Mick's Big Breath At Home

[Kit_L]

If I can offer a 'word of wisdom' (having struggled with many of the same problems in my own body as you have), it is it is that change is happening all the time and if we are pressing the right buttons in terms of what the hamstrings need over time (and we all know it's a matter of enhancing proprioception and strength for the most part), the change that is happening is invisible to you. So the lesson is simply this: you have to keep on going in the direction that you're going and one day you will suddenly (and I say "suddenly" because in my own injuries there has never been a slow change from dysfunctional dysfunctional) – it has always happened in the background and you simply find that you can do something that you couldn't do only a few days before. I don't know why the universe is organised this way – but that's how it seems to be for most people!

[Mick]

21 hours ago, Kit_L said:

If I can offer a 'word of wisdom' (having struggled with many of the same problems in my own body as you have), it is it is that change is happening all the time and if we are pressing the right buttons in terms of what the hamstrings need over time (and we all know it's a matter of enhancing proprioception and strength for the most part), the change that is happening is invisible to you. So the lesson is simply this: you have to keep on going in the direction that you're going and one day you will suddenly (and I say "suddenly" because in my own injuries there has never been a slow change from dysfunctional dysfunctional) – it has always happened in the background and you simply find that you can do something that you couldn't do only a few days before. I don't know why the universe is organised this way – but that's how it seems to be for most people!

Thanks for the thoughts, Kit.

The sudden change seems fascinating! What you described reminds me of something I read/heard a few years back regarding dissipative structures and the continual cycle of order coming out of a state of chaos... if the right pressure is sustained for long enough. Then a higher level of chaos emerging with the cycle starting over until it re-organizes itself again.. And that reminds me of what you mentioned in the range of strength podcast you recently uploaded - how a practitioner will find themselves deeper into a stretch but it feels the same.

I guess I'm in the midst of figuring out, via trial error, the balance of pressing the right buttons for my body.
For example, yesterday during the C-R session I exaggerated taking the lunge hamstring stretch right back to zero by resting my chest on my thigh with front knee at a right angle. I stayed there with no real intention of going into a deeper stretch. I felt my lower abdomen sink onto the thigh a little bit more than usual. So then I did extend my knee ever so slightly over a few minutes because my body felt like it. From the outside it probably looked like nothing, or very little. What was encouraging, though, was the activation of the upper hamstring more than usual, or at all.
Also, I'm still experimenting with the amount & frequency of SL RDL.

Anyway, thanks again.

----------

Yesterday:
- A moderate C-R session. The tenderness in the hamstrings had passed and I felt ready for another stronger session. As well as what I just mentioned above, I discovered that during the wall quad stretch, if I apply pressure to the outside of the front knee inward with my same side hand it seems to help the hip sink back (which slightly squares the hips more). And this increases the stretch in the quad & HF quite noticeably. Again, I didn't really notice/realize that I stayed in that particular stretch for 9-10 minutes on each side.
Uploading the video tonight. Hopefully I can post a link tomorrow.

- 1.5-hour lying meditation

Light limbering today:
- Daily 5, with cat-camel after half-cobra
- Hip flexor to lunge hamstring

- 1 set of 10 SL RDL
- Right hip flexor

- Impromptu 5 squats (last one held for a bit longer) with my 9-year old step-daughter hanging on my back amidst both of us dancing

- Hanging side bend stretch, left & right

[Mick]

My mother-in-law is moving house tomorrow. We have been helping her pack up everything all week from morning to night. So I've been able to do only minimal stretching. Actually I think the light load may have been beneficial. Doesn't really matter, I didn't have a choice!

Since last Thursday...

Friday was a complete rest day.

Saturday too, except a set of SL RDL on the left standing leg.

