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I'm working through the Mastery series, focusing currently primarily on the Pancake, and I'm experiencing persistent pain in my upper inner hip area when doing side stretches. Would any of you know what might be going on? The pain occurs whenever I do any side stretching exercises, like boxing the compass (first part), the squashed frog, or the skandasana. It's a dull, achy pain and appears to be located at the lower end of the iliopsoas. The pain persists even after I stop the stretch and takes days to fully subside. I even took a week off from stretching but the pain was right there when I got back to it. Possibly relevant to the question: I can easily get down to a full squat (legs together, straight back) I can sit relatively comfortably in full lotus (although I generally favor Burmese style) My knees are 5-10 inches off the floor in the tailor pose My hamstrings are quite tight (mainly biceps femoris, I think) I have a curved lower back with some scoliosis (the hip pain, however, seems to be the same on both sides) Any advice much appreciated.

I have decided to call our 'products' programs; somehow this seems more human to me. Here are the individual exercise elements that comprise the Master the pancake program. My intention is to make each of these programs available for download for a price of $4.99. And these are downloadable programs: that is, they have no copy protection (no DRM). You will have a copy on whatever devices you have with you for use any time. We need you to respect what we are trying to do, which is to make the best information on the planet available to you at the lowest price. If you feel that you want to share these with your friends, that's fine, but please direct them to the download part of our site too; these programs take a lot of time, effort, and money, to make. All elements will be HD video, with verbal instructions, and multiple camera angles. we have already cut a number of programs from our recent National Convention using this multi-cam approach and it works very well. Mastering the pancake Keys: L = limbering element, E = exercise element, FR = fascial release L1 Cossack squat, with moving to straight leg variations; use of wall or supports for balance and to hold end position L2 Skandasana, all parts (search for this term on our YT channel) E1 Tailor pose, part one (called the butterfly; this in on my YT channel too) E2 Standing bent-leg forward bend; over each leg and the middle E3 squashed frog E4 kneeling straight-leg mobilisation (half kona-asana) FR1: fascial release for gracilis ​and the inner hamstring (this can be repeated with E6, below; see YT for quick sample) E1 repeat, Tailor pose, part two (the moving the trunk forward element; key for pancake) E5 Supported side splits; how to use sliding tools L3 Standing unsupported triangle pose with reaching movements E6 All parts Kona-asana (floor legs apart forward bend; this is what GST folk call the full version of the pancake) E7 partner assist E6, all parts So, 12 elements for $4.99. Interested? We start shooting soon. Comments and requests very welcome.

See the description of the workshop: http://kitlaughlin.c.../st-for-gst.php If there is enough interest, we might be able to put one of these on in other locations, too; please let Miss O (Olivia) know if you are interested. She can be contacted by PM here or her emails address is available from our site (I would rather not put it here). I intend to have the downloadable products available by mid-year; we start shooting in a couple of weeks. If anyone is, or knows, a hotshot FCPX editor, contact me by email or PM, here. We are TOTALLY excited by this!

Hello all, Kit here. Posted full description on my blog HERE, and full text from blog below for convenience. YT clip (promo): Full blog text: Stretch Therapy for Gymnastics Strength Training (“GST”, but the one we like) This two-day intensive workshop is purpose-designed for all men and women pursuing strength training following men’s gymnastics' strength training protocols. We will present solo and partner versions of most exercises. We will cover all necessary partial poses, progressions, and associated techniques (like fascial releases) to be able to do: pike pancake full squat full back bend (the bridge) shoulder extension, and flexion full hip mobility Achieving a full pike and a full pancake requires stretching the calf muscles (including the often-neglected posterior fascial line), all three hamstrings, all adductors, and a small muscle in the hip called piriformis which is a surprisingly common (but often unsuspected) limiter of these fundamental movements. Practising the pike and pancake by themselves is relatively inefficient, in terms of results gained for time spent—there are better ways. The techniques we will use to achieve the pike and the pancake are all partial poses and/or fascial techniques. The core method used is the Contract–Relax technique, as developed by our team over the last 25 years. We will also use innovative agonist–antagonist moving stretching techniques which will actively assist flatter pikes and pancakes, by activating the hip flexors and TFL in their maximally shortened positions—this provides needed strength in the fully contracted position as well as provides the brain with a novel stretch sensation. Fascial releases on gracilis and the inner hamstrings will be done on all attendees, where needed. The full squat requires considerable ankle flexibility and hip mobility and we will show you a range of exercises that will allow you to do this movement with good foot alignment, preserved arches in the feet, and no support. On most workshops when we begin, only about half the room has a decent full squat, but by the end almost everybody does. We will cover assistance techniques for hip internal rotation (this will complement the external rotation exercises that work piriformis, above, too). We will practise all partial poses leading up to a full back bend. To this end we will show you effective partner stick stretches that will open the chest and shoulders, in preparation for full dislocate movements, and then add the hip flexor/quadriceps, passive back bends over supports, and rib-cage mobilisation exercises so that the body is prepared for the full back bend. Solo alternatives will be taught as well. In addition, fascial releases for the diaphragm and rectus abdominis will be done for all attendees. In the process of going through these partial poses, you will learn exactly which structures are limiting your present movement patterns, so future practise becomes very time efficient. Often, only a small muscle or narrow line of fascia is the restriction—finding and changing these are the keys to unlocking your body. Experience has shown us that adults following gymnastic strength training regimens frequently injure themselves. We will practise a range of extremely effective rehabilitation–treatment exercises to address these kinds of problems. As well, there are a number of stretching exercise that actively assist in recovery and we will do these, too. I will add that if you want to attend the first one, planned for Italy (a lovely town named Piacenza, in northern Italy, 15-16 November, then you'd better book it ASAP; we expect this will be a rapid sellout. If there's enough interest, we can add two more this year. All details will be on kitlaughlin.com/.