30 Day Splits Training Challenge

mbaker566

i'll try to get some progress photos tonight. i think i'll have backslid. been running more

mom23mangos

Ok, I at least got photos of my good side since I'm working from home today. I actually did make some progress! It's not a lot, but I'll take it.

mom23mangos

@TiisTitanium - I also wanted to say I can see some improvement in yours as well. It may be small, but it took me two years to get from where you are to where I am now. And your straddle is still better than mine.

TiisTitanium

I am on day 29 of a daily yoga challenge. I didn't think I was making much progress with improving my flexibility but today, for the first time ever i could put my heels on the ground during downward dog pose. Yay.

And then tonight in my contortion class my teacher said that my splits had really improved. Double yay. Consistent daily practice is yielding some results at last!!

mbaker566

so i find it interesting that different poses allow for different split ability





also...look at the difference from one side to the other

DananaNanas

I really need to stretch. As of Saturday I'm done teaching at the studio for the summer but I need to use this time to work on myself and my own goals rather than focusing on that of my students...

@mom23mangos try pigeon pose if you have tightness in your glutes https://www.wikihow.fitness/Do-the-Yoga-Pigeon-Pose

mom23mangos

@TiisTitanium - That's awesome!! I have NEVER been able to get my heels on the ground during down dog.

@DananaNanas - I love pigeon and spend a lot of time in it. It's definitely more challenging on the side with the tight glutes. I'm working on making a DIY Theragun out of our reciprocating saw. I'm hoping to pummell the heck out of them with it. LOL

Got in a good stretching session today after leg day.

mom23mangos

Saw a really good stretching series on Instagram. You guys might be interested.

https://instagram.com/p/Bjj96g8gd0j/embed/

xelsoo

@mom23mangos thanks, I'll give it a try next day I have extra time in the gym. Your progress pics look good, you're sooo close! Are you working on handstands? How are your shoulders holding up? I haven't been dedicating too much time to them but this week I'm back at it

@mbaker566 I've realized that as well, some poses just work better than others, and one side definitely is stretchier. Your foot behind the head pose is looking good, I think I'll start practicing for that one as well.

@TiisTitanium I can see some progress in your pics and heels in the ground during downward dog is an achievement! I think I'm changing my outfit for progress pics as baggy pants are really not going to help show the progress lol.

@DananaNanas you're so close to your 'school holidays'! Will you be rehearsing more for the dance production?

I talked with my physiotherapist and she told me to not stretch at all for two weeks (or until my left hammie stopped hurting), which sounded appalling! This past week I went on a small holiday with my bf and used the time to rest and not stretch for a full 5 days. Yesterday I stretched for the first time and my leg is so much better! The pain has receded quite a lot which makes me think I was probably stressing it too much by stretching post-injury.

I'm taking it easy on my left side but will take progress pics after a few days of getting back into it. If I took a photo today I doubt there'd be much progress to show

TiisTitanium

Good to see we are still going

It is winter in my part of the world so I think I have gone backwards in my splits practice. Well tonight anyway as the circus gym was freezing and my hips didn't want to play nicely. Hopefully if I keep up my daily stretching practice by the time spring rolls around I'll be ahead on the bendy game.

mbaker566

@xelsoo the inifinity strap is awesome. we also use a yoga wheel to improve our upper back flexibility in class
@mom23mangos the teacher in me cringes a little with that video. no bouncing. bouncing=injury. i know the video is sped up but still. the poses themselves are good. i like hamstring push ups but go super super slow. i would also add frog pose



video to aerial frog

mom23mangos

I did it!!!! I finally did it!!! My butt touched the ground! Well....after looking at the pics a little closer, my hips are not perfectly aligned, so I may have been leaning a bit, but you know what? I'm taking it!

view from both sides


I also tested out my right side. Sigh. I don't seems to have moved at all.

xelsoo

@mom23mangos CONGRATULATIONS!!!! Your butt has touched the ground! Haha. That's awesome, keep up the good work and have patience with your injured side, it will come along in due time..
I'm so glad our group is slowly progressing

Are you managing to stretch on a daily basis, or almost?

xelsoo

Finally had time (and no people next to me) to film progress pics! My left stretches are a bit behind due to having slightly pulled my hamstring. Forward bend with rounded back used to be my favorite but now it's painful so there's not much progress there. I do feel like figure 2 on my right side is way better even if in the photos you can't see. When I'm stretching I can tell I'm grabbing from further up my ankle. The rest, I can't really see much progress but hopefully this month will show more.

