Developing Strength at End ROM

[Craig]

Nice one Cody!

I have just made myself a daily challenge. This is the routine im doing daily for the next 4 - 8 weeks depending on if I die or not. for anyone interested, takes about an hour:

Ballistic

20r x Standing Pike Pulse

20r x Twisted Pike Pulse (both sides)

10r x Standing Split Reach (both sides, alternating)

20r x Side Single Leg Toe Touch (both sides)

20r x Front Single Leg Toe Touch (both sides)

20r x Elbow to Toe (both sides)

20r x Drop Stance Pulse (both sides)

20r x Lunge Pulse (both sides)

Loaded

30s x Tailor’s Pose w/ partner pressing on knees

dyn: 5r x Knee press up

30s x Partner Piriformis (both sides)

dyn: 5r x lower w/o hands

30s x Partner Hip Flexor (both sides)

dyn: 5r x Hip Flexor Leg Push Down

30s x Standing Side Splits +10kg or partner press down on shoulders

dyn: 5r x Side Split Slides

30s x Partner Pike

dyn: 5r x concentric jefferson curl

30s x Partner Bridge

dyn: 5r x stair bridge press

30s x Standing Wall Hamstring (both sides)

dyn: 5r x Leg pull down (both sides)

30s x Pancake +10kg

dyn: 5r x Pancake Good Morning

Roll up and down

[Emmet Louis]

Interesting.

I've just started my own little challenge of following the Thomas Kurz Flexibility express til the Kit Seminar in November. I've been having great results with the MAP routine posted but just want to give Mr Kurz a go.

3 sessions in as of last night and I'm already feeling this strange looseness in the hip joint its self. No massive change in ROM but the feeling is undeniable.

[Cody Sunkel]

Looks cool Craig. Keep us posted.

@ Emmett - super intrigued by that program. I see a lot of bent leg middle splits / super wide squats in the teasers. Seems like an interesting concept to explore.

[Craig]

about to start day 11 or 12, cant remember. Haven't missed a day yet. Getting insane increases in flexibility already. Managed to touch my elbow to my toe for the first time 2 days ago (although I wasn't able to do it again yesterday). I can slide up from my side splits using only fingertip support now rather than the entire palm. Getting into some interesting territory in partner HF stretch too!

[Emmet Louis]

Looks cool Craig. Keep us posted.

@ Emmett - super intrigued by that program. I see a lot of bent leg middle splits / super wide squats in the teasers. Seems like an interesting concept to explore.

So done session 4/5 last night. So far the results are I can now hit a 5 step horse stance thighs even a little below parallel straight out of bed cold. I've now got some weird looseness in the hip capsule itself, hard to describe but things just move free in there.

Big jump on my pancake with zero stretching, my pancake is my weakest position due to adductor tears and the improvement is the biggest I've had.

Keeping the squatting idea in the side splits is interesting as it keep any strain from the knees and focuses it higher up the groin then normal.

Had a go of straddle ups last night and was doing them from an aerobic step with little effort.

The program itself is good but I feel there's a lot of gaps in it for the lay person. Took me about 4-5 watching of the dvd with pen and paper to get all the unexplained subtleties down. A lot of it is left to trial and self experimentation which as coaches is fine but I think if I gave it to some one with out experience or coaching they'd be lost for a start point.

At present my program for lower body flexibility is

Daily: 3 x 50-75 reps of head to toe, double fist left, fist and thumb right

Shi pa dan number 2(?)/ Chinese hip grinder, 20 reps each way before HS and other general limberings

MWF: Thomas Kurz + Iso hip flexor

[Craig]

checking in on day 17ish i think?

missed one day only so far. my flexibility has improved more in the past 17 days than in the past year. The DOMS has finally faded away.

On top of the flexibility, the strength at the end ROM is so much better. I am now on sliders doing a middle split, only supported by the feet with as strong a tail tuck as I can AND holding 10kg dumbbell for 30s. My groin is now about 8" from the ground. I can slide up out of this low side split to standing using only a few fingers to spot me on the way up, and I feel that no hands is something that will happen this year. I can do a lunge with the knees barely bent (almost a full front split, just hovering off the ground), and then step out of it without using my hands. I can do a standing pancake goodmorning, hold for 30s and then do 5r pressing to standing with 10kg on my shoulders, and this is easy (I really feel like 15 would be more useful at this stage but I don't have anything...might be time to buy another dumbbell). I am about a cm from being able to touch my opposite elbow to my toe with a straight leg.

So much change in such a short amount of time. Did I mention all the small nagging strains I had have all disappeared? And that I had a torn adductor at the start of this challenge and it is now also basically completely healed? I am so excited about this!

