Master the squat and hip mobility: LIVE TODAY

[Kit_L]

E5D: We try to please!

There is a much stronger one to come, too (in Master the Pike), so working on the ones in this program (MTS) will really set you up for this new one.

[Jon]

I didn't have enough time to check properly the entire program yet, but I'm loving the 'boxing the compass' stretch.

And I'm loving even more watching everyone trying to help and coming up with ideas in order to reach more people. That's really nice, guys!

[Kit_L]

I added "Stretching Exercises", or "Stretching and Limbering Exercises" to the titles of the episodes and the program itself, on the recommendation of a friend who is an SEO dude. Apparently, this will help us get noticed more by google et al.

And I appreciate the collective efforts to share the programs; we will doing a big email out to all our people in the next few days, too.

[Tris]

Awesome! Finally made the the time to go through the program and discovered some great new things.

Highlights are the sumo squat, using the hips to dynamise the frog stretch and that wall piriformis stretch where you turn away (finally, something that stretches my piriformis!).

[JoachimG]

E5D: We try to please!

There is a much stronger one to come, too (in Master the Pike), so working on the ones in this program (MTS) will really set you up for this new one.

For some reason the sitting piriformis stretch irritates my knees in some way, so I will be sticking to the others, the E5D stretch is by for the most intense one for me anyway.

[FedericoC]

Tried E5C and D today after my GST WO. E5C felt like an awesome and clever re-interpretation of the lying piriformis stretch in the book. Need to work my way on 5D instead, didn't feel too much today.

[Anders]

I found two software solutions for viewing two or more episodes continuously.

The MP4Joiner software did not work for me using Windows XP; I got the error message "bad parameter". But here are two other software solutions for viewing two or more episodes continuously. You would of course need to be able to use the software (VLC media player or Avidemux) on your device for this to work for you:

A. Open multiple files in VLC media player: Media -> Open Multiple files...

I recommend this if you have no regular episode schedule.

B. Join the files in "Avidemux":

I recommend this if you have a regular episode schedule.

1. File -> Open -> Select file
   
2. File -> Append -> Select File
   
3. Set Video and Audio Output to Copy (default), and Output Format to MP4 (change from default AVI)
   
4. File -> Save -> FileName
   
5. Wait a few minutes..
   

Anders

Yes, that's a good way to organize the MP4 files. One might want to add the PDF in the same directory too. I'm considering to combine the MP4 files into one MP4 file to enable continuous play from the beginning to the end (88 mins). For example, there is the free software (i.e., no cost and GPL license) MP4Joiner at http://www.mp4joiner.org/ that is designed for this purpose. I'm very busy at work this week but hope to have a chance to look into it in the weekend or next weekend.

[Kit_L]

Great work Anders. I am very pleased to hear that VLC can do this (I use QT pretty much exclusively).

@ Fede: this is THE best way to change your flexibility (in addition to doing the L movements, or one/two of them daily).

[Haplix]

Thanks Kit and the team for the program! It really opened up my lower body for the first time in forever.

The cossacks with the feet perpendicular felt different (lack of ankle flexibility) than the ones I've been doing with F1, which is good.

I can't wait for the other programs.

A suggestion would be a "getting started"/Quick FAQs pdf for each of these master programs.

I can see a lot of newcomers who don't have experience with stretching(my friends) that wouldn't understand everything.

For the "Getting Started" pdf, you could add:

duration, the questions answered in this forum, and some introductory things for people who don't know about it

[Kit_L]

Haplix wrote:

A suggestion would be a "getting started"/Quick FAQs pdf for each of these master programs.

I can see a lot of newcomers who don't have experience with stretching(my friends) that wouldn't understand everything.

For the "Getting Started" pdf, you could add:

duration, the questions answered in this forum, and some introductory things for people who don't know about it

Good idea; anyone feel like having a go at that? I am just too busy to look at this right now. Patrick's questions and the various answers would be a good place to start, I think.

​And this could be incorporated into the first post (the one with the PDF) and I can do that once I have the text, if anyone has some spare time.

[FedericoC]

@Kit: yes indeed, I'm carefully getting into it! Thanks!

