Comments on: Stretching http://ztkfg.com/2020/12/stretching/ 198.211.113.164 // 6326 273B 61A7 00AF 4CD9 5A7B 8C6C AB19 24A6 4DEC Mon, 20 Apr 2026 07:53:32 +0000 http://polimedia.us hourly 1 By: whaack http://ztkfg.com/2020/12/stretching/#comment-389 whaack Wed, 23 Dec 2020 23:26:28 +0000 http://ztkfg.com/?p=483#comment-389 And ty, I fixed the link. And ty, I fixed the link.

]]> By: whaack http://ztkfg.com/2020/12/stretching/#comment-388 whaack Wed, 23 Dec 2020 23:24:33 +0000 http://ztkfg.com/?p=483#comment-388 Thanks for making this point. I went ahead and tested this out in the following way: I tried to isolate the "pelvic tilt" by moving my hips left and right while keeping myself otherwise straight with feet planted ~ shoulder-width apart. After playing around a bit I found how I could tilt to make the stretch easier (i.e. cheat and thus refute Tsatsouline's argument.) I figured that, if pelvic tilt was a non-factor, I should be able to push my hips slightly to the left as I held my right leg to 90 degrees. I tried this and was _unable_ to do so. (This exercise of pushing the hip to the opposite side felt great and I wouldn't be surprised if doing it regularly is a good way to build up to a split.) So I guess yes, Tsatsouline's reasoning/argument is flawed although his conclusion that inflexibility comes primarily from an over-restrictive nervous system may still be correct. With this said, I've been following his advice to hold stretches for a long time "until the muscles are so tired that they relax/give up and stop contracting, thus allowing you to stretch further" and have made measurable progress within a week. (For the first time since I played soccer in high school I can sit on the floor with one leg crossed and the other straight and reach and touch my toe.) Thanks for making this point. I went ahead and tested this out in the following way: I tried to isolate the "pelvic tilt" by moving my hips left and right while keeping myself otherwise straight with feet planted ~ shoulder-width apart. After playing around a bit I found how I could tilt to make the stretch easier (i.e. cheat and thus refute Tsatsouline's argument.)

I figured that, if pelvic tilt was a non-factor, I should be able to push my hips slightly to the left as I held my right leg to 90 degrees. I tried this and was _unable_ to do so. (This exercise of pushing the hip to the opposite side felt great and I wouldn't be surprised if doing it regularly is a good way to build up to a split.) So I guess yes, Tsatsouline's reasoning/argument is flawed although his conclusion that inflexibility comes primarily from an over-restrictive nervous system may still be correct.

With this said, I've been following his advice to hold stretches for a long time "until the muscles are so tired that they relax/give up and stop contracting, thus allowing you to stretch further" and have made measurable progress within a week. (For the first time since I played soccer in high school I can sit on the floor with one leg crossed and the other straight and reach and touch my toe.)

]]> By: Jacob Welsh http://ztkfg.com/2020/12/stretching/#comment-387 Jacob Welsh Wed, 23 Dec 2020 00:21:30 +0000 http://ztkfg.com/?p=483#comment-387 p.s. "relax muscle groups" link is broken. p.s. "relax muscle groups" link is broken.

]]> By: Jacob Welsh http://ztkfg.com/2020/12/stretching/#comment-386 Jacob Welsh Wed, 23 Dec 2020 00:20:34 +0000 http://ztkfg.com/?p=483#comment-386 "when they attempt to move a muscle or group of muscles past what their nervous system believes to be their maximum range, their muscles start contracting to prevent the stretch." - the 90-degree phenomenon seems much more simply explained that the pelvis tilts to divide the angle between the two leg joints, thus the range of motion of each could just be some 50 degrees. Not that there aren't purely-neurological constraints, e.g. try fully extending the ring finger while keeping the rest in a fist; it can typically be done without pain but only by relaxing the fingers indeed and holding them in place externally. But if this were the case with splits, you'd expect the legs could be arranged in the same way without special training and books on the subject. "when they attempt to move a muscle or group of muscles past what their nervous system believes to be their maximum range, their muscles start contracting to prevent the stretch." - the 90-degree phenomenon seems much more simply explained that the pelvis tilts to divide the angle between the two leg joints, thus the range of motion of each could just be some 50 degrees. Not that there aren't purely-neurological constraints, e.g. try fully extending the ring finger while keeping the rest in a fist; it can typically be done without pain but only by relaxing the fingers indeed and holding them in place externally. But if this were the case with splits, you'd expect the legs could be arranged in the same way without special training and books on the subject.

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