Master the squat and hip mobility: LIVE TODAY

[Salivanth]

Hi Kit. I've been steadily going through the MTS videos, and I watched the full squat one yesterday. You mentioned how key ankle flexibility is, and I certainly lack it. What would be the best L and E stretches in MTS to work on this?

[FedericoC]

I'm not Kit, but I can certainly recommend you the whole sequence of calf stretches, esp. the step ones.

[Keilani Gutierrez]

using the rod of correction on the calves in a downward dog pose opened up a lot of mobility in the calves for me in a pretty quick way at first

[SwissDanny]

using the rod of correction on the calves in a downward dog pose opened up a lot of mobility in the calves for me in a pretty quick way at first

I take it that is not a solo stretch?...

[Kit_L]

No solo rod of correction exercises. Olivia's ladder-bar SLDP will be strong enough for most...

The ROC version is just more—intense!

[FedericoC]

In fact I found this element to be key for me (note: Kit suggested that to me specifically quite some time ago, and he was totally right).

[Keilani Gutierrez]

maybe i've just become addicted to the feeling of relaxation after the release good thing to know though, thanks doing the single leg pose with the stall bars IS pretty tiring in its own right. i do HS the day before.

[mtruelove]

Whenever I do anything like squashed frog or boxing the compass (basically anything kneeling) I need a lot of padding or my knees really ache, is there anything I can do about this?

[Emmet Louis]

@mtruelove get some rollerskating knee pads, a type called gaskets which are soft padded with no hard shell. Works great as padding.

[mtruelove]

I've got padding it's just a bit inconvenient when I'm doing stuff like yoga or if I'm away from home and want to stretch.

[Kit_L]

mtrulove wrote:

I need a lot of padding or my knees really ache

Emmet's advice here is spot on: many people are very sensitive to any pressure on the knee. His suggestion sounds excellent. cheers, K

[Adurst]

@mtruelove get some rollerskating knee pads, a type called gaskets which are soft padded with no hard shell. Works great as padding.

Another great source is most mountain bike or BMX shops...Dirt jumpers use this very type of protection.

[mtruelove]

mtrulove wrote:

Emmet's advice here is spot on: many people are very sensitive to any pressure on the knee. His suggestion sounds excellent. cheers, K

Does this mean I'm stuck with sensitive knees?

[MT Nordic]

Murray, I use a thick foam workout pad, about 3/4 inch thick that i use for many things. I put it on my stallbars to pad my back doing hanging leg lifts, i use it for my wrists doing wrist exercises in Handstand course, and i use it for putting my knees on in stretches that bother me. they're about $20 on amazon or at your local sporting goods shop.

[Craig]

You can definitely start working on desensitising your body to pressure, just do it separately to your stretch practice! Softening the fascia in or around the sensitive area will definitely help, but the best thing to do is spend time with the pressure against the sensitive area, and over time increase duration and intensity. Again, do this separately to you stretch work, definitely use lots if padding when stretching!

[mtruelove]

You can definitely start working on desensitising your body to pressure, just do it separately to your stretch practice! Softening the fascia in or around the sensitive area will definitely help, but the best thing to do is spend time with the pressure against the sensitive area, and over time increase duration and intensity. Again, do this separately to you stretch work, definitely use lots if padding when stretching!

Cheers, I'll give it a go and continue to use padding when I stretch

[Josh]

I just use a yoga mat. It never occurred to me that I might need my knees de sensitized. I got a really thin mat. I find that thick mats bother my wrists and make me feel less connected to the ground. A thin mat is very portable and helps my knees and ankles.

[Salivanth]

Thanks guys. I got some great advice on stretching the ankles, but I'm still unsure how I should limber them. What are some ankle flexibility moves I can do every day? I'm assuming the full squat limbering sequence is one of them, but are there others?

[Emmet Louis]

Loads of good ankle stuff to try here

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mobility+wod+ankle

[Keilani Gutierrez]

calves raises going to a light stretch on the bottom(like how Kit does

) are my go to and when a partner is available to pass the Rod of correction or a lacrosse ball. but thats cause i like the post meat tenderized feeling after rolling.

[Kit_L]

And don't forget the mobility work that can be done in the full squat position itself: that's my go-to, every day. Squat and push knees around; all directions, while maintaining arch. If you are not very loose, hang on to something if you need to, with one hand. I spend at least 5 mins a day in this position. Don't forget this is a whole spine flexions position, too; once loosened, drop your weight as far as you can, put straight arms in front of shins, and lever the body forward in between the thighs. When this is easy, try to put your forehead on the ground.

[Salivanth]

So it's better to hold on to something with one hand and have the heels on the floor than it is to elevate the heels with a block or something similar?

[Kit_L]

Yes, definitely.

[Salivanth]

Okay, thanks very much I'll make sure to start spending time in that position each day.

[LorenzoV]

Hello everyone, I encountered a problem with one of the stretches in MTS and I'd like to hear your opinion: when I try and do E1C, single leg dog, I can't get in the starting position, I suspect because of overly tight calf muscles (I've got a pre-existing condition, if that's relevant, and I'm generally [much] tighter on my left side than on the right). In short, when I should walk back to get to a point when my heel start to come off the ground, I instead need to walk forward, and even that is not sufficient - in order to get to the starting position I'd end up practically folded in two, and I don't have the flexibility to do that.

I noticed however that if I put my hands on a support (about 15 cm high) instead that on the floor, I can get closer to the starting position, and the stretch is very intense in the whole back of the leg. Would this be advisable or should I avoid this particular exercise until I acquire greater flexibility and can get into the starting position easily?

Thank you!