for all the unflexible skaters out there... :)

[AgnesNitt]

As one of the super-inflexible I'd like to make a report of what has worked for me.

First, warm up. I've found a minimum of a 30 min brisk walk is acceptable, but I prefer 45.

Second I do all my series of stretch3s with a 10 second hold. Then I go back and do them with a 30 second hold.

I also do some stair work  for my ilotibial band which is not relevant here.

I think the rule of good warm up. 10 sec hold followed by 30 hold is worth trying.

[sarahcatherine]

Hi, Saracatherine

Just wanted to encourage you and let you know it is absolutely possible.  The most important thing is to hold each stretch for 30 seconds in a correct position (30 seconds with a stopwatch, not counting to 30 as fast as you can, LOL!).  Don't push until it hurts, just get to a position where you can *maintain correct form* and you *feel a stretch* and hold that for 30, taking slow, deep breaths.  Then go a little deeper and hold that position for another 30 seconds.  Stretching for 30-45 minutes 4-5 days a week for a year gave me my forward splits in both directions for the first time in my life in my 40's, so that's proof that persistence and patience pay off.

The main stretches that got me my forward splits were these:

Thank you, Doubletoe! i can already do the hip flexor stretch and get my thighs in a straight line (YAY!!) so I'm guessing my problem is all in my hamstrings When I sit down with my legs straight in front of me, my legs and back don't even make a right angle. This makes it very hard for me to stretch like that, because if I lean forward, my back is very rounded and I feel like I have to force myself down, which kills my hamstrings in addition to being very tiring, haha. Do you have any tips for this?

I can touch my toes when I'm standing (only after stretching, mind you) but I cannot when I'm sitting, not for more than 5 excruciating seconds, haha...

[Doubletoe]

Thank you, Doubletoe! i can already do the hip flexor stretch and get my thighs in a straight line (YAY!!) so I'm guessing my problem is all in my hamstrings When I sit down with my legs straight in front of me, my legs and back don't even make a right angle. This makes it very hard for me to stretch like that, because if I lean forward, my back is very rounded and I feel like I have to force myself down, which kills my hamstrings in addition to being very tiring, haha. Do you have any tips for this?

I can touch my toes when I'm standing (only after stretching, mind you) but I cannot when I'm sitting, not for more than 5 excruciating seconds, haha...

Sounds like you have tight hamstrings and a stiff lower back.  I did, too, and I still have to really work through those problem areas before I can get into my splits.  
What I do first is to stretch out my back by doing this stretch:  http://www.fitness-training-at-home.com/image-files/flexineckandback.jpg
Then I do a standing hamstring stretch where I just fold my torso forward and hang down, letting my own weight loosen up my hamstrings for me.  I try to press my belly button to my thigh so that my back is not rounded.
Finally, I do the seated hamstring stretch described in my original post, but with my back against the wall.  That way, I can put one hand on the wall right behind my lower back and push my lower back away from the wall so that I press my belly button toward my thigh and don't have a rounded back.  This helped me A LOT and I still need to do it to loosen up my lower back and upper hamstrings as I work toward folding my torso flat over my leg.  
This is the correct back position as you do a hamstring stretch: http://www.dreamstime.com/seated-hamstring-stretch-thumb3196121.jpg  
This is a bad position (see how her back is rounded and her belly button is far away from her thighs?): http://www.teachpe.com/images/jenny/hamstring_lower_back_stretch.jpg

[fsk8r]

A completely random way of stretching your hamstrings. Try putting your socks on without bending your knee. Having broken my knee a few years ago, I was not allowed to bend the knee for 6 weeks and this was really a challenge the first day. By the end of the 6weeks it was really easy. OK mid-summer isn't necessarily the best time to try this, but I broke my knee in winter and cold feet inspires you to try harder.
Unfortunately, I've not kept it up so I've lost some of the flexibility and I was only flexible in the broken leg, the other side I didn't stretch out this way. But it's a really easy thing to do which doesn't take that much time out of the day to do.

[CaraSkates]

A completely random way of stretching your hamstrings. Try putting your socks on without bending your knee. Having broken my knee a few years ago, I was not allowed to bend the knee for 6 weeks and this was really a challenge the first day. By the end of the 6weeks it was really easy. OK mid-summer isn't necessarily the best time to try this, but I broke my knee in winter and cold feet inspires you to try harder.
Unfortunately, I've not kept it up so I've lost some of the flexibility and I was only flexible in the broken leg, the other side I didn't stretch out this way. But it's a really easy thing to do which doesn't take that much time out of the day to do.

Ha! I discovered that this works too! I'm not naturally flexible but because of skating/dance I can easily reach my toes, etc (not quite to splits...). I had a bad knee injury last fall and had to wear a knee immobilizer for a month. I realized that it was a great way to stretch my weaker side - I would do Y spirals and splits etc in the brace. When I started PT, they told me my left was much more flexible then my right - it had to have been the brace because in 5 years of skating, it had always been the other way around.

[Skittl1321]

I have a maxi-flex and found it to be very helpful, when I used it.  It doesn't help when I don't use it.
After I hurt my hip, I can no longer use it, as I'm unable to stretch in many of the ways it is designed for.  Stupid hip.

