Not in Tune with Your Body?
I am one of those people who is far more in tune with what I am thinking than what I am feeling. Despite being physically active throughout my life, I went from being more-flexible-than-most as a youth to being more flexible than “many people my age.” This happened largely because for years, I simply did not notice I was losing flexibility. I stopped doing many of the activities I engaged in when I was younger, so I did not call upon my body to move the way it had in the past. With one particular joint, joint damage combined with pain-induced disuse allowed the bones to start to fuse. As a result, flexibility in that joint is virtually irretrievable.
Sure, I meditated and as part of that practice I periodically did a brief check-in with each body section from the toes to the head. This was nowhere close to adequate. I really should have been regularly testing my ability to still achieve positions and feats I could achieve as a youth and working towards performing feats that I had not achieved but might if I made a regular effort to do so. Balance and flexibility are key qualities that will disappear with time if activities that require them are not incorporated into a regular routine.
To preserve or increase literal balance rather than the metaphorical balance that is sought through meditation, all of the one-legged yoga poses can help. There are a variety of tools like a fit ball or indo board that can be useful for balance-focussed work. Incorporating devices like a balance cushion, bosu ball or wobble board when performing yoga poses or resistance training is a good way to multi-task, adding a balance component to these other pursuits.
For me, optimal flexibility is evidenced through an ability to perform all of the following three feats: side splits, front splits and walkovers. Maybe you are more fortunate and Cirque Du Soleil level flexibility is attainable for you. Or, maybe you would be thrilled to loosen up enough to be able to bend forward and touch your toes and put socks on in the morning without pain. Wherever you are on this continuum, if you have been neglecting this aspect of fitness, a greater range of motion is attainable.
Here are my recommendations for stretches to perform, or attempt to perform, regularly in order to detect musculoskeletal issues, as well as to maintain and optimize flexibility. Perhaps you will actually attain your level of ultimate flexibility, perhaps not. Regardless, barring medical conditions that simply preclude improvement in a particular joint or muscle, you will get more flexible by consistently attempting these stretches.
For hip flexibility, work towards lotus pose, cow-faced pose and lizard lunge.
For ankle flexibility, lotus pose and toe point work fairly well.
For quadriceps flexibility, kneeling, lying and standing quad stretches are unimaginative but effective. You can deepen a stretch by pressing your hips forward and pulling your heel against your glutes.
For wrist flexibility, downward dog, planking on the palms of the hands and reverse pray pose are all great.
For shoulder flexibility, try reverse prayer pose, thread the needle, crossed shoulder stretch, shoulder stretch with a twist and child’s pose with forearms resting on a bench to enable a deeper stretch through the shoulders.
For hamstring flexibility, a variety of forward bends when standing are tried and true. While standing, bend forward and bring your chin to your knees, or rest one foot on something table height and bend forward towards the raised knee. Alternative, with unbent knees, extend one leg back far enough to stretch the calf by pressing the heel to the floor then bend forward over the front leg, again bringing chin to knee.
For glute flexibility, a seated four figure stretch while bending at the waist and pigeon pose are both effective. Alternatively, while seated, bend one leg and bring it towards your chest with the knee and foot parallel to the chest.
For hip flexors and adductors, frog pose, butterfly pose and working on turning the hips out all are preparatory stretches for front splits.
For back flexibility, bridges, king cobra pose, bow pose, camel pose and lord of dancer’s pose are all challenging if your flexibility has decreased with time.
Flexibility and balance return and improve over months and years, not days. Pinterest and YouTube are great resources for new ideas but many of those who post are young and flexible or people who have spent years engaged in activities requiring the demonstrated flexibility. Try not to be impatient with your body. It will yield, eventually. However, it may seem to get worse before it gets better. In the initial weeks of stretching, you are likely to feel quite a bit of day-after pain and stiffness. I suggest starting with just a few muscle groups for a month and then adding more muscles as you start to feel more limber. Keep on gently stretching for 15 minutes or so each day and you will find that slowly you are gaining some range of motion. Consistency is key to flexibility.
