Academy 4 - Elegance 7 - Flexibility as a practice

Big kiss, honey!

Hopefully, after my first letter on the myriad of benefits stretching can have, you’re all chomping at the bit to start a regular stretching habit. Well, this is your lucky day because that’s exactly what we’re here for today.

Before we begin, I do want to go over a few of the points I mentioned in the first letter again. Stretching can be a slow process and it may take a while to see results, but don’t give up just keep practising. A consistent effort guarantees results, it guarantees them!

Go slowly, it may require effort to get into a position but never force yourself and never, ever bounce up and down into one. These are both recipes for injury.

It should go without saying, but if something hurts when you stretch, stop what you’re doing! Sensation and discomfort are one thing, but pain is something else entirely.

If you’re watching a video, remember that you're not supposed to look like the person in them. You shouldn’t expect to be able to go into a pose as deeply they do without a lot of work, don’t compare yourself to them and be happy with your limits.

I am pretty limber, without warming up I can bend at the waist and put my palms on the floor with no problem, warmed up I can rest my elbows on the floor. I haven’t won stretching because of that, once you reach a certain position and are comfortable there, there’s always somewhere else to go. I can’t wrap my arms around my legs and bend completely over (yet), as one of my teachers used to say, the road goes on forever and the party never ends.

Tracking

As we want this to be a new habit and for you to track your progress, we’ve created two new sheets for your Training Book. Go here and here and add a copy of both sheets to your Training Book (see Becca’s earlier letter if you need a reminder on how to do it).

One of these sheets is for you to record the stretching you do and when you do it, the other is to record your measurements so you can see your progress. The progress sheet also has a ‘Notes’ column at the end and you should always fill this in whenever you record your measurements, even if it’s just that you felt tight.

Flexibility Tests

It’s time to begin girls. You should have an outfit for this from the end of the first module, so put on your leggings and sports bra and get ready for action.

If you have an exercise mat, get that ready and unrolled. You’ll also need a tape measure and some sticky tape.

Hamstrings

Your hamstrings are the big meaty muscles that runs from your hip to your knee, as such they are used for almost every activity that involves your lower body and having loose hamstrings will add an ease to your walk.

To test how flexible yours are, sit up against a wall with your legs straight out in front of you. Your legs should be very slightly apart (no more than a couple of inches) and your knees and toes facing the ceiling.

Hold your arms straight out in front of you, with one hand on top of the other (with a piece of tape in your bottom hand). Now reach forward (slowly!), lead with your breastbone and don’t round your upper back. Place the tape on the floor as far as you can reach forward and then measure the distance between the tape and the wall.

Upper Body

This will test the flexibility of your chest, shoulders and biceps. All these muscles are involved in having a good posture, a tight upper body will leave you round shouldered and slightly hunched.

For this test, roll up your towel so it’s long and thin. Stand with your feet hip distance apart and hold the towel with both hands fairly close together. Keeping your elbows straight, lift your arms up and overhead and then slightly behind you until you feel the stretch. Measure the distance between your hands on the towel.

Shoulders and upper back

The last test was for the front of your upper body, this is for the back. Stand with your feet hip width apart. Raise one arm (holding your towel) straight up and bend it at the elbow so your hand goes behind your head. Your other arm points down and bend that elbow so your forearm goes up your back and grasps the towel. Measure the distance between your two hands on the towel. Then repeat it with your arms reversed.

If you don’t need the towel, just note where you can grasp e.g. fingers, wrists, forearms etc.

Lower back and side

This one tests your lower back and obliques (the side muscles of your abs). Your lower back is ultra important, it’s involved with walking and posture, but a strong lower back also helps protect against any number of injuries.

Stand up straight with your back against a wall. Lift one arm up and arch over to the other side. Your other arm should slide down your leg, when you’ve reached your maximum, place some tape on your leg and then measure the distance from the floor. Repeat bending the other way.

Hips

Gently go into the splits and measure how far off the ground you are, be careful, your hips can be very tight and won’t respond well to force.

Progress

The rate you progress will be variable. If you’re especially tight, you may loosen up very quickly and then hit a wall where nothing much happens for a while. If you’re already limber, you’re more likely to see slow steady growth. Either way, stick with it!

Practice

Stretching practice shouldn’t be done directly before any other exercise you’re currently doing. If you do it first thing in the morning be extra loving and gentle to your body, it will be much tighter when you’re just out of bed.

If you’ve got an exercise mat, use it as much as possible. Carpet can cause problems with your footing and friction burns and hard floors can be uncomfortable to exercise on. If you don’t have a mat, a towel can be used in its place.

We’ve set up a 30 day program for you, go here and copy it into your Training Book. We tell you when to record your progress, but once you’re past the program you should record it every week, ideally on the same day and at roughly the same time.

The videos cover a wide range of stretching types and styles to try and give you a taste of everything. See what you like and what doesn’t appeal.

Going Further

So you’ve completed the 30-day program and want to go further? That’s the attitude sweetheart!

The big thing we didn’t mention here was Yoga. It’s a wonderful, girly way to work on your stretching and exercise at the same time. Frida has her PA working on an introductory letter, so watch out for it.

If you have any specific parts of your body that you’ve had difficulty opening or that just always seem tight, than look into it. Fitness Magazines and YouTube will give you plenty of exercises to loosen and strengthen any body part. A little bit of tlc and some concentrated effort will make even the tightest set of hips or shoulders open.

If you’re looking to turbocharge your stretching, consider buying a foam roller. Using a roller on the parts you’re planning to stretch will increase blood flow and warm the muscles up, allow you to stretch further and deeper..

If you exercise regularly, it’s also wonderful to roll after an intense session or when you’re really feeling it the day after. It’s like having a masseuse on call (a firm, unyielding one).

Start with a smooth roller and then move to one of the bumpy ones (they’re much more intense).

Ok girls, we’ve covered a lot today. Good luck with your 30-day practice, now go and get changed (if you’re not already) and get to work on your flexibility tests.