Starting with VERY poor flexibility

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

Hi Guys,

for as long as i can remember, I have had tight hamstrings, so much so that i can never remember being able to touch my toes.

i train and compete regularly in brazillian jiu jitsu and feel that increased flexibility would help my game hugely. Id love to try yoga, but the problem is my tight hamstrings limit me seriously from most of the positions.

I have tried everythingm and my hamstrings seem to be the only area i cannot increase mobility in.

Can anyone suggest maybe a stretching programme that i could do before i start? I am interested in ashtanga yoga.

Thanks

#2

Welcome to the forums!!!

Brazilian jiu jitsu with tight hamstrings – how long have you played? I agree you’ll do better with more mobility there. Maybe also in hips and shoulders depending on where you are now – would give you more room to receive a joint lock than your opponent expects. I’ve also heard that yoga can decrease a body’s required recovery time.
While on the yoga mat, honor your limitations and learn from them. Do not hurt yourself – it really can happen, and competitors and fighters can be tempted to disregard that. Will you be exploring yoga with a teacher? I highly recommend it.

A good stretch inspired by yoga would be –

stand with your weight well balanced. bend in the knees and the hips to bring your belly flat onto your thighs and your hands to the floor. watch your breath. as it becomes even and nourishing, press your feet (whole feet) into the floor and lift your hips a little bit into the air. keep your belly on your thighs – that’s the first thing. keep your hands on the floor – that’s the second thing. your third thing is to press your sitting bones (ishium, bottoms of the pelvic ring) into the air and away from the floor. find a good lovely stretch along the entire back of your legs – don’t let the stretch localize (only high or only near your knees.) keep breathing. as long as your hamstrings are happy about the arrangement and the newfound opportunity for length, stay there and remain curious about the stretch. when your hamstrings get bored or tired, release. find a stretch for your quads and an arch for your spine to counterbalance. become curious about how your body feels different after you’ve done this.

A few private lessons with a teacher could be the best way for you to start off – you probably have a different balance of mobility, strength, and weakness than the average folks who pick up yoga. Private lessons would help you anticipate what, if anything, will be odd for you in a group class setting.

#3

I don’t feel I am very flexible as well. Thanks for bringing up this topic!

#4

Thanks for the reply, I have been playing for almost 5 years now, I train no-gi (without the suit) so my athleticism makes up for my poor flexibility.

I will try the stretch you mentioned, I dont have the money to pay for private lessons, but ill try and work on my flexibility before joining the group classes.

How long do i hold the stretches for?

#5

Hi, bpr28! Glad you joined the conversation.

Go for just a few breaths to begin, and as you gain experience you will start to notice your own timing better. It’s like I said, while your hamstrings are happy with the arrangement, continue. When they get bored or tired, *rest, *notice, and *do something that goes the other way.

Do you pay a jiu jitsu instructor? Did you in the beginning? This is the same sort of thing – a foreign way of moving that, if done very wrong or a little wrong quite often, will get you hurt. The opponent is within, but it still exists and still will move in to any gap you offer. Wrestling with that opponent is one metaphor for the greater work of yoga, and it is illustrated in the asanas.
Oh, books and vids are also made with an eye toward what the author thinks is ‘normal’ for a beginner. While there is no such animal (a normal beginner), you’re even more likely to find differences between yourself and their assumptions – if you look.
And please bring more questions to the forum. You’ll be met with a constant chant of ‘find a teacher’, but anatomical advice does come through, too.

#6

Hello

The Yoga practice is not dependent on flexibility.
The most important is to lock the Mind into the body during the exercise.
That one can be realized as well with very little movements.
Yoga means, to bring body mind and soul together.
Do your exercises gently respecting the limits of your body but regular and one or an another day flexibility on it`s own runs after you.

All the best
Lars