PDF pose chart here: https://www.yogabody.com/how-to-do-sp...

If you’re working on the full splits and you’re not making progress, this video is for you. While flexibility gains can last for years, they are often negatively affected by repetitive stress sports, or weightlifting.

When you do the splits your nervous system sends signals to your legs to fight the stretch – worried that you will overstretch and get injured. Here, we’ll share a deep stretching technique and a breathing practice to help you override that muscular response and improve your splits form.

VIDEO CONTENTS
00:00 The Splits
01:08 Safety
02:00 Anatomy
03:20 Stretch Reflex
05:17 Corrective Techniques
05:36 PNF Stretching

ANATOMY - The splits are a compound stretch, meaning you have multiple big muscle groups involved at the same time, including your hamstrings and hip flexors.

Inside your muscle bellies, there are sensory organs called muscle spindles that sense the speed and depth of a stretch. When they sense potential danger, these spindles send a signal to your spinal cord and your nervous system responds by contracting your muscles. This is your body’s myotatic stretch reflex at work, and it’s extremely forceful during the full splits.

In this video we’ll show you an advanced stretching technique which involves contracting and relaxing the muscles, as well as a breathing technique that will help to dampen your body’s myotatic reflex.

DISCLAIMER – these techniques are not gentle. Please don’t do them before exercise, try to practice at the end of your day. If you feel any pain when practicing, see a doctor.

TWO TECHNIQUES WE'LL LEARN
1) Breathe to Relax
2) PNF Stretching (Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation)


RESEARCH
Mechanisms of PNF and its effect on range of motion: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...

Effectiveness of PNF versus static stretching on hip flexion:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28182...

WANT MORE?
* Science of Stretching Program: https://www.yogabody.com/stretching/
* Podcast: http://www.LucasRockwoodShow.com
* Main site: http://www.yogabody.com/

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