Increasing Flexibility

kwallen90

Does anyone have any tips/techniques on how to increase flexibility? Website links or articles would be helpful, too, but any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks! :flowerforyou:

Paul76

I started doing yoga once a week (on video from the comfort of my home) and I've noticed a difference. Other than that, regular stretching will do it too.

LilMissAngi

stretching... just make sure you do it correctly....

yoga or pilates(?) too

kwallen90

Thanks! I was considering adding pilates to my routine. I'll give it a try as it is also good for my core as well. I can kill two birds with one...workout? :-)

mcoscia

Yoga, Yoga, Yoga! It's great for flexibility. On iTunes you can download free podcasts that are great. The ones that I really enjoy are called Yogamazing. Check it out!

dragonfly__

i love yoga.. the more the better it is great for increasing flexibilty. Also stretch after a hot shower or bath, muscles are more pliable then.

fitinyoga14

yes, to go off of what dragonfly said, a great way to increase your flexibility is by stretching when your muslces are warm. after a cardio work-out is the best time to stretch out, however you may also get your muscles warm with a shower or a short warm-up such as jump jacks, jumping rope, or skipping. when you stretch, you want to make sure that you are reaching a point that is uncomfortable to stay put in. hold the position (and bare being uncomfortable) for at least 15 seconds. a full-body stretch is ideal. this is because all muscles are connected to one another and it will leave you feeling much more revived afterwards. as you probably already know, there are a ton of versions of basic stretches out there. i would check out a book on stretching or find a site that would list stretches for full-body.

hiddensecant

Rodney Yee has a yoga for flexibility workout, about 25 minutes. Classical Stretch is my favorite though I don't think they sell the one I use anymore (athletes intense stretch).

KiriKiriKiri

I have seen some comments about Pilates. I swear by pilates, but I personally feel as though I need to stretch after my work outs otherwise I am tight in the muscle groups that I have worked...despite the pilates stretches. I am incredibly flexible and can do the human pretzel and splits, etc. Creepy, I know.

My favorite stretch sounds rather silly, but it works in keeping my legs limber. I lay on my back on the floor and then scoot my butt up to the wall so that my legs are in a pike position on the wall (pointing straight up the ceiling). I then let my legs fall out (or open) as far as they will go and hold that stretch for as long as I can. It feels great!!!

kwallen90

Wow thanks everyone! I tried yoga about a year ago and I couldn't really get into it (flexibility issue) because I couldn't do most of the positions. I will give it a try. Gymnast, your advice really helped - thanks a lot. How often should I stretch my muscles (specifically for flexibility)? Should I do it every other day to give muscles a chance to recoup?

HOSED49

When I did TaeKwonDo and wanted to do the whole Jean Claude VanDamme stretch I researched and found an article that stated if you want to maintain your current flexibility hold your stretch for up to 15 seconds, any hold after that will increase your flexibility. Granted this was in 97 or 98, and am sure someone else has done a study contradicting it, but it worked for me and I had very poor flexibility when I started.

fitinyoga14

no problem. :flowerforyou: every other day sounds like a good idea. your muscles will definately need time to recoup. just make sure to stretch out a little extra if your muscles feel sore. and if you're already warm from working out, you might as well stretch then too. if you take days off from working out, you can certainly take days off from stretching as well.