Yoga flexibility training

It does not rely on "natural softness" at all, and it absolutely does not require you to grit your teeth and stretch your muscles and ligaments. As long as ordinary people adapt to the method, they can achieve visible improvements in 3-6 months, and it will not cause joint damage at all. Even people with naturally high muscle density and "hard" bodies will have more stable training benefits than those with naturally soft bodies.

Don't believe it, I took a male student who was doing back-end development two years ago. He worked in an office for 9 years. When he was in school, he always had negative scores for forward bending in the seated position. When he first came to class, his fingertips were still 20 centimeters from the ground when he bent hard. His waist hurt at first, so he started taking classes three times a week. Each time he focused on activating the hip and hamstring muscles. Within four months, he was now able to bend forward and hug his calves with his whole palm on the ground. Last time, he said that he moved rice back to his hometown and squatted down to pick up things without shaking his waist.

When it comes to training methods, there is actually no unified standard answer in the yoga circle, and the logics of different schools are quite different. When I first started practicing Ashtanga, my teacher told us every day that "flexibility is a by-product of strength." If you have enough strength in your core, front and back of your thighs, and your joints are in the right position, your body will naturally relax, and you don't need to spend time stretching alone. I followed the practice for half a year, and indeed my shoulders and back, which were previously as stiff as rocks, have loosened a lot, but the tightness in my hips has not been resolved. Later, I studied Iyengar. The logic of this school is completely different. It emphasizes the use of assistive devices to accurately target each fascial chain. For example, when opening the hip, I will put pillows under your legs and yoga blocks under your feet. You do not need to press hard. You can rely on the support of the assistive devices to relax the tight positions. I have been practicing this method for two months, and most of my hip tightness problems have been alleviated. There is also Yin Yoga that many people like now. It advocates holding each pose for 3-5 minutes without exerting force and relying on gravity to relax the deep connective tissue. If I meet students who usually like fitness and have particularly tight muscles in class, I will add 10 minutes of Yin Yoga poses at the end. The relaxation effect is really good. In fact, there is no need to stick to one school to say who is right or wrong. My experience in teaching for so many years is that it is much more efficient to combine methods from different schools and adapt them to each person's physical condition than to stick to one method.

Many people have a big misunderstanding when they first start practicing flexibility. They think the more painful it is, the more effective it is. I once met a girl who followed a short video at home and pressed the crossbar. It hurt to the point of crying and she still had to hold on. As a result, she strained her hamstring muscle, which took more than two months to heal. Let's be honest, the correct stretching feeling is always the level of "soreness, swelling, and stable breathing". If you feel tingling, numbness, or even the joint position is stretched, it means that the force is wrong or the range is exceeded. Take it back quickly. There is no benefit except injury. Some people always say, "I'm born hard, so it's useless to practice." This is not true. I had a former student who was born with lax ligaments, and she could lower the lower wheel at will for the first time. However, she had back pain every time after practicing. Later, I found out that her postures were all pulled by ligaments, and her muscles did not exert any force at all. On the contrary, she was more likely to be injured than "hard" people. In fact, every bit of progress for people who are naturally stiff is the result of the joint adjustment of muscles and fascia. The stability is better, and the flexibility developed is "useful" and not just for show.

In fact, you don’t have to spend an hour or two to go to the gym to practice. You can achieve results by practicing in fragmented time every day. For example, if you are tired from sitting at work, put one foot on the other knee, straighten your back and gently lean forward 30 degrees. Stop when you feel the soreness on the outside of your hip. Keep doing this for 1 minute and change sides. If you persist with this small movement for two weeks, you will find that your hip is no longer so stiff when you sit cross-legged or squat on the toilet. Also, before going to bed, lie down on the bed, bend one leg to the outside, and hold the hip against the bed for 2 minutes. This is much more effective than stretching for two hours on weekends.

I have been practicing yoga for 7 years. At the beginning, like many people, I had to pursue seemingly "powerful" postures such as splits and lower backs. I thought that if I could do it, I would have good flexibility. Later, I gradually realized that the essence of flexibility training is to restore your body's original range of motion. When you turn your head, your shoulders will not hurt. When you squat down to tie your shoelaces, you don't have to strain your legs. When you lift heavy objects, your waist will not accidentally flash. These are much more useful than taking many beautiful posture photos. Anyway, what most people call "natural stiffness" is actually the stiffness accumulated from long periods of sitting and little movement. If you don't practice, you will always be stiff. Once you practice, you will know that this is not a matter of talent. Don't compete with yourself and bear the pain, and don't fish for three days and dry the net for two days. As you practice, you may find that not only your body is relaxed, but your usually aggressive temper is much better - after all, your body is no longer stiff, and your emotions are not easy to get upset.