So lets look at the concept (so you guys can go build your own set and play):

Ballistic stretching x 20r for whichever muscles you want to target. make sure that your target is beyond your current flexibility. EG if you can touch your hand to your toe with a straight leg, then just doing this every day won't help much. You have to be attempting to touch your wrist or forearm or elbow or head or whatever.

Following this, loaded stretching. The protocol I am using is going into UNSUPPORTED stretches, and then loading them with weight. Depending on the leverage some stretches might not need weight at the start, bodyweight will do for the first 2 weeks. You can then add weight 5kg per week after that.

THe protocol is this: hold the stretch in the loaded unsupported position for 30s. If you like you can do your normal isometric contractions and relaxation as per Kit's method during this time. After 30s, without stopping the stretch, press 3 - 5 times completely out of the stretch using ONLY the muscles that are under stretch. Make sure that between each rep, you return to your deepest possible position...you should find that you get deeper each rep. After wards, return to the deepest position and hold for 5 - 10s to feel the new ROM.

Example: Tailor's pose

If your knees touch the ground AT ALL in this pose, you need to elevate your bum and feet so that the knees are floating. Remember this is unsupported! Add weight to the knees (I started with a 10kg dumbbell on each side), and hold for 30s. Try your best to relax during this time and let the weight drag you down. After 30s has passed, without taking the weights off, press the knees as high as you can. You should be able to press up high enough so the legs are above 45 degrees upwards (after this your ankles will probably run out of ROM). Drop it back down and sink into the stretch more. Press up and down again like this until you have completed your set of 3 - 5. Return again to the deepest position you can and enjoy your new ROM.

You guys should totally invent a few different stretches like this. The ones I have listed in my program a few posts up were targetting my specific weak areas, you may need something different!

Enjoy.

MH

[Emmet Louis]

Great write up!

Do you just do one set each? On the RPE scale where would you feel you're working?

[Adurst]

I personally want to see that session in hyperlapse

[Craig]

Ads: I'll film it soon!

Emmet: yes just one set of each. Although the muscle groups generally get hit more than ones (eg adductors get hit in tailor's pose, side splits and pancake). At the beginning I was only just able to complete 3r of the dynamic stuff, and the 30s holds were a massive struggle. It's relatively easy for the hold and 5r now, so I'm going to crank the weight up even more in a lot of the exercises! Generally the RPE should be challenging enough that you find it quite difficult, but not so difficult that you cannot control it.

[Craig]

RPE scale 6 -7 i guess

[terje]

Daily: 3 x 50-75 reps of head to toe, double fist left, fist and thumb right

Shi pa dan number 2(?)/ Chinese hip grinder, 20 reps each way before HS and other general limberings

MWF: Thomas Kurz + Iso hip flexor

Emmet, could you give some advice on how to start out the Kurtz program? As I understand it one does one set at hip width, then another a little wider and so on until one reaches the width that one cannot go below paralell. Then at the end one goes for the 7-step wide isometric stretches?

[Emmet Louis]

Emmet, could you give some advice on how to start out the Kurtz program? As I understand it one does one set at hip width, then another a little wider and so on until one reaches the width that one cannot go below paralell. Then at the end one goes for the 7-step wide isometric stretches?

Do you have the dvd?

The jist of it is warm up on a front squat variation and then the squat, front bend, good morning OH combo.

Then move to 5 step horse stance, use the amount of weight that gets you lower, he demos sets of 10, pausing in the bottom for two seconds, really get the hips back on this. and flex adductors to come out. Do enough sets to get your hips below your knees, if you can't then just stick with this til you can.

Then you move onto the 7 step, do a set of contractions for how ever long and generally 5 reps, ie 5 reps of ten seconds, focus on getting the hips back each set, move the feet out when you can, repeat that a max of 6 times, holding last tension for 30seconds.

[terje]

Thanks. Yes, I do have the videos, but the instructions could be clearer so I appreciated your write up. E.g. I thought one was supposed to do squats even wider than 5 steps if able.

[Emmet Louis]

I'd normally do 3 sets of 10 - 20 reps of five steps, by the third set my feet are about 20cm wider then the first set. Same with the 7 step. Right now I'm more focusing on the sitting right back and standing up on it. I'm using a stack of mats and am about 20cm off the ground at the lowest.

I'm going to follow this till x-mass and then I'm going to do a big write up on my blog as I understand that the video isn't that clear. I've watched it about 20 times now to get all the little nuances.

Also you'll find your glutes will start getting tight from it too, so give them some extra love with the ball.

[terje]

I am looking forward to that write up. Actually I tried the program about a year ago. I found it stressing my rotators too much, probably by being too impatient. I started getting shooting spasms. It wasn't only from those squats, it was already there, but it triggered it more than anything. Still suffering from those, but I am thinking of slowly getting into it again. After learning about the importance of mindfulness in stretching on this forum I think I can perhaps benefit more. I would definitely combine it with glutes, rotators and hip flexor stretching though.