Sunday:
- Daily 5
- Hip flexor into lunge hamstring (starting) position
- Frog Pose
- Diamond Pose
- SL RDL set of 10
- Floor folded leg calf stretch, left side
- Hip flexor again
- Child's pose

Later in the afternoon:
- 2nd set of 10 SL RDL
- Right hip flexor
- Floor folded leg calf stretch, left side

Later in the evening:
- Balcony calf stretch
- Thoracic spine stretch with hands against wall
- Assisted squat (holding balcony fence)
- Tfl stretch... this is one I have to find out the name for... especially now that my left hip flexor is not obstructing the stretch like before
- Seated hip

Just before bed:
- 3rd set of SL RDL
- Half cobra

Monday:
- Hip flexor
- Daily 5
- Diamond pose
- Front neck
- Set of 10 SL RDL
- Left seated hip

Tuesday:
- Set of 10 SL RDL
- Left seated hip
- Hip flexor

Wednesday. This was a very satisfying morning stretch/limber. On my way to the park while walking the dog I could feel very specifically my right trapezius, neck & hip flexor together with my left hip/glutes. Two areas of tension from my squash days. I could feel my body wanted these areas to be stretched. So I indulged!
- Hanging side bend; left, right, left
- Right hip flexor, with extended arm upward
- Left hip flexor, shifting weight from side to side
- Left floating piriformis
- Set of 10 SL RDL
- Left seated hip

Thursday:
- Set of 10 SL RDL
- Right hip flexor
- Left floating piriformis

My mother-in-law's moving day is tomorrow. I hope to do my next C-R session on Saturday or (most likely) Sunday.

[Mick]

Friday, spent the day hauling furniture and whatnot. It was quite a work out.

Saturday, rested. 1 set of 10 SL RDL.

Today, a moderate C-R session. Unfortunately the laptop which I use to edit videos is getting repaired so this session and last session won't be uploaded for a while.

[Mick]

Since the previous C-R session (9 days ago) I have been doing a just little bit each day, focusing on the same things:
- 1 set of 10 SL RDL
- Hip flexor position for right leg
- Sinking my torso as much as possible onto the front left thigh
- Light exploration of the left upper hamstring
- Moving into a floating piriformis, playing around with the position, including going back to a standard bent-leg hamstring stretch by extending the front knee

I have found exploring with this simple sequence to be quite beneficial, often doing it multiple times throughout the day (although sometimes just once). I haven't been doing much else, for example I dropped the Daily 5. After helping my mother-in-law move house my energy has been low. Rather than fighting it I have tried to accept it as my body wanting more rest.

Ah also, Tuesday last week my brother-in-law visited and when he was leaving my step-daughter grabbed my hand to run along side his car as he left. We sprinted along the path for about 45 seconds. The next day my left achilles was a bit tender! It has since restricted how much I have been able to do the SL RDL. I can feel, however, the running aside, that the tightness in my left achilles/calf is directly related to the left hamstring/piriformis challenge I am facing. So it's just giving me additional feedback, I feel.

Anyway, after about a dozen or so intense C-R sessions (roughly 3 months) I figure this moderate rest week was kind of the end of the initial phase of this stretching adventure.

Yesterday I did another C-R session. Without planning anything, it ended up being similar to the sequence I just described above but using intense contractions, multiple times over a couple of hours. There was noticably more space for me to explore sensations while in the advanced piriformis stretch. And this seems to be slowly, slowly disengaging the left hip flexor which is allowing me to explore the stretching of the left hamstring more. The wall quad/hip-flexor stretch is proving to be a gem. Today I can feel my hip-flexors having been stretched well. 

I recorded the session but haven't sorted out the editing/uploading issues. I hope to get yesterday's and the previous 2 sessions edited and uploaded this week.

[Mick]

I did another C-R session yesterday. Since the previous C-R session I was following pretty much the same sequence as mentioned in my previous post. Again, I was restricted with how much I could do the SL RDL. However, it feels like the lingering tenderness/vulnerability in my left achilles has almost completely passed.

