As we age, it can seem like the body just isn’t as agile as it was once upon a time. Bones, joints, and muscles all seem to ache more. Is this an inevitable part of aging? It doesn’t have to be. There are two types of fitness movements that can help keep the body functioning in top shape: abduction and adduction. “Abduction is the act of moving the limbs away from the body, whereas adduction is the act of moving the limbs towards the body,” explains Brooke Van Paris, NASM, the lead assistant personal training manager at LifeTime. While you might not have heard of these two types of movements before, you’ve definitely done them. “People use these moves daily when getting out of bed, in or out of a car, and even sidestepping an obstacle while walking,” says Noom coach and athletic trainer Lauren Baker, CPT, ATC-Ret. As you’ll soon see, knowing the difference between abduction and adduction will not only keep the body functioning properly but it will help protect against injuries.
Why are abduction and adduction moves important?
“Abduction and adduction are extremely important in our everyday life, so I like to call this ‘functional fitness,’" Van Paris says. She explains that most people spend the majority of their days being sedentary—and this is bad for the body. “This causes compensations and muscular imbalances to occur. To be able to restore optimal movement patterns and improve our posture, we need a routine that includes these movements so that we may not lose them as we age,” she says, adding that it’s important people incorporate abduction and adduction moves into their daily lives. Baker agrees. “Abduction and adduction are important because they help us to perform lateral or side-to-side movement,” she says. “Performing these movements is vital to establishing balance, improving mobility, and increasing awareness within our bodies.” Van Paris echoes this saying that the increase in body awareness helps with coordination. It’s also, she says, key for preventing injuries. “Our body needs to be able to move in different planes of motion for basic human movement,” she says, reiterating that being sedentary makes this more difficult. “Basically any time in life where you are faced with a quick change in direction of body movement, you are using adduction and abduction. If the body isn’t prepared for those types of movements, we could face major injuries,” she says. Okay, so it’s clear that both types of moves are important. So what exactly do they look like and how can you integrate them into your workouts and daily life?
Abduction moves for the upper and lower body
As Van Paris explained, abduction moves involve moving the limbs away from the body. This applies to both the upper body and the lower body. For example, she says that sidestep walking is one example of an abduction move because you’re moving your legs out, away from the body. Here are some other examples of what Van Paris says are lower body abduction moves:
Fire hydrants
Start on your hands and knees with your wrists stacked under your shoulders and your hips over your knees. Bend your right leg 90 degrees, keeping your back flat and stopping at hip height. Return to the starting position. Do as many reps as desired and repeat with the other leg.
Sumo squats
Stand with feet a few inches wider than hip-width apart with your toes pointing outward. Push your hips back into a squat position. Return to the starting position. Repeat as many reps as desired and add a dumbbell for an extra challenge.
Lateral lunges
Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Step to the side with your left leg. Bend your left leg, pushing your hips back and bending your knee to 90 degrees. Push back to the starting position. Do as many reps as desired and repeat with the other leg.
Clamshells
Lie on your side with your knees stacked and bent to 45 degrees and your head rested on your lower arm. Keeping your feet touching, raise the upper knee away from the bottom knee. Do as many reps as desired and repeat with the other side. For the upper body, the trainers recommend the following abduction moves:
Lateral dumbbell raises
Pick weights that feel comfortable for you and grip one in each hand. Keeping your elbows soft, lift your arms out to either side, stopping at shoulder height. Lower to resting position and repeat.
Dumbbell around the worlds
Face your palms forward, with the dumbbell in hand. Make a circular motion with the arms to move the dumbbell around until they meet back together again above the head.
Adduction moves for the upper and lower body
As explained, an adduction move is an act of moving limbs towards the body. As you can imagine, many exercise moves integrate both abduction moves and adduction moves. For example, Van Paris says that sumo squats, lateral lunges, and Pilates all use both types of moves. If you think about how these moves are done, it makes sense: These moves involve moving the limbs away from the body and then you must pull them back toward the body to return to the starting position. That said, there are some fitness moves that emphasize moving the limbs toward the body more than moving them away. The trainers share that this includes pull-ups and using the lat pulldown machine. Other moves include:
Side-cable high row
Sit in front of the machine and pull the cable in the right arm toward the body. Then, bring it back out, extending the arm. Repeat with the other arm and continue alternating for as many reps as desired.
Standing hip adduction
Lift one foot slightly in front of the other. Squeeze your inner thigh muscles to press the lifted leg across the body towards the opposite side of the room. Repeat on the other side.
Single-leg lateral lunge
Step your one leg out to the side and squat into that same knee. Keep the opposite leg straight. Push off the heel of the squatted leg to return to your original position, then repeat on the other side. Both trainers say that you can also integrate abduction and adduction moves into cardio workouts. “Adding jumping jacks, lateral hops, and side shuffle are great ways to [incorporate these moves] while increasing your heart rate with cardio exercise,” Baker says. Focusing on both types of moves will ultimately benefit the body by improving mobility and making the body better able to react quickly, when needed. If you play sports, it will certainly give you a competitive edge. But these moves are important for preventing injury and keeping the body functioning in everyday life too. Fortunately, there’s no shortage of ways to incorporate these moves into your workouts. And now that you know what they are, you’ll start noticing the ways you do abduction and adduction moves in your everyday life too! Next up, check out these 125 streaming workouts you can do for free at home.
Sources:
Brooke Van Paris, NASM, personal trainer and lead assistant personal training manager at LifeTimeLauren Baker, CPT, ATC-Ret, Noom coach and athletic trainer
