Splitses it does, my preciousss.
Nov. 11th, 2007 06:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
flexagonToday I felt like a big ape in the gym, for the most part. It's funny, it's possible to quite like how a body looks and still feel, sometimes, that it's sort of dull. Anyway, after the lifting I spent more time on the stretching than usual, and I unequivocally, unambiguously DID THE SPLITS.
It's kind of funny how not-obviously-binary that judgement call seems. Let me explain: today what I did was on a mat about an inch thick, which makes me feel like maybe it shouldn't count. But I went all the way down, and was able to rest my weight on my front butt-cheek enough to lift my hands from the ground and just sit like that for 20-30 seconds. That whole thing was repeatable, too, about four times. (The other side didn't touch down, and hurt more, but I was disciplined about alternating).
Part of me wants to not give myself any credit until I can slide down into it from standing, quickly, on a marble floor, when cold, at 6:00 in the morning, hips perfectly square. But I am rejecting that... that's stupid. Of course I want to do it again, and get way more consistent, and get the other side, and all sorts of other things, but being able to sit in a split for a while was pretty much the bomb. The last time I got excited about splits, the not being able to stay and sit is exactly why I disqualified the effort. I can't believe that was a year ago... flexibility can be so dreadfully fickle. Of course, a lot of not-stretching of the hamstrings happened between that post and this one, due to injuring one of them, and these days I can and do stretch the little beasties almost every day. (Ask me sometime what I do on the subway platform while waiting for the train to show up. Hint: there's a handrail at an awfully convenient height for putting a foot on). I know that my 19-year-old self would have been delighted to see me today... though she'd also have been pretty horrified at how old I am and how short my hair is. :)
It's kind of funny how not-obviously-binary that judgement call seems. Let me explain: today what I did was on a mat about an inch thick, which makes me feel like maybe it shouldn't count. But I went all the way down, and was able to rest my weight on my front butt-cheek enough to lift my hands from the ground and just sit like that for 20-30 seconds. That whole thing was repeatable, too, about four times. (The other side didn't touch down, and hurt more, but I was disciplined about alternating).
Part of me wants to not give myself any credit until I can slide down into it from standing, quickly, on a marble floor, when cold, at 6:00 in the morning, hips perfectly square. But I am rejecting that... that's stupid. Of course I want to do it again, and get way more consistent, and get the other side, and all sorts of other things, but being able to sit in a split for a while was pretty much the bomb. The last time I got excited about splits, the not being able to stay and sit is exactly why I disqualified the effort. I can't believe that was a year ago... flexibility can be so dreadfully fickle. Of course, a lot of not-stretching of the hamstrings happened between that post and this one, due to injuring one of them, and these days I can and do stretch the little beasties almost every day. (Ask me sometime what I do on the subway platform while waiting for the train to show up. Hint: there's a handrail at an awfully convenient height for putting a foot on). I know that my 19-year-old self would have been delighted to see me today... though she'd also have been pretty horrified at how old I am and how short my hair is. :)
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no subject
Date: 2007-11-12 06:06 am (UTC)congrats!
I'm working on them, but its gonna be a long ways coming.
no subject
Date: 2007-11-12 12:19 pm (UTC)Yeah, splits take forever. I've wanted to do them pretty much my whole adult life... that's not saying there's been steady effort, though. I used to keep giving up. :-/
I think frequent, steady attempts, and also doing multiple attempts per stretching session, are good. So is focusing on stretching the hip flexors, which have to be flexible in the back leg.
I wanna see breakdancing pictures!
no subject
Date: 2007-11-13 09:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-11-15 02:18 am (UTC)Hoorah! What a sensible thing to do - as in, it's sensible to celebrate it as it happens! Of course it wuld be wonderful to do a Ginger Rogers... wait, a Gwen Stefani? :-) oh, heck, whoever's the limberpuss of these days - but you have done them now. Take them as done and do them again!
Congratulations!