Quick Health Tip - Age and Gender Affecting Flexibility

Age and Gender does affect our flexibility or range of motion.​ We should all maintain a level of proper physical activity to help prevent sarcopenia, which is degenerative loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength. The speed or decline at which muscle tissue declines with age are influenced by genetics, health statue, fitness level, and the type of physical activity performed.

​Reduced ROM with age can be linked to the reduction in sarcomeres that are replaced with lipids and collagen, fibrosis (thickening and scarring of tissue), and mineralization process (such as calcification). With gender, there may be some female characteristics that may allow them to be more flexible, but it is not a universal truth as not all females are more flexible than males. However, those “general” female characteristics include broader upper pelvis and narrower lower pelvis, lower center of gravity, and shorter leg length.