[dpevoav]

Hi Kit,

I agree MTS is top notch although I have only watched 50% of it, i'll update on the flexible success I will achieve.

I have just posted to about 5K people on various UK Parkour/Gymnastics groups.

Love all the social people promoting this on other social media outlets.

I agree with Tris in that all EPS need a numerical prefix in future.

Keep em coming.

Daniel

[Kit_L]

Would everyone like all eps to be numbered (i.e., 1-16, in front of the "Stretching Exercise" part, like this"

1. Stretching exercise: L 1 Sumo squat

2. Stretching Exercises: E1A–E1D: Calf exercises

I can do that, if that's the consensus. I mentioned this in another post; the Stretching Exercises part of the name is for SEO (apparently there are 25,000 google searches a month on "Stretching exercises", or something like that, so we have added these terms to the names for that reason only).

[Tris]

Kit: Can you edit the downloaded filename independently of the Vimeo title? If so - consensus may prove me wrong - but I think leaving the Vimeo titles as is, and using the rolling episode numbers only when the files are downloaded to hard-disk, would be most ideal for both Vimeo-streamers and file-downloaders.

Great idea with the SEO. MTS is already the first result when Googling "stretching exercise vimeo". Assuming Google don't downplay Vimeo in their search result algorithms (which is possible: it's a direct competitor of YouTube, which Google owns) you are likely to rank very well and get some awesome organic traffic with a bit of time.

[Kit_L]

Tris, when you write "Can you edit the downloaded filename independently of the Vimeo title?", do you mean can I edit it, or can someone change it when they download it? If you mean, can I organise it so the download name is different to the publicly visible name, the answer is no (AFAIK!).

What software do you download via? If I download a series of anything, and assuming I download it in the order I want to later view it in, I simply arrange the files by time—this way they are in the download order, independent of name, and I can number them 1-10 myself.

Your point re. the Google-Vimeo relationship is a very good one, too; let's wait and see!

[CraigM]

Hi

Purchased the hip mobility program a few days ago and been working away at the stretchs and love it. It's so much better than anything else I've tried. I've gone through the program several times and have a good range of motion in most of the exercises but I have 1 problem. I can't do cossack squats, I've tried all the variations and each one gives my pain in the inner knee area. I've tried making the movement smaller and higher up to find a version I could train and hopefully make it bigger and deeper over time, but I still get a tight painful feeling in the inner knee no matter what I try, any suggestions?

[Richard Hamilton]

Craig, have you tried doing the cossack squats while holding onto something? Perhaps that could help you out and give you a bit more confidence to play around with them? I tried all the methods in the video but for the time being holding onto a door frame is working well for me as it allows me to keep my torso more upright. You can also reduce the load a bit using this method.

[Geoff]

Sunday I had my first run through the entire program and Monday my my entire leg was covered with tender muscular aches! The program showed that I was really tight and weak in the hip areas. Just moving around in a squat and doing the movements as in the sumo squat (L1) or the full squat sequence (L2B) was quite hard to do! The wall cossack squat was also an eye opener in the sense that it revealed that I have close to no strength in the bottom most position of the squat.

I can't do cossack squats, I've tried all the variations and each one gives my pain in the inner knee area. I've tried making the movement smaller and higher up to find a version I could train and hopefully make it bigger and deeper over time, but I still get a tight painful feeling in the inner knee no matter what I try, any suggestions?

I also feel some unpleasant sensations (not really pain, but still very unpleasant) in the inner knee area as well during the baby flop (L4), Seated Figure 4 (L7) and the inside squat (L8). For the wall cossack squat I found that there was no unpleasantness if I ensured that the angle between my foot and my outstretched leg was at least 90 degrees, and if afterwards I ensured that my bending leg was pushed out (e.g. away from the stretched leg, or knee moving beyond the 90 degrees) before lowering down into the squat.

[CraigM]

Craig, have you tried doing the cossack squats while holding onto something? Perhaps that could help you out and give you a bit more confidence to play around with them? I tried all the methods in the video but for the time being holding onto a door frame is working well for me as it allows me to keep my torso more upright. You can also reduce the load a bit using this method.