[Mick]

The next hanful of posts will be a kind of catch-up of video documentation for my previous 3 or 4 C-R sessions. The first is from 24th June with time-marks underneath:

Daily 5
0:00 Upper Back
0:26 Half cobra
0:55 Child’s Pose
1:22 Lying rotation, left
2:39 Lying rotation, right
3:51 Side-bends
4:28 Seated hip, left
5:22 Seated hip, right
6:21 Seated hip, left

Hip flexor with band
6:48 Right
8:46 Left

Wall quad/hip-flexor
10:56 Right
14:03 Left
17:20 Right

Advanced Piriformis
20:09 Left
22:35 Right
24:35 Hip-looseners

Lunge Hamstring
25:15 Left
26:35 Right

28:05 SL RDL – Left

28:45 Child’s Pose

29:05 Lunge Hamstring Left #2

Scalene
30:25 Left
31:20 Right
(32:11 Front Neck)
32:26 Left

33:21 SL RDL – Left #2

34:03 Lunge Hamstring Left #3

Hanging Side Bend
35:38 Right
36:55 Left

38:39 Frog Pose

39:58 Baby’s Pose

41:02 No idea what that was! But I was releasing the TFL

41:33 Modified child’s pose

[Mick]

The following is the C-R session I did on 5th July (time-marks underneath):

Hip-flexor loosening
0:00 Right
0:32 Left
1:15 Right

2:00 Straight-to-bent-leg left hamstring
2:47 1 set of 10 SL RDL
Bent-leg Hamstring
4:27 Left

6:06 Child’s Pose
6:34 Frog Pose

7:24 Double-calf squat

Hip-Flexor to Straight-leg Hamstring
8:02 Left HP
9:36 Right H
10:48 Right HP
12:51 Left H

14:29 Middle and Upper back
15:37 Backward bend from floor
16:25 Child’s pose
17:21 Reverse wrist

(18:00 1 set of 10 SL RDL)
Advanced Piriformis
18:47 Left
20:40 Right
(22:44 1 set of 10 SL RDL)
23:21 Left
25:20 Loosening

Scalene
25:58 Left
26:56 Right
27:56 Left

Bent-leg Hamstring
28:51 Left

30:43 Frog Pose

Floor folded leg calf (soleus)
31:38 Left
(33:06 Left hip-flexor/TFL)
33:35 Right

34:21 Floating piriformis – left

Neck
35:29 Back
36:21 Front

[Mick]

For the most part, I’ve been continuing roughly with the same sequence each day:

- 1 set of 10 SL RDL
- Hip flexor position for right leg
- Sinking my torso as much as possible onto the front left thigh
- Light exploration of the left upper hamstring
- Moving into a floating piriformis, playing around with the position, including going back to a standard bent-leg hamstring stretch by extending the front knee

…as well as some others, eg. hanging side bend, upper & middle back, backward bend from floor, standing calf stretch.

I’ve noticed slightly more ROM in my left calf. I can actually feel the stretch when I want to now! I’m also noticing the tightness there is largely what has fueled the tightening up of my left hip-flexor area when trying to squat. The other day I also tried a pancake position and I have much more freedom with the left ankle compared to the original photo in the first post of this log. I’m feeling a little more control/sturdiness while doing the SL RDL on the left side too.

On Monday I did a couple of hours of hoeing up and shoveling dirt. The DOMs I felt in the last 2 days has been quite satisfying in that it feels like the rigorous exercise helped to open up imbalances in my body (as opposed to making them worse, as would have been the case in the past).

Yesterday I did a couple of sets of quick tricep dips on the park bench. Didn’t count, just pumped them out.

Tomorrow I will probably do another C-R session. In the meantime I am uploading/editing the other C-R sessions I have done.

[Mick]

The following is the C-R session I did on 13th July (time-marks underneath):

0:00 Upper & middle back
0:27 Backward bend from floor
0:48 Child’s pose
1:10 Reverse wrist
1:23 Knees together assisted squat
1:44 Elephant Walk
 

2:14 1 x 10 SL RDL

2:54 Left HF into right floating piriformis
3:47 Left lunge hamstring
4:44 Right HF into left floating piriformis
5:23 Right lunge hamstring

6:09 1 x 10 SL RDL

6:53 Right HF
7:09 Left lunge hamstring

8:38 Left floor folded leg calf (soleus)
8:48 Knees together assisted squat

Advanced Piriformis
9:12 Left
11:25 Right
14:01 1 x 10 SL RDL
14:41 Left
16:42 Loosening

17:15 Tailor’s Pose

Wall Quad/HF
18:54 Left
21:52 Right

24:39 1 x 10 SL RDL

24:49 Right HF into left floating piriformis
25:09 Left lunge hamstring
26:22 Left floating piriformis