If anyone wants it, I'll sell it for 3/4 the retail price, and ship for free (US only)- since most places who sell it don't do free shipping, that's a decent deal.   Of course, this relies on me finding it, but I think I know where it is.

(Pending)

[sarahcatherine]

Skittl, how much is retail price??

[Skittl1321]

Rainbo has it for $34.95, JenSkates for 29.99 (but it's out of stock).


I really liked it, though you do need a door.  I tried to rig my own, and found that all the rings I used to use as a lever ended up breaking.  It's really well made, and meant to hold the pressure you put on it.

I agree though that for similar stretches (I do them laying down) a yoga strap would do a similar thing.  I don't think I can stretch back spirals with a yoga strap the way I could with maxi-flex.

[sampaguita]

Count me in among the unflexibles. Thanks for sharing this blog with us, it comforts me that I am not the only unflexible skater out there. My arabasque spirals are HORRIBLE, and I'm looking for ways to improve them.

[Skate@Delaware]

How timely---in the September edition of Yoga Journal magazine is a progressive series building up to SPLITS!!!! OMG!!!! I almost fell over when I got my mag in the mail and saw this!

[fsk8r]

How timely---in the September edition of Yoga Journal magazine is a progressive series building up to SPLITS!!!! OMG!!!! I almost fell over when I got my mag in the mail and saw this!

You'll have to share with us all!

[Skate@Delaware]

You'll have to share with us all!

I would love to but not sure if I'd get in trouble (copyright etc) for scanning the pages and sharing.....but I can look at the poses he does as the progression & link to them, the article goes into GREAT detail and I was blown away by the explanations!

[Isk8NYC]

Maybe they have the article online?  You could post a link.


Ooo - found this Charlotte (aka: Standing Split) article
http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/2499

[fsk8r]

Ooo - found this Charlotte (aka: Standing Split) article
http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/2499

WOW! Don't think I'll be doing that by next week... But perhaps this thread will inspire me to keep stretching and working at it.

[sarahcatherine]

Ooo - found this Charlotte (aka: Standing Split) article
http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/2499

Hopefully I'll be able to do that eventually!! I think Charlottes are so pretty!

WOW! Don't think I'll be doing that by next week... But perhaps this thread will inspire me to keep stretching and working at it.

Haha, me either! But I hope it does inspire you! This thread has definitely motivated me!

[AgnesNitt]

There's always Yoga Conditioning for Figure Skaters from USFSA. I think it's author Linda Ross used to post here, but disappeared from the board a couple of months ago.

[sarahcatherine]

Not sure if anyone will care, but I met my first goal! And not only did I meet it- I doubled it! I was supposed to be able to touch my toes for at least 10 seconds and I can do 20 (: It really doesn't sound like much but I couldn't touch my toes two weeks ago so I'm super excited!!

[Doubletoe]

Not sure if anyone will care, but I met my first goal! And not only did I meet it- I doubled it! I was supposed to be able to touch my toes for at least 10 seconds and I can do 20 (: It really doesn't sound like much but I couldn't touch my toes two weeks ago so I'm super excited!!

Congratulations!!  The important thing is to see progress so you will keep it up!

[karne]

Adding myself to the "unflexible skaters" club...

I can't even touch my toes! (If I've been stretching for a while, I can grab my ankles.)

One of my best friends is an elite level gymnast, and she gave me a bunch of stretches, but I have two problems:

1. I slack off stretching because I like to do it at night before I go to bed, and then sometimes I go to bed late, so I forget. (On a long break from uni; my sleep patterns are screwed.)

2. Because of when the best time of day for me to do my stretches (before bed) is, I have issues warming up beforehand. I also have a bedroom (where I do them) that is the size of a matchbox.

Any ideas?

[Query]

I think it helps to first figure out what needs to be stretched.

Try to stretch the way you want, and FEEL what muscles and ligaments are under tension. Trace those muscles as far as you can, maybe look up their names in an anatomy chart, and figure out what exercises use them.

You may discover it isn't really your hamstrings or quads that need stretching! For me, on almost any stretch, I feel the stretch in my inner thigh - I think mostly my psoas. Though that's unusual.

It's important, because it is the muscles that you want to stretch that you need to warm-up (exercise) first. Following someone else's stretch regimen, adapted to their personal needs, may be useless or even harmful. You need to balance the flexibility of various body parts for what you want to do - else all the force is concentrated on one body part, which is easily damaged by accidental over-stretching. I've done that. So work out your own stretch regimen. Consult a Sports PT or Trainer if you are afraid to.

If you can't feel what is stopping your bend, muscles that aren't next to your skin are hard to feel. You may need to do enough exercises on the right muscles to make them sore in order to feel them.

If it feels like a joint (bone or ligament) is stopping you, or if the stretch is in your neck or spine, there may be no good healthy solutions - consult someone medical.

Why would an expensive stretch cord be better than cheap hardware store cord?

Some people's muscles stretch easier than others. 10 or 30 seconds won't stretch me AT ALL. 10 or 15 minutes, re-adjusting things every couple minutes, is about the minimum I need, and most of what I achieve is gone by the next day. IT'S NOT FAIR!, but life never is.

