[*] hip flexor work [base ingredient]
Well, now I have two longer essays up on the Physical Alchemy website [see below], I can begin to utilize the information presented in these works for more practical purposes. One of which is to do a little tour of the ‘base ingredients’ [postures] used within the alchemical stretching syllabus [cuisine].
Why not begin with postures that stretch the flexor muscles of the hip.
Around the time of the photoshoot for the image on the cover of the 2nd edition of Stretching & Flexibility – which, as my daughter recently commented, has ‘a ‘cursed’, beardless version of dad’ on the front cover – the focus of the Advanced P&F class had been: hip flexors, more hip flexors and yet more hip flexors.
It was a very fun and intense period of physical development for me.
Even at the non-alchemical, repatterning order of stretching, hip flexor stretches offer huge benefits that extend far beyond their locality due to a number of features of their keystone anatomy.
Changes in foot bone and soft tissue structure; changes in gait; a large spectrum of positive changes to muscle and motor activation patterning [not just the reciprocally inhibited glutes]; changes in sensations and feel of the body, towards more grace, ease and juice.
There are a huge number of exercises within the broad category of ‘hip flexor stretches’.
At one stage, and being quite strict, I tallied 27 different postures [each of which can be modified in a lot of different ways]. Fact is, I use very few of these most of the time – yet the few I use never get boring because of the cuisine they are practiced [cooked] in.
Using this ‘base ingredient’ within the cuisine of alchemical stretching has curious ‘night’ and ‘day’ flavour. Most of the time, at home, I use a very basic set-up of a box-chair-couch supported arm posture.
The range of depth of the stretch is actually not that extreme [and, in fact, most people do not need or want extreme range]. The position goes deep enough to begin to evoke the alchemical stretching qualities – and then we do other things that are beyond the scope of this little PA note.
This basic set-up is one of two main hip flexor setups I do at home if I am stretching solo. The other being Front Splits, if I am working more on pure flexibility [which I still like to do, upon occasion].
The flip side of this is: if I am teaching alchemical stretching in a class format and the students present can hold the qualities necessary to activate alchemical stretching. Then I will actual move towards teaching almost exclusively the more complex ‘Body Tessellation’ syllabus multiple-partner work. As the amount of impressions and work that can be done in these postures [again, only IF the qualities are present in the students] is far beyond what can be done solo. And in its strange way, doing these complex postures actually augments the basic versions, done alone.
The way the Body Tessellation postures were designed was to maximise the alchemical stretching potency of the postures. When I saw other people trying these postures out, they were using them for flexibility and repatterning purposes – which is fine, as they do work for these ends, too – but the alchemical stretching qualities were observed to be absent.
Again, as per ‘the culinary metaphor’ essay – there are many factors governing results that have nothing to do with the postures or exercises being used.
As you can see in the schemata for the syllabus [photo], there are gates. These ‘gates’ are not just about the flexibility, body awareness and coordination of the person. The are also about the ability to activate and sustain the qualities necessary – at the digest the impressions for such a session.
As for hip flexor stretching, wherever you are on your physical training expedition, these are amongst the best ‘bang for buck’ stretches out there. Often they are the only stretch I do on a given day.
One should try and learn them in a sequential way, learning the ‘rules’, methodologies and form points. Later, one can bend and even break the rules [but only when it is safe and indicated to do so].
All the different orders of utilizing of this ‘ingredient’ [posture] have so many benefits. I remember one day, out somewhere with a reasonably manic and excited [K], where he began to riff on an unsuspecting woman [who appeared to know very little about stretching]:
‘Hip flexor stretching should be taught in schools. In fact, hip flexor stretching should be everywhere! Go to the doctor, they proscribe what-have-you – then they stretch your hip flexors. Go to the barber, get a hair cut – then he stretches your hip flexors! Hell, go to the florist and buy some roses for a Beau…and get your hip flexors stretched.’
[this is paraphrased heavily, of course, as the actual words are lost to the sands of time. The exchange was highly amusing to witness – and I must say I still share this sentiment: hip flexor stretching for All!]
[…]
We will be covering a number other postures [ingredients] and modifiers [herbs & spices] over the coming weeks. For background on the use of ‘the culinary metaphor’ see this essay:
the culinary metaphor
and for an introduction to Alchemical Stretching, see THIS essay:
https://physicalalchemy.com.au/alchemical-stretching…/