Book excerpt: Flexitest: An Innovative Flexibility Assessment Method introduces Flexitest, a simple, easy-to-learn grading system that simultaneously measures and evaluates the flexibility of 20 different individual joint movements. Now you will be able to really evaluate, rather than just measure, flexibility for individuals of all age groups and physical activity levels. Claudio Gil Soares de Araújo, a Brazilian sports medicine physician with a PhD in physiology, has spent more than 20 years developing and perfecting the Flexitest method. This concise resource clearly explains how to use Flexitest in different settings, with valuable coverage of data acquisition, analysis, and statistics. The book is organized into three parts and includes the following features: -More than 100 accurate photographs of the assessment of 20 joint movements -Numerous figures and tables presenting the flexogram and flexindex data -Supplemented photographs, scientific full text papers and abstracts, and other materials available via the author ́s institutional Web site - http: //www.clinimex.com.br- for viewing and downloading Flexitest book proposes a 18-point classification system that makes it easy to compare and contrast different flexibility assessment techniques; it will appeal to any professional whose job involves flexibility assessment. The author discusses how to determine a global index of body flexibility, called Flexindex, using the assessment of different joints. He presents normative and statistical information for over 3,000 male and female subjects ranging in age from 5 to 88 and the Flexitest profiles of more than 400 athletes from a variety of sports. You'll also find a self-evaluation test, a review of contemporary flexibility testing methods, variables affecting flexibility assessments, and a rationale for the use of Flexitest based on several controlled studies. The information presented in Flexitest: An Innovative Flexibility Assessment Method is clear enough for practitioners to begin using the technique immediately, yet it is detailed enough to meet the scientific needs of researchers.