You might look up PNF stretches, but be careful.

I would like a magic pill that gives me the body I want today. Or a machine I can walk into, select the desired body parameters, and push a button.

[Skate@Delaware]

I think it helps to first figure out what needs to be stretched.

Try to stretch the way you want, and FEEL what muscles and ligaments are under tension. Trace those muscles as far as you can, maybe look up their names in an anatomy chart, and figure out what exercises use them.

You may discover it isn't really your hamstrings or quads that need stretching! For me, on almost any stretch, I feel the stretch in my inner thigh - I think mostly my psoas. Though that's unusual.

It's important, because it is the muscles that you want to stretch that you need to warm-up (exercise) first. Following someone else's stretch regimen, adapted to their personal needs, may be useless or even harmful. You need to balance the flexibility of various body parts for what you want to do - else all the force is concentrated on one body part, which is easily damaged by accidental over-stretching. I've done that. So work out your own stretch regimen. Consult a Sports PT or Trainer if you are afraid to.

If you can't feel what is stopping your bend, muscles that aren't next to your skin are hard to feel. You may need to do enough exercises on the right muscles to make them sore in order to feel them.

If it feels like a joint (bone or ligament) is stopping you, or if the stretch is in your neck or spine, there may be no good healthy solutions - consult someone medical.

Why would an expensive stretch cord be better than cheap hardware store cord?

Some people's muscles stretch easier than others. 10 or 30 seconds won't stretch me AT ALL. 10 or 15 minutes, re-adjusting things every couple minutes, is about the minimum I need, and most of what I achieve is gone by the next day. IT'S NOT FAIR!, but life never is.

You might look up PNF stretches, but be careful.

I would like a magic pill that gives me the body I want today. Or a machine I can walk into, select the desired body parameters, and push a button.

Good points; as for the cord, it's psychological..."if I spend a lot of money, it must be good therefore the stretch must be better than using a cheap strap from the local dollar store" type of thinking. More often than not, it isn't....I use whatever is handy.

I have found that you can OVER-stretch a muscle group, sometimes less is more. And sometimes I workout, stretch, go home and use a foam roller, then stretch more...using a roller helps encourage more stretch. Or that's my thinking (and I'm sticking with that  after all, I paid a lot of money for my foam roller tee-hee!)

[Skittl1321]

Good points; as for the cord, it's psychological..."if I spend a lot of money, it must be good therefore the stretch must be better than using a cheap strap from the local dollar store" type of thinking.

My issue with "homemade" stretch cords over the door is the lever mechanism would break with the pressure.   I jerry-rigged about 10 things digging through my husbands workshop before I finally bought the maxi-flex.  The only one where the ring didn't break was when I used a rock climbing caribeaner- and in that case my cord broke!

For a yoga band though, I've alway used a homemade one (I quilted it...)

[Sp1nG]

I am on an eternal quest to get my splits!  I try to stretch after skating at the rink while my muscles are still warm.  I also find it helpful to use a foam roller to help warm and loosen up when stretching at home.  Another trick is to rest on yoga blocks so you can hold your splits pose for a full 30 to 60 seconds even though you can't go down all the way.  Using that method I went from stacking 2 blocks to using one block. I also found the following article helpful.  It's best to stretch in a progression and end with your split attempts.

http://www.cmcrossroads.com/bradapp/docs/rec/stretching/stretching_7.html#SEC73

Good Luck!

Energy & persistence conquer all things!

[Doubletoe]

I am on an eternal quest to get my splits!  I try to stretch after skating at the rink while my muscles are still warm.  I also find it helpful to use a foam roller to help warm and loosen up when stretching at home.  Another trick is to rest on yoga blocks so you can hold your splits pose for a full 30 to 60 seconds even though you can't go down all the way.  Using that method I went from stacking 2 blocks to using one block. I also found the following article helpful.  It's best to stretch in a progression and end with your split attempts.

http://www.cmcrossroads.com/bradapp/docs/rec/stretching/stretching_7.html#SEC73

Good Luck!

Energy & persistence conquer all things! 

Great advice!  When I was working toward my splits, I remember wishing there was some kind of contraption I could rest on while holding that awkward halfway down position.  I didn't even think of yoga blocks (good suggestion!).  What I eventually discovered was that it really helped to lower my torso forward over my front thigh as I lowered myself into the split position, pushing my weight down over the front leg instead of keeping it in the middle.  Not only did that make it easier to lean on my hands or elbows, but it actually kept me square over my hips and made it easier to finally get all the way down into a split.  Even now, I always go into my split with my chest down over my front thigh, and only raise my torso upright once I am all the way down into a split.   This stretches the hamstring of the front leg first, then stretches the hip flexor of the back leg, rather than straining them both at the same time.

[Qarol]

I have never been very flexible. I had to drop out of ballet when I was 10 because I just wasn't progressing in that area. Yet I have extreme natural turn out (even my coach is jealous). I'm really looking for a regular stretching routine that I can do daily, but I'm so lazy sometimes.