Hi Richard, never though about doing them while holding onto a door frame, will give that a go next time. I think its a strength problem holding me back, I have great range of motion in almost all the exercises but cant hold any of them for any great length of time. I'm sure more practice of the exercises will fix my cossack squat problem eventually.

[Tris]

If you mean, can I organise it so the download name is different to the publicly visible name, the answer is no (AFAIK!).

That is what I meant - and bugger!

Hi Richard, never though about doing them while holding onto a door frame, will give that a go next time. I think its a strength problem holding me back, I have great range of motion in almost all the exercises but cant hold any of them for any great length of time. I'm sure more practice of the exercises will fix my cossack squat problem eventually.

Hi Craig. I also really differentiate the strength aspect and mobility aspect of the cossack. Strength-wise I have no problem getting up and down without support; due to doing them 3x/week for six months. But as soon as I stray from the line of movement I trained them at, I get unstable and also get the same pain behind the knee.

In this case I find holding onto something fantastic for sitting deep in the cossack and doing small movements to mobilise the hips and the gracilis-hamstring connection which could be responsible for your knee pain (this is the case with me, at least). Having that extra support makes the stretch more stable, which gives the nervous system a safe space to actually improve your ranges - not to mention you have an easier, more enjoyable time doing it!

[Kit_L]

I should have mentioned that on the videos: I always hang on to the ladder bars to warm us (some days this takes a while; other days I get right down, immediately, but the point is I always lower myself into that first go carefully. If I have already warmed up doing something else, then I don't, but I have been doing this exercise for 20 years. Even Nureyev warmed up.

Reason is that I am doing a lot of other training—and this sometimes leaves me sore. So, I always see how the old body is feeling today.

I suggest that everyone try this. Excellent suggestion, Richard.

And @ Geoff, who wrote:

I also feel some unpleasant sensations (not really pain, but still very unpleasant) in the inner knee area as well during the baby flop (L4), Seated Figure 4 (L7) and the inside squat (L8).

Just take your time; it all takes time. Boxing the Compass is the solution here, in between attempts at the ones that hurt. The trick is to find which exercises or limbers get into the parts that other exercises hurt; in time, all this will even out.

Incidentally, and this comment to everyone, this is the reason when Olivia, Craig, Dave Wardman and I were putting the sequences together that I decided to make this program the first one. If you do master all these, it will give you a head start on the next two programs (MTPancake and MTPike).

[Josh]

Hi,

I've been working through MTS and have a few questions. I'd like to start with just one.

The whole time I'm doing anything in the squat position, my feet really want to point out like 45 degrees. Typically I just try to make them point forward. Is this the right aproach or should I let them point out, or is their something else I need to be doing?

Thanks!

[Craig]

Hi Josh,

This is typically due to lack of ankle flexibility. Concentrate on E1A - E1D to rectify. Let me know how this goes!

Cheers,

Craig

[John Higgins]

This course is fantastic! There is absolutely nothing else like it, and the price cannot be beat. Thank you all so much.

Flexibility in my right ankle is still lagging, and in the past few months I have met a couple of people who have the same problem that I have: namely, they (and I) cannot elicit a stretch sensation in the gastrocnemius of one side (in my case, my right calf).

My only guess as to why this might be is that there are some other structures - fascial, bony, or something else - that is bearing most of the force and not letting me put the gastrocnemius under tension. It is almost at the point that I want to consult a PT or an orthopedist; however, as I live in the USA and this is not medically urgent, that's something of a last resort.

Has anyone here encountered - or, if I may be optimistic, solved - such a problem before?

[Craig]

John,

Without looking at it, my first instinct would be to say that the neural map is simply not updated, in other words, the muscle is still going on stretch, it's just not registering as a sensation. This is usually just a matter of proper attention. You need to stretch the ankle in all different directions, paying attention to what it feels like. See if you can feel all the different tissues doing their thing while you do it. The more you do this, the more "high resolution" your neural map will become, the more sensation you will get from a particular area. Also trying to relax all the structures deeply is a good thing, especially while they are under load

Craig