UKC

Can anyone suggest any resources for exercises to improve general flexibilty?

Specific things I want to improve:

- Bridging. I'm crap at it and get pain in the hips if I bridge too far.
- I'm doing another training programme that involves things like leg raises. I simply can't keep my legs remotely straight when I do this kind of thing.
- Generally getting my feet up onto high holds.

Problems I have been ignoring for years but I have decided I need to tackle if I want to improve.

In reply to davidbeynon:

http://www.yinyoga.com

In reply to davidbeynon:

I used to be exactly like that. I found that stretches to lengthen hamstrings and improve flexibility worked really well. (Basically yoga but but without spiritual bits).

In reply to davidbeynon:

No specific resources but some experience:
Once you start 'getting on a bit', improving flexibility is hard and slow. You need patience and you need to build stretching into your daily routine. I found that doing it first thing in the morning works best for me - just get up half an hour earlier, warm up and do it. But it has to be pretty much every day. On top of that if you do any activities which tighten your hips/back like cycling or especially running, then stretching (15-20 mins) should be the first thing you do when you finish.
Make sure your stretches are long (30 seconds min) otherwise they are pointless (stretching reflex). To some extent, stretching is about teaching you body to get more 'laid back' about a new range of motion and not to unleash the stretching reflex too soon, i.e., neurological rather than biomechanical.
You also need to think of flexibility in two ways: passive and active. Most stretching routines are passive and simply teach the joints/muscles/nerves to achieve a greater range of movement. You then need to develop the muscle strength (in generally small, neglected muscles) to actually use that increased flexibility. I found Pilates exercises particularly effective for this because they are quite good at isolating specific muscle round the hips/core that have got lazy and weak over the years of limited range of motion.
Hope some of that helps.
Good luck.

In reply to davidbeynon:

Yay, this is when I get to share my secret weapon!

In my experience, hips and hamstrings (the areas you need to work) respond especially well to stretches held for a slightly longer duration (think a couple of minutes rather than the more usual 30-60 seconds).

Because they're often sitting poses, they are also ideally suited to doing while watching TV. I owe my front splits to a box set of The Wire watched on my laptop on the floor, basically. I am not making this up.

So pick a few stretches, and get in the habit of doing them *after* climbing or any other form of exercise you do, when you're well-warmed up. And also get on the floor and do them whenever you watch TV (or listen to podcasts, or whatever).

In "9 out of 10 Climbers", Dave MacLeod says he thinks the following two are the crucial ones for climbers (links go to pages that have decent pictures, as "9 out of 10" doesn't have illustrations of them):

https://www.ekhartyoga.com/more-yoga/yoga-poses/wide-angle-seated-forward-b...
https://www.yogajournal.com/poses/bound-angle-pose

Just go to the point where you feel a gentle stretch (definitely don't do anything that hurts), then hang out there for a bit, watch TV, and remember to breathe.

If you want a few more, I'd suggest trying some of these, and seeing what suits you, and what feels like you can get a good stretch out of it:

http://www.yogabasics.com/asana/half-wind-relieving-pose/ (I'm not making it up, that's what it's called)
http://www.yogabasics.com/asana/seated-head-to-knee/ (don't panic, just lean forwards as far as you can to get a gentle stretch)
https://www.yogajournal.com/poses/reclining-big-toe-pose
https://www.yogajournal.com/poses/downward-facing-dog -- less suitable for long holds, but it's good for your shoulders, good for hamstrings, good for your back, good for your calves; it is the bomb

As MacLeod points out, though, as well as passive flexibility, you also have to have active flexibility (what some trainers call "mobility") -- the ability to move your body part into that position without assistance. Sometimes grabbing your foot and pulling it onto a high hold can work in a pinch, but it's obviously better if you dont have to. *g*

A nice exercise for this kind of thing is pulling your knee in towards your chest while standing on the other leg (a standing version of wind-relieving pose, basically).

Holding it there with your hands for a bit is another nice hip stretch (and balance exercise); but if you then let go with your hands but try to keep your leg in the same position for a bit, it starts building strength and muscle control.

As you improve your flexibility, you can start trying the same thing with a straight leg.

If you get into all of this, there are fantastic resources for beginning yoga out there (lots of free video podcast classes and so on), and lots of people find that yoga does complement climbing very nicely.

But just picking a few poses to work on and doing them a lot will give you a huge amount of bang for your buck.

In reply to davidbeynon:

Some good stuff at antranik.org if you do a search. eg. http://antranik.org/?s=hamstrings

Also Tom Merrick on Youtube shares his progress with the splits and details the exercises he's found most useful.
eg. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCU0DZhN-8KFLYO6beSaYljg/search?query=split...

There are also tons of free Yoga classes by expert teachers on Youtube. Try some of them and see which teacher/s you prefer. Eckhart Yoga is popular. Others are Yoga with Tim, Adriene, Kristin, Kino Yoga, Manflow yoga etc etc. I don't think any of them emphasise the spiritual stuff. The breathing is described though and is important part of becoming more flexible.

A good book is Relax into Stretch by Pavel Tsatsouline.

In reply to stp:

I like Pavel's work. Also worth looking at is Kelly Starrett's Becoming A Supple Leopard.

In reply to davidbeynon:

Thanks all. I have ordered a copy of the Pavel Tsatsouline book, and will try out some of those stretches this evening.