Other/Mixed Understanding Relax Into Stretch

[GreenSoup]

Hi flexible StrongFirst folks!

I got Relax Into Stretch years ago, a million things happened, and now I'm getting to finally apply it after trying the techniques a few times. I searched the site but I have some specific questions that need answers to be sure I'm doing it right.

My current plan is to use the Contrast Breathing and/or Contract-Relax methods on each stretch until I can't add any further range of motion. For most exercises this takes about 2 minutes. Then I hold the stretch for 30 seconds as recommended. This two and a half minutes will equal one set. I'll do each exercise 2 days per week with three sets per stretch per session.

To finally bridge, pistol squat, and deadlift as well as I should these are my chosen stretches from the book:
Good morning
Calf
Lunge Hip Flexor
Cobra
Overhead Reach

Here are my questions:

1) Do I need Forced Relaxation? It specifies "Hold the tension until it becomes unbearable, then release it with a sigh of relief." But it just does not become unbearable, at least not within the three minute holds I tried. It just seemed like a really long version of Contract-Relax, which works very well for me on its own. The same is true for Clasp-Knife: I follow the part where it says if the muscles don't collapse, just release anyway. Do I need Forced Relaxation when faster methods work so well?
2) Can I do the program without "waiting out the stretch?" Like Forced Relaxation it seems to take longer than 3 minutes without the same instant effects as CB and CR.
3) Almost everything at StrongFirst is done with waves and ladders. Is there any benefit or harm to making my six sets per week done as a 123 ladder? One set on the easy day, two sets on the medium day, three sets on the heavy stretch day?
4) Is there any benefit to GTG stretching?
5) Is there any benefit to changing the book's recommended schedule to one set per exercise per day? StrongFirst often suggests frequent training and the book was published before StrongFirst was made.
6) The book says chest can be pressed to the floor in the overhead reach. Does that mean it is an adequate stretch for thoracic spine extension as well as shoulders? Does this make the cobra redundant?
7) Is 2 minutes followed by the 30 second final hold too long? 120 seconds are about what I need in each set to milk contrast breathing and contract relax for all the extra reach I can get. At the end of the book ("When Flexibility is hard to come by, build Strength") Pavel mentions an example having only 3 sets x 3 contractions x 30 seconds long for 270 total seconds contracted. This is the only example I found him ever specifying numbers in sets, contractions, and duration. It is less than half of what I have been doing. Am I doing too much?

I look forward to your suggestions. Thanks!

 

[Steve Freides]

@GreenSoup, no disrespect intended, but I recommend you read the book again.

Waiting out the tension isn't recommended for all stretches, only some.

The methods that work faster are also the most unpleasant and if you aren't in a hurry and are making progress, then don't use them.

I wouldn't time anything, nor would I create a plan that includes timings of anything, including the number of sets, reps, or days of the week. You need to practice and find what works for yourself, and you certainly don't need to do all stretches all the time. There is good reason sets, etc., aren't mentioned much.

I highly recommend Flexible Steel, a program built on Super Joints, Relax Into Stretch, other works and seminars by Pavel, and Master Instructor Jon Engum's decades of experience martial arts.

Whether or not flexibility is hard to come by, build strength. If you'll allow me to put that into different words: Your body doesn't want to let you move into positions in which you cannot control yourself. Tensing your muscles near the extremes of your current range of motion will give you, among other things, increased confidence in your ability to be in those positions which, in turn, will give you increased willingness to give up control of your muscles and relax in those positions. There are other techniques that are important to building flexibility, but strength is the #1 thing, in my opinion.

-S-

 

[GreenSoup]

Thank you for your response @SteveFreides. This forum is a tremendous gift and I apologize that I did not fully grasp some of the book's information before asking questions. I do not want to waste anyone's time, especially when you are so generous to provide free advice based on real experience. I reread the material in its entirety and worked with it some more.

Questions 1 and 2 are fully answered in the book. On rereading and practice (it said practice might be necessary) I got Clasp-Kinfe to work exactly as written.
Questions 5 and 6 were not addressed specifically in RIS. Since the cobra was included as a specific stretch to the thoracic spine and "if you have to ask the answer is no" is not uncommon in strength training, I suppose that is the answer.
Questions 3 and 4 were not about the specific content in RIS itself and, per your suggestion, I looked up Flexible Steel. Thank you for recommending it! It will certainly be more time-efficient than what I planned to be doing from RIS. The sample program at The 4 Weeks to Flexible Steel Program – Flexible Steel shows that things have become much more specific. Even with directions like "Hang out in the bottom position for a while" without specifying a time, the video removes all ambiguity. Thank you for recommending it.

 

[Steve Freides]

@GreenSoup, no apology is necessary. I am a teacher by profession and part of what I do is correct misunderstandings of written material.

Indeed, my standard practice when teaching music theory or history is to teach in person first, then ask the students to read the corresponding section of the book, and I send them home with this instruction, "What you read should agree with what I said. If you think it doesn't, or if something doesn't make sense both from me and from the book, please ask at our next meeting."

So I think it's challenging to learn from a book, and misunderstandings or incomplete understandings are quite common, and they're certainly not your fault - we want you to be successful at this. I'm happy to explain, and I apologize if I ever come across as too harsh.

-S-