Flexibility training books

For general fitness/daily relaxation needs, choose an introductory reference book with detailed movement diagrams and error-prone tips. For special improvement needs (such as increasing the range of powerlifting, dance/yoga advancement), choose advanced special works that match the project. For professional purposes such as rehabilitation and coaching, choose theoretically rigorous clinical/academic textbooks.

When I first started practicing yoga following videos and trying to open my hips two years ago, I ran into a lot of pitfalls. At that time, I saw that a certain internet celebrity blogger’s book had a high sales volume, and the cover was full of beautiful photos of difficult one-character horses. I was so excited that I placed an order. When I opened it, I realized that there was a lot in it. It was partly a blogger’s daily experience. There were no specific power points or contraindications for the movements. I did the deep frog lay for half a month, and my groin was sore for almost a week. After seeing a rehabilitation practitioner, I found out that my hip internal rotation is limited, and the range of that movement is not suitable for me at all.

Later, I found my way around by choosing books with the coaches in the gym. In fact, the flexibility-related books on the market today are originally based on different training schools. There is no absolute right or wrong, only whether they are suitable or not. For example, traditional static stretching books generally advocate holding each movement for 30-60 seconds, combined with breathing and relaxation, and are suitable for novices looking for a feeling of muscle stretching. The book "Muscle Stretching Training" that I later bought was of this type. Each movement marked the specific muscle groups to be stretched, and there were red reminders such as "Don't slump if your lumbar spine is not good" and "Don't hyperextend your knee joints." I also bought a copy for my mother. She usually does the stretching for 5 minutes after dancing in the square, and her legs are no longer sore.

But if you have a basic foundation in sports and want to improve your specific performance, this kind of introductory book is not enough. After I practiced powerlifting, I was always stuck in the squat range. My coach said that my ankle mobility was too poor, so he recommended Kelly Starrett's "Leopard Pose Fitness" to me. This book is actually a representative of the "mobility training" school. Unlike traditional stretching that only pulls muscles, it advocates Combining fascia relaxation, joint loosening, and movement pattern correction, I practiced for two months. I used a foam roller to roll my calves before each exercise, and then did 3 sets of ankle joint loosening. The squat range directly changed from parallel squatting to the hip below the knee, and the waist of the deadlift was not very tight. However, my friend who practices yoga does not like this method. She feels that this method is too "utilitarian" and only pursues the range of motion. It is not as delicate as the "feeling the body with breathing" mentioned in traditional stretching books. The "Yoga Anatomy" she often reads focuses more on the balance of muscle power and stretching in the postures, and is suitable for practitioners who pursue body control.

If you are a rehabilitation therapist or fitness coach and need to provide guidance to others, you will have to read more difficult books. Most of my friends doing sports rehabilitation have "Muscle Chains: Spiral Stabilization of the Spine" on their desks, as well as chapters on joint mobility in "Sports Anatomy." The content in these books has been clinically verified, and they will clearly explain the taboos of flexibility training for people of different ages and different injury histories. For example, people with lumbar disc herniation cannot do straight-leg seated forward bends, and patients with frozen shoulder should avoid the extreme angle of abduction when stretching their shoulders. These are contents that introductory books will not go into in detail. But there is really no need for ordinary people to touch these. I borrowed my friend's "Muscle Chain" out of curiosity and flipped through two pages. The pages were full of anatomical terms, which made my head spin. I returned it before I finished flipping through it.

To be honest, the most important thing to avoid when choosing this kind of book is the cool literary books with "Hand Cross in 7 Days" and "Build a Horse in Two Weeks" printed on the cover. Flexibility improvement is inherently a very individual matter. Some people are born with loose joint capsules and can do cross crosses after a week of practice, and some people have inherent hip bone structures. It is not suitable for wide-angle abduction, and you may not be able to open a cross split even if you practice for a year. In order to attract attention, these kinds of books often ignore individual differences and even ask you to force your joints. I have met a little girl before who strained her medial collateral ligament by using the method in this kind of book. It took more than three months for her to recover.

In fact, in the final analysis, there is really not much emphasis on choosing a flexibility training book. If you just want to stretch your shoulders, neck and legs after sitting for a long time, just choose an introductory book from a regular sports publishing house with clear action diagrams. If you want to learn more, there are more Buy a few books from different schools and compare them. Don't stick to the "standard movements" in a certain book. After all, the final criterion for training is always your own physical feeling - no pain, comfort, and the whole body stretches after the exercise, which is the most correct.