These seven key tests provide a comprehensive snapshot of your body's functional range of motion across major joints and movement patterns.

Understanding Mobility: More Than Just Flexibility

Before diving into specific assessments, it's essential to distinguish between flexibility and mobility. Flexibility refers to the passive range of motion (ROM) in a joint, often measured by how far a limb can be moved by an external force. Mobility, on the other hand, is the ability to actively move a joint through its full functional range of motion, requiring both adequate flexibility and sufficient strength, coordination, and motor control. It's about movement efficiency and control.

The Importance of Mobility Assessment

Regularly assessing your mobility offers several significant benefits:

• Injury Prevention: Identifying restrictions before they contribute to compensatory movement patterns and overload specific tissues.
• Performance Enhancement: Unlocking full joint potential allows for more powerful, efficient, and safer execution of exercises and sports-specific movements.
• Postural Correction: Addressing imbalances that contribute to poor posture and chronic pain.
• Personalized Programming: Guiding exercise selection and progression for targeted improvement.
• Tracking Progress: Providing objective measures to monitor the effectiveness of mobility interventions.

The 7 Key Mobility Tests

These tests are widely used by fitness professionals and clinicians to assess various aspects of joint and movement-specific mobility.

1. Overhead Squat Assessment (OHSA)

The OHSA is a foundational test that offers a global snapshot of whole-body mobility and stability, revealing limitations in the ankles, knees, hips, thoracic spine, and shoulders.

• Purpose: To assess dynamic flexibility and neuromuscular control of the ankle, knee, hip, lumbar spine, thoracic spine, and shoulder complex during a fundamental human movement pattern.
• How to Perform:
  1. Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, toes pointing straight ahead.
  2. Raise your arms overhead, elbows fully extended, with the upper arms aligned with your torso.
  3. Slowly squat down as if sitting in a chair, keeping your heels on the ground and arms overhead.
  4. Go as deep as comfortably possible while maintaining good form, then return to the starting position.
• What to Look For (Common Dysfunctions):
  • Feet turn out: Indicative of tight calves, limited ankle dorsiflexion, or weak hip external rotators.
  • Knees cave in (valgus collapse): Suggests weak gluteus medius/maximus, tight adductors, or limited ankle dorsiflexion.
  • Excessive forward lean of torso: Often due to tight hip flexors, weak core, or limited ankle dorsiflexion.
  • Arms fall forward: Implies tight latissimus dorsi, pectoralis major/minor, or limited thoracic extension/shoulder flexion.
  • Rounded lower back (butt wink): Points to tight hamstrings or hip flexors, or poor lumbopelvic control.

2. Ankle Dorsiflexion Lunge Test (Knee-to-Wall Test)

This test specifically measures the mobility of the ankle joint, particularly dorsiflexion, which is critical for squatting, lunging, and running mechanics.

• Purpose: To assess the available range of motion for ankle dorsiflexion, primarily affected by calf muscle flexibility (gastrocnemius and soleus) and talocrural joint mechanics.
• How to Perform:
  1. Stand facing a wall with one foot about 4-6 inches away.
  2. Keep your heel on the ground and lean forward, attempting to touch your knee to the wall without lifting your heel.
  3. If successful, move your foot slightly further back and repeat until your heel lifts or your knee cannot reach the wall.
  4. Measure the maximum distance your big toe is from the wall while your knee can still touch it with the heel down.
• What to Look For:
  • Less than 4-5 inches (10-12 cm) distance: Indicates limited ankle dorsiflexion, which can restrict squat depth and contribute to knee or foot pain.
  • Foot pronation/arch collapse: Suggests compensatory movement due to restriction.

3. Hip Internal/External Rotation Test (Prone Hip Rotation)

This assessment evaluates the rotational mobility of the hip joint, which is vital for athletic movements, injury prevention, and comfortable daily activities.

• Purpose: To isolate and measure the active range of motion for internal and external rotation at the hip joint.
• How to Perform:
  1. Lie prone (face down) on the floor with your knees bent at a 90-degree angle, feet pointing towards the ceiling.
  2. Keep your pelvis stable and hips on the ground.
  3. For internal rotation, slowly let your feet fall outwards, away from each other, keeping your knees together.
  4. For external rotation, slowly let your feet fall inwards, towards each other, keeping your knees together.
  5. Measure the angle of rotation from the vertical.
• What to Look For:
  • Asymmetry: Significant differences between sides can indicate imbalances or restrictions.
  • Limited internal rotation (less than 30-45 degrees): Can contribute to lower back pain, knee issues, and difficulty with squatting or pivoting.
  • Limited external rotation (less than 45-60 degrees): Can affect squat depth and hip function.

4. Thoracic Spine Rotation Test (Seated/Quadruped Rotation)

The thoracic spine (mid-back) is designed for rotation. Limited mobility here often leads to compensatory movement in the lumbar spine (lower back) or cervical spine (neck), increasing injury risk.