Hanging Side Bend
22:46 Right
28:10 Left

29:39 Lying/resting

40:44 Child’s pose

[Mick]

The following is the C-R session I did on 18th July (time-marks underneath):

0:00 Upper & middle back
0:38 Backward bend from floor
0:55 Child’s pose

HF loosener into Lunge Hamstring
1:06 Right HF
1:48 Left H
2:24 Left HF
3:05 Right H
3:22 Right HF
3:35 Left H
(4:53 Knees together assisted squat)
5:05 Right H
6:17 Left H

7:56 Knees part squat on toes into downward dog
8:30 4 Hindu squats with my brand-spanking new Sheena Board! (Last one I held in backward bend static position)

8:51 1 x 10 SL RDL

Advanced Piriformis
9:51 Left
10:55 Right
(12:30 Right lunge hamstring)
12:37 Left
(14:14 Left lunge hamstring)

15:09 Floor folded leg left calf (soleus)

16:29 Left HF loosener

Wall Quad/HF
16:54 Right
19:14 Left

Hanging Side Bend
21:37 Right
23:16 Left

24:55 Frog Pose

26:37 Reverse wrist

27:31 Knees together assisted squat

Lying Rotation
28:04 Left
29:12 Right

30:15 Piriformis looseners

[Mick]

I've been following the same sequence the last few days but in addition to the normal set of SL RDL I've started doing a set on the right leg then another on the left.

Yesterday I did a C-R session. Editing today and uploading hopefully by tomorrow.
I fell into a natural sequence after doing advanced piriformis stretch on the left leg. I raised my body into a left lunge hamstring position then into a left floor folded leg calf stretch then switched up into a left hip-flexor stretch. With the right leg forward I then grabbed the support cushions and placed them so I could rest down into a right advanced piriformis stretch. Then followed the same sequence after that. It was very satisfying!

It's still morning here but after I took the dog for a stroll in the park I used the kettlebell to sink into a goblet squat position and stayed there. With that feeling I mentioned a few days ago of the tightness in the left calf fueling the tightness in the left hip (particularly the left hip-flexor) while in a squat, I was able to play around with shifting my weight from left to right and, on the left foot, shifting my weight more forward. I mean I'm feeling a bit more freedom in the left calf where I can actually shift my weight. I will persist with this, using the kettle bell. It seems like it compliments the SL RDL quite nicely.

[Mick]

Below is the C-R session I did on Saturday (time-marks underneath).

The tenderness in the hamstring following these sessions isn't as pronounced. Nor is the tightness/cramping in the left hip-flexor. However, I'm still quite conservative with the hamstring contractions I'm doing in the sessions. Whereas for hip-flexor, adductors, piriformis, for example, I feel I can (and for my body, should) do 100% contractions.

Warm-up / Prep
0:00 Downward dog
1:04 Upper & middle back
2:17 Backward bend from floor
3:38 Child’s pose
4:16 Downward dog
4:35 Hindu pushup x 5, last one static hold
5:09 Assisted squat with knees apart
5:48 Elephant walk

SL RDL

6:11 Left x 10
6:46 Right x 10
7:22 Left x 10

Lunge Hamstring
7:52 Left
9:12 Right
(10:37) Left floating piriformis into Lunge hamstring

Wall Quad/Hip-flexor
12:38 Left
14:40 Right

SL RDL Left
17:16

Lunge Hamstring
Left 19:01

Static Goblet Squat w/ Kettlebell
20:10

Advanced Piriformis sequence
20:40 Left
22:33 Left Lunge Hamstring
23:21 Floor folded calf (left)
24:29 Left hip-flexor
25:18 Right
27:09 Right Lunge Hamstring
27:45 Floor folded calf (right)
28:19 Right hip-flexor

Tailor Pose
29:09

Hip-flexor Loosening
30:42 Right
30:51 Left

Hanging Side Bend
30:59 Right
32:00 Left

[Mick]

Below is the C-R session I did on Friday (time-marks underneath). It was a shorter session in the midst of a few days of bayram family gatherings here in Turkey. On one day, we hosted 25 people for a big Turkish breakfast on our not-so-big verandah. Catering and/or operating a restaurant would be tiring, unending work. But for that one time it was a pleasure to see the family together, especially after so many months with everyone isolated.

