How to sit on a longitudinal twine and why you need it

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Useful exercises and tips to help you avoid mistakes.

Why sit on a longitudinal twine

Increased muscle elasticity reduces the risk of injury

With age, muscle fibers become less elastic, cross-links are formed in the muscles, which make it difficult for the parallel fibers to move. In addition, over time, muscle fibers become more and more bound by connective tissue, which makes them stiff, reduces range of motion and increases the risk of injury.

By stretching the muscles, you remove the cross-links, restoring the normal structure. Stretching stimulates the production of lubricating fluids in the tissues, which makes the muscles more elastic.

This is of great importance for sports in which there are jumps and fast cycles of muscle contraction and contraction, for example, for football, basketball, crossfit. These sports require sufficiently pliable muscles and tendons to store and release a high amount of elastic energy.

If the athlete lacks compliant muscles and tendons, the requirements for energy absorption and expression will exceed the capacity of the muscles, which can increase the risk of injury.

Stretching improves blood circulation

In the course of the study, it was proved that in the process of stretching, antegrade and retrograde blood flow, as well as the concentration of venous hemoglobin, increase in comparison with the initial one.

After exercise, the volume of circulating blood and blood flow in the legs increases, regardless of the intensity of the stretch. Also, after stretching, the retrograde blood flow remains increased, which improves tissue nutrition and has a beneficial effect on the muscles of the legs.

Stretching the iliopsoas muscle helps build good posture

The third reason to sit on a longitudinal split is to stretch the iliopsoas muscle.

In people with a sedentary lifestyle, this muscle is often shortened, which leads to poor posture - lumbar hyperlordosis. The shortened muscle pulls the lower spine along with it, due to which the deflection in the lower back increases, and the stomach moves forward.

Stretching exercises can stretch virtually all of the leg muscles, as well as the iliopsoas muscle, which can reduce back damage and avoid back pain, spinal disc and hip problems.

How often and for how long to stretch to sit on a longitudinal split

Most scientists believe that 10-30 seconds is the ideal time. holding a static posture to develop flexibility.

At the same time, Dr. Kelly Starrett in his book "Becoming a Supple Leopard: The Ultimate Guide to Resolving Pain, Preventing Injury, and Optimizing Athletic Performance" calls a time interval of two minutes - it is during this time that the fascia have time to adapt to new length.

Many trainers agree with his opinion, for example, American physiotherapist and yoga instructor Julie Gudmestad. She believes that during this time in the base substance - a gel-like matrix of connective tissue - the necessary changes have time to occur.

To choose the perfect time for yourself, focus on your capabilities.

If you can sit in the pose for two minutes, great. If not, alternate holding the pose for 30 seconds with some rest and do four sets.

As for the number of workouts per week, there is no limit. You can stretch every day, either after your workout or outside of it (if you choose the latter, be sure to do a joint warm-up and 5-minute cardio to warm up your muscles).

In the video below, we have collected several exercises that you can do:

• on the floor with your own body weight;
• on a dais: a choreographic machine in the hall, a barbell neck, set at a certain height, a windowsill, a table;
• with a rubber band-expander. Rubber bands are a versatile trainer with which you can perform strength exercises and stretch.

However, even stretching every day does not guarantee that you will quickly do the splits. Many factors affect your flexibility: muscle elasticity, the potential for fascia deformation, neurological features (muscle memory and tolerance), and individual muscle architecture.

Do not try to sit on the split without the support of your arms when your muscles are not ready for it. So you run the risk of doing the exercise incorrectly.

How to distinguish a crooked twine and how dangerous it is

Curved longitudinal twine is quite easy to recognize. The hips in it are directed not forward, but to the side, the knees are bent.

If you can only hold this position, then your muscles are not yet ready. It may be due to the insufficiently stretched rectus femoris or gluteus maximus.

Not only does a curved twine not look as pretty as a correct one, it can also cause back problems. If both thighs are on the floor and the ilia are pointing forward, the trunk will naturally be straight due to the mobility of the hip joint.

If you do not have enough mobility in the hip joint, and the thigh behind the standing leg is raised above the floor, you are trying to straighten the body due to the deflection in the lower back. During deflection, compression is created in the lower spine. If you have spinal problems, it can make them worse and cause pain in your lower back.

Therefore, you should not get used to the wrong twine. It is better to continue stretching with emphasis on the arms or special blocks, but make sure that the hips are directed straight forward.

You can also try lifting the restrictions by focusing on stretching the quadriceps and glutes. Several options for stretching the gluteal muscles have been shown in the video. As for the rectus femoris, an exercise to help you stretch it is shown in the photo.

This exercise should be done after a good hamstring stretch. This will keep your body balanced and not ruin your posture by overtightening one muscle group while maintaining the rigidity of the other.

Stretch more often, then you will definitely sit on the correct longitudinal split.