• Purpose: To assess the active range of motion for rotation in the thoracic spine.
• How to Perform (Seated):
  1. Sit upright in a chair with your feet flat on the floor, hips and knees at 90 degrees.
  2. Cross your arms over your chest, placing hands on opposite shoulders.
  3. Keeping your hips stationary and facing forward, rotate your upper body as far as possible to one side, then the other.
  4. Observe how far you can rotate without moving your hips or leaning.
• How to Perform (Quadruped):
  1. Start on all fours (hands and knees) with a neutral spine.
  2. Place one hand behind your head.
  3. Rotate your upper body, attempting to point your elbow towards the ceiling, then towards the floor.
• What to Look For:
  • Inability to rotate significantly (less than 45-50 degrees visually in seated test): Suggests stiffness in the thoracic spine, often linked to poor posture or sedentary lifestyles.
  • Compensatory hip movement: Indicates the thoracic spine is not rotating adequately.

5. Shoulder Mobility Test (Apley's Scratch Test)

This classic test evaluates the overall mobility of the shoulder joint and surrounding structures, including internal/external rotation, abduction, and adduction.

• Purpose: To assess the combined range of motion of the shoulder joint, specifically glenohumeral and scapulothoracic mobility.
• How to Perform:
  1. Hand to opposite shoulder blade (reach overhead): Reach one hand over your shoulder and down your back as far as possible, attempting to touch the inferior angle of the opposite shoulder blade.
  2. Hand to opposite shoulder blade (reach under): Reach the other hand behind your back and up as far as possible, attempting to touch the inferior angle of the opposite shoulder blade.
  3. Measure the distance between the fingertips of both hands (or if they overlap, how much).
• What to Look For:
  • Large gap (more than a few inches) between fingertips: Indicates limited shoulder mobility, tightness in the lats/triceps for the overhead reach, or tight pecs/subscapularis for the underhand reach.
  • Asymmetry: Differences between sides are common and can highlight specific restrictions.
  • Inability to touch the opposite shoulder blade: Significant limitation.

6. Straight Leg Raise Test (SLR)

The Straight Leg Raise is a common test used to assess hamstring flexibility and, in some cases, neural mobility or sciatic nerve irritation.

• Purpose: To measure the extensibility of the hamstrings and evaluate the presence of neural tension.
• How to Perform:
  1. Lie supine (on your back) with both legs extended.
  2. Keep one leg flat on the ground.
  3. Slowly raise the other leg straight up towards the ceiling, keeping the knee fully extended.
  4. Stop when you feel a significant stretch in the back of the thigh or when your pelvis begins to tilt.
  5. Measure the angle of the raised leg from the floor.
• What to Look For:
  • Less than 70-80 degrees: Indicates tight hamstrings.
  • Pain in the lower back or radiating down the leg before full hamstring stretch: May suggest neural tension or disc involvement.
  • Pelvic tilt (anterior or posterior): Compensation for limited hamstring flexibility.

7. Thomas Test

The Thomas Test specifically assesses the flexibility of the hip flexor muscles (iliopsoas, rectus femoris, tensor fasciae latae) and can reveal limitations that contribute to anterior pelvic tilt and lower back pain.

• Purpose: To evaluate the length of the hip flexors and quadriceps muscles.
• How to Perform:
  1. Sit at the very edge of a sturdy table or bench.
  2. Lie back, pulling both knees to your chest.
  3. Hold one knee firmly to your chest.
  4. Slowly lower the other leg towards the floor, allowing it to hang freely off the edge of the table.
• What to Look For:
  • Thigh does not touch the table (or is elevated): Indicates a tight iliopsoas.
  • Knee does not flex to 80 degrees (i.e., the lower leg points straight out or upwards): Indicates a tight rectus femoris.
  • Leg abducts (moves away from the midline): Suggests a tight tensor fasciae latae (TFL) or IT band.

Interpreting Your Results and Moving Forward

Once you've performed these tests, note any significant limitations or asymmetries. Remember, these are screening tools, not diagnostic ones. If you experience pain during any test or have persistent mobility issues, consult with a qualified healthcare professional (e.g., physical therapist, chiropractor) or a certified fitness professional.

Addressing mobility limitations typically involves:

• Soft Tissue Work: Foam rolling, massage, or trigger point release to address muscle knots and adhesions.
• Static Stretching: Holding stretches for prolonged periods to improve passive flexibility.
• Dynamic Stretching: Movement-based stretches to prepare the body for activity and improve active range of motion.
• Mobility Drills: Specific exercises designed to move joints through their full range of motion with control.
• Strength Training: Building strength through the new ranges of motion to stabilize and control them.

Conclusion: The Path to Optimal Movement

Mobility is a cornerstone of a healthy, functional, and pain-free body. By regularly assessing your movement patterns with these seven tests, you gain invaluable insights into your physical state. This evidence-based approach empowers you to implement targeted strategies, enhance your athletic performance, reduce injury risk, and ultimately, move with greater freedom and confidence throughout your life. Make mobility assessment a foundational element of your fitness journey.