can't bend over and touch my toes....

[juststeven]

One of the reasons I first got into martial arts was to increase my flexibility; I have made some pretty good progress. I am now able to touch my toes from a figure four type floor stretch or if I were doing an old school style sit up----while that may not be a big deal for some it was a big improvement for me. For whatever reason, I still can't just bend over and touch my toes, so obviously, more than my hamstrings are tight. I am guess something in my hips must be the culprit. I was just wondering if anyone ever had this problem and what stretches they did to overcome it? thanks

[Kuma]

How often do you try to do this? Other than trying every day, I would recommend looking at the Stretching for High Kicks thread.

[Socrastein]

Actually it more than likely means you don't know how to properly hip hinge and shift your weight. The strain you feel in your hamstrings is the tension created by trying to hold your weight back as you bend forward. If you can touch on the ground but not while standing, it's a movement pattern problem.

[Lorelei]

This OP reminded me of something I've been worrying about lately.

My 11-year-old son has a similar problem - I was looking at him yesterday as he tried to touch his toes with straight legs. His fingertips are about a foot off the ground. He's bending his back, but not hinging properly at the hips (about a 45 degree bend rather than the 90 degrees I can manage) and it looks deeply strange. I tried to assist him (gently!) to hip-bend a little further but he was stiffer than an RSJ.

He likes football, and trains in karate at least once a week. He's skinny with long legs for his frame, but if he could bend properly at the hips he could touch his toes - does anyone have any tips for increasing his hip movement? I'm wary of messing with him too much, as he's still growing, but I don't want him to grow up with ever-stiffening joints and no flexibility........

[Van Zandt]

This tutorial might help:

YouTube - Hip Hinge

[righty]

How far is the difference between your finger and toes when comparing a standing stretch (standing with straight legs while trying to touch your toes compared to a seated two leg stretch (seating with both legs straight out in front trying to touch your toes)?

You can't compare the standing stretch with a seated figure 4 stretch.

[Custom Volusia]

Keep trying...:)








Seriously, the pattern of movement advice is good stuff.