Day 1

Day 40 -ish


Day 1

Day 40



Pics for left and right are inversed, didn't realise this when I filmed today
Day 1

Day 40


Day 1

Day 40

TiisTitanium

Sorry that the hamstring is giving you trouble @xelsoo. I can definitely see a big improvement between your day 1 and day 40! Imagine how good it is going to look when you get to day 90

mbaker566

i definitely need to get back to serious stretching. (and handstanding )
i've upped my running mileage and my hip flexors are tightening. in the summer, classes get cancelled due to poor attendance. no students, i don't waste gas driving a half hour in to the studio. and i usually go for a run.
renewing my commitment

DananaNanas

I have not been stretching as much as I should be! The first performance for my show was Saturday. It was a great experience and I can't wait for the next one.

My goal for right now is stretch at least five minutes every single day. I can commit to five minutes and when I actually sit down to do it I know I'll stretch for longer than that.

Great progress ladies!!

mom23mangos

I know, me either! I decided I was going to concentrate on my right side since it's so far behind my left. Usually I end up spending my more time on my left because it's easier. So now, I'm always starting with my right side so if I run out of time, it doesn't get left behind.

TiisTitanium

Just bumping this up to see how people are going. I have been slowly grinding away at improving my splits/hip flexibility with daily yoga practice along with ballet and flexibility classes. Progress is slow but I am making progress. Still a million inches off the floor but I have seen a marked improvement in my pancake and butterfly which is encouraging.

I need to get some more progress pics rather than just my "feeling" that I am closer to the ground or bendier.

mbaker566

i'm still working but with my running i feel like i'm losing ground, but i guess my hip flexors are getting looser as my leg is getting more parallel to the ground in this pose

mom23mangos

I see definite progress @mbaker566. I haven't been actually testing my splits, but I've been trying to incorporate more yoga and work on my right side more in my stretching. I'm hoping the new massager I just bought will help me get that nasty butt knot out and improve my flexibility on that side.

xelsoo

Yep, there's progress alright @mbaker566. Especially the side you're less flexible on the progress looks more obvious to me.

I've been stalling a bit on improvements but I'm sure it's due to the decrease in the days per week I've been stretching. At least this has been good for my pulled hammie to recover as it's now way better.

It's been quite a hectic month but in a week and a half things will calm down a bit. Then i'll go back to stretching (almost) every day, I now miss it when I don't stretch! @TiisTitanium I actually also think I'm getting better at pancake too, which has always been my worst position by far. I've taken to holding onto something heavy far out in front so I stretch my arms to grab it and really stretch down. I didn't even take pics of it when I started the challenge as I thought it was a lost cause

mom23mangos

How is everyone? I've been giving my right side some extra love hoping to get it closer to even with my left. I felt I was making progress until I took photos today and can't even really tell much difference from the very beginning.

mbaker566

my students have been noticing a difference. it took a little bit of wiggling but i got up into this. but still not flat.

xelsoo

That position is looking good @mbaker566 ! After seeing all of these pictures I was inspired to find a class of something like this and I found a 'circus' school in the outskirts of Paris. So I'll drop by and see what courses they offer, hopefully not to expensive, but being Paris it's a lost cause..

As for stretching, I've been slacking this summer and just maintaining, but I'm now trying to push myself again. I've realized when working out before work I'm usually rushed whereas during the weekend I'll stretch waay more. So this week I'm trying to plan a few extra minutes of stretching after my morning gym sesh.
I really want to post decent progress pics!!

Good luck with the week everyone! I hope your stretching has progressed more than mine

TiisTitanium

Hope you enjoy circus school xelsoo. I know I love going to mine.

I've been doing my daily yoga stretching in the morning which is not fun as I don't like waking up early especially as it is winter in my part of the world so it is dark and cold. It does seem to be slowly working though. I am still miles off the floor in my splits but inching my way down

One thing that IS improving with the daily stretching is my back flexibility.



I can't wait till it is hot again. As we keep telling ourselves in our contortion class - build strength in winter, be bendy in summer.

mom23mangos

I seem to have regressed some. I stopped working on my left side as much once I touched ground to concentrate more on my right side. It doesn't seem to have moved anywhere and my left is now back off the ground. SMH

mbaker566

looking good @TiisTitanium

i see fly yoga in Paris. they look more yoga based as opposed to circus @xelsoo

it is a lot of fun. my hammock work is more yoga related. but on friday nights, my students and i play. we still apply yoga breathing techniques and such but that's when the hoop comes out and the circus moves come out

this is a mix of pigeon, and inverted tree (yoga) with crossback (circus)

the video shows how far my "natural" splits are coming right at the beginning. we spend time in my class working on hip flexors and all the splits. hip flexors for me are the tightest because of running which is why i work on the head to foot pose that i post. we recently started making use of the wall scooching up on our bellies. plus on the back

https://instagram.com/p/BluE4KjheMs/embed/

mom23mangos

Ugh, I fell off the stretching every day wagon and now my splits are way off the ground again.

mbaker566

the more i run the more it comes up off the ground. i've been running more. it's not great but i do practice weds, thurs, some fridays, saturday