My left hamstring is not pulling up unoperably tender after the last few C-R sessions. Feels like it still needs more strengthening and release in the hip/TFL though before I will notice any massive increases in ROM. For the moment, what is catching my attention is how good I/my body feels in general after a C-R session.

SL RDL
0:00 Left
0:29 Right
1:10 Left

Assisted Squat
1:46

Kettlebell Swing (3x15)
1:56

Lunge Hamstring – Floating Piriformis – Bolster Piriformis – Lunge Hamstring
2:52 Left H
4:29 Left FP
4:47 Left BP
6:10 Left H
(7:01 Rest)
7:24 Right H
8:45 Right FP
8:54 Right BP
10:18 Right H
(10:59 Rest)

Dog Loving 11:36

Lunge Hamstring
12:36 Left

Frog Pose
14:10

Assisted Squat (knees together)
12:55

Floor Folded Leg Calf (soleus)
15:59 Left
17:03 Right

Elephant Walk
18:12

Wall Quad/Hip-Flexor
18:37 Right
21:00 Left

[Mick]

Today I did my regular limbering of hip flexors, hamstrings, piriformis, adductors, calves after the following:
- 1 x 10 SL RDL on left side
- 3 x 15 Kettlebell swings
- Static Goblet squat position while holding kettlebell

Later on I tried the following back bend variation with a wooden chest and heavy wooden table in our living room (even though it is perfect and was literally right in front of me, I didn't think of using the wooden chest until after I had walked around the entire house looking for possible stools/devices I might be able to use, which could be a possible metaphor for the lingering foreboding sensation on the outskirts of my mind that everything I need in life is right in front of me if only I might slow down enough to actually notice!):

 

[Mick]

For the last week of my summer holidays I binge-watched Game of Thrones. I would do some limbering every now and then. And on two days I also did the following:
- SL RDL; left, right, left (10 reps for each set)
- 5 x 10 Kettlebell swings (20kg)
- Static goblet squat while holding kettlebell
- Hip-flexor limbering
- Lunge hamstring limbering into floating piriformis; left, right, left

Then today I did that again (but 6 x 10 swings) and afterward I did a mini C-R session. All I did was the lunge hamstring then a deep floating piriformis; left, right, then left again. I was feeling more freedom to explore the contractions on the left hamstring side. I may have pushed it a little too much. But maybe not. I'll see how I pull up over the next couple of days. I also discovered that in the final lunge resting position if I flex the front ankle so only my heel is making contact with the ground it allows me to feel the stretch in the outer hamstring while also disengaging the inner hamstring (which is where I used to always pull up real tender from over-stretching).

I liked this shorter session. The left lunge hamstring into floating piriformis is definitely the tightest area in my body. And, as I said, I'm feeling a little more freedom to explore. So rather than doing a 2 or 3-hour session doing lots of other stretches, I'm going to focus on these shorter ones focusing just on the tightest areas, particularly with work starting back up which means less free time.

Overall I'm noticing more ROM in my left calf. Today I tried the very basic pancake position in the park on a slight incline. I can move my left ankle now almost the same as the right side. So that's encouraging. I'm also noticing more freedom in my left hamstring. At school today, I was sitting on a desk with my legs hanging and I tried some knee extensions. I could actually hold my left foot up without my quad cramping like it used to. Same thing lying down in bed raising my leg toward my head. And this correlates with what I've started doing during the contraction in the left lunge hamstring stretch - that is, engaging the quad with more conscious control.

[Mick]

First post for a few weeks. I haven't done any C-R sessions. However, I've regularly been 'keeping in touch' with my ROM. To my surprise, I've discovered some fundamental shifts in a couple of positions.

• I can now squat without falling backwards. My back still has a bend in it so a lot to explore yet. Every day, though, while walking my dog in the park I enjoy squatting when I feel like it.
• I am also randomly sitting in a very rudimentary pancake position on a slight slope in the park. My hips aren't quite rolling over like I've heard will eventually happen. But I'm feeling a relatively even stretch on both legs/hips without any pressure in my back muscles like I used to.

In both the squat and pancake, I feel I've crossed some sort of threshold where spending time in the positions themselves will help me go deeper into them.

In the lunge hamstring position I am able to rest my torso on my front thigh more comprehensively (particularly on the left side) with less restriction from the hip flexor. And I have done a couple of sessions where I've been able to stretch my left hamstring quite deeply (although not strict C-R) without any lingering tenderness in the following days.

In the basic hip flexor stretch position I can rest my flat palms on the ground while keeping my torso relatively straight, even with my right hip flexor. This seems entirely due to my upper hamstrings, TFL and glutes on the front leg loosening somewhat and not necessarily any amazing ROM in the hip flexor of  the back leg. In the past it was always the front leg that was the restriction for me. Having said that, my hip flexors do feel quite free (relative to what they used to).

Downward dog seems like a great stretch for me at the moment where I feel it mainly in my calves.

The SL RDL is feeling more stable on the left side than the right these days. It used to be the substantially weaker/less stable side.

----------

All that aside, I've been noticing a lingering aversion to the stretching feeling. Rather than fighting this, I've chosen to just stretch when I feel like it and be okay that I'm not doing longer sessions. I think it might be echoes of impatience. I'm feeling I will start regular C-R sessions again with a loose goal of putting in another solid 3-month block.

 

[Mick]

Hello all, I’ve been MIA for several months. Big news for me and my family is we bought an apartment. Much of the time since my last post has been sorting all that out in amongst biding time in our old cramped house for a couple of months with all our shit packed and ready to go.

Fortunately it’s all sorted now!
Unfortunately, in that time, I haven’t been following a regular C-R session every 7-10 days. However, I have been limbering regularly with occasional deeper stretching.

I did write about 4 paragraphs in Word then came here and was gonna post but realized it was essentially what I described in my previous post!

So here’s a quick video of kind of where I’m at:

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CMvDXiFA690/?igshid=1cv1g2xmks9qw
(not sure how to embed videos from Instagram...)

I used to just fall back in the squat. Still a lot of work to do.
I usually do the rudimentary pancake position in the park on a nice incline as my hips aren’t rolling forward yet due to insufficient hamstring flexibility, I assume. But this was more as a reference.

In our new apartment, I was gifted stall bars for Christmas and I also purchased some gymnastic rings. My goal with the rings is to eventually do a muscle up. For now I’m just practicing supporting my weight on the rings. I’m still using my kettlebell for swings and goblet squats, intermittently. All in all, I have a very comfortable little working space.

Apart from that, I’ve started roller blading again. It’s been about 15 years. I wasn’t really that skilled with it before but I was comfortable gliding along. This time I’m using it as a way to face and deal with a little fear, re: jumping, spinning, going backwards, stopping on a dime; anything that might risk falling on my arse (with protective gear, of course). And I'm also aware of assymetry in terms feeling more comfy with a particular foot in front of the other while going forward/backward, and spinning to the right or left side.

[Pat (pogo69)]

10 hours ago, Mick said:

Big news for me and my family is we bought an apartment. Much of the time since my last post has been sorting all that out in amongst biding time in our old cramped house for a couple of months with all our shit packed and ready to go.

I feel this!  We bought our first home almost 5 (?) months ago, and we're still slowly settling in.

10 hours ago, Mick said:

In our new apartment, I was gifted stall bars for Christmas and I also purchased some gymnastic rings.

Rad setup!  I am quite envious of your stall bars.  I bought dowel to make some about... 6 (?) or so years ago, but held off because I didn't want to have to make a standalone structure.  Back on the TODO list now we have a place of our own, but it is such a long TODO list.

10 hours ago, Mick said:

My goal with the rings is to eventually do a muscle up. For now I’m just practicing supporting my weight on the rings.

Support (on top) and hanging with false grip (from below) are probably your two biggest bangs for buck, to begin with.

We have had some great discussions about training for a ring muscle-up on the forums.  When and if you are ready (or interested), have a look here:

and here:

 

10 hours ago, Mick said:

Apart from that, I’ve started roller blading again. It’s been about 15 years. I wasn’t really that skilled with it before but I was comfortable gliding along. This time I’m using it as a way to face and deal with a little fear, re: jumping, spinning, going backwards, stopping on a dime; anything that might risk falling on my arse (with protective gear, of course).

Awesome!  I've been going through a similar process for the past almost 18 months with mountain biking.  Although the gap was more like 35 years back to my 15 year old BMX-riding self.  Tempering the enthusiasm, and trying to find balance between stoke and (some degree of) safety, is an ongoing concern.

[Mick]

On 3/24/2021 at 9:18 AM, Pat (pogo69) said:

Support (on top) and hanging with false grip (from below) are probably your two biggest bangs for buck, to begin with.

Yes, false grip as well. Those two are what I gathered were important from the YT videos I watched. I started by hanging with a normal grip with one hand and false grip with the other. Now I can hang by false grip with both hands, arms bent, with my feet resting on the ground, legs straight like an L-sit. So still a long way to go Thanks for the links!

[Mick]

Today I started with:

• Single leg RDL with a kettlebell (left side is feeling very similar to right side, whereas when I first tried it, it was much weaker)
• Cossak squat with support as in this video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAeU-4QDl1I
• Squat for 5 minutes with a kettlebell

Then I did a C-R session with the following stretches:

• Wall quad/hip-flexor
• Single leg downward dog
• Lunge hamstring (x2 on each side)
• Cushion-supported advanced piriformis
• Frog
• Tailor

I am feeling more freedom to explore with the hamstring, particularly the left. Part of that, I think, is because my calves have freed up a bit. I'm prepping my wife to try to help with the sledgehammer calf stretch, although she's not heavy enough probably.

[Mick]

Today I did another C-R session. Started with:

• Single leg RDL with kettlebell
• 5 minutes of squat with kettlebell

Then moved into stretching:

• Wall quad/hip-flexor (left, right)
• Lunge hamstring (left, right, left, right)
• Bolstered piriformis (left straight after 2nd left hamstring stretch, right straight after 2nd right hamstring)
• Lunge hamstring (left)
• Bolstered piriformis (left)
• Frog
• Pancake with cushion (actually wasn't C-R, just tried rolling hips forward & back, with slightly bent knees)
• Soleus calf (left, right)

I finished with a kind of modified plough, resting my feet on the 3rd bar of my stall bars. This seems to let me relax my hips & legs while lightly stretching the hamstrings.

Since the last C-R session which I posted about I did some limbering every day, as always.

[Mick]

Today I did another C-R session. Started with:

• Limbering with soleus calf, lunge for hip-flexor and hamstring, floating piriformis
• Assisted Cossack squat
• SL RDL with 20kg kettlebell (L+R x 7/8)

Then moved into stretching:

• Bent-leg lunge hamstring (L, R, L, R)
• Supported advanced piriformis (L, R, L)
• Wall quad/hip-flexor (L, R)
• Soleus calf (L, R)
• Bent-leg hamstring (L, R)

Still limbering every day, although less since the last C-R as I'm trying to give my body sufficient rest between C-R sessions. I could be doing SL RDLs more frequently, I think. A little bit complacent in this regard.

[Mick]

Yesterday I did mini C-R sessions spread throughout the day.

In the morning I started with:
- SL RDL, 2x7 left & right
- Lunge hamstring/hip-flexor limbering
- Soleus calf stretch limbering

Then after a couple of online lessons I started C-R:
- (Assisted Cossack limbering)
- Lunge hamstring (left, right, left, right)
- Bolstered piriformis (left, right)
- Soleus calf (left, right)

In the afternoon while walking the dog:
- Pancake with C-R on a grass incline

In the evening:
- Side-split position with C-R
- Sitting piriformis from Daily 5 with C-R (left, right)

I finished with some relaxed limbering in downward-dog.

[Kit_L]

Nice! Do please let us know how you feel tomorrow, and the next day. My favourite?

17 hours ago, Mick said:

- Pancake with C-R on a grass incline

Niiiiice! Slopes are perfect for pancakes.