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[racerxmachina.livejournal.com]

So, chums, workout is going nicely. Routine established, muscles already showing good tone again. One problem plagues me, though.
OW, MY ASS.
More accurately, my ass, my upper hip, inner knee to the side of my kneecap, and my outer ankle. I know I pronate horribly and my shoes need an upgrade. But are there stretches for these stabilizer spots, or ways to strengthen them. How DOES one stretch one's butt, short of doing one of THOSE videos?

Comments

[deirdremoon.livejournal.com]

My complete amateur technique is to lie on my back, then pull my sore-side knee a) to my chest, then b) across my body to touch the inside of the knee to the floor, GENTLY in both directions. For me, this gets the lower butt and the outer hip.

For the inside of the knee, I usually sit in V-seat, then fold my good leg into a half lotus so I can lean forward in a VERY controlled way to stretch the inside of the extended leg.

Get better shoes ASAP! Bad shoes fuck you up!

[fintach.livejournal.com]

I second this butt/hip technique, and in fact rely on it myself. I take it a little further, in that I am not so gentle in bringing my knee to the floor, and rather than the chest I aim mine for the cross-shoulder.

::WARNING:: I have been doing this stretch several times a week for ~8 years. Start gently or you might be unhappy with the results.

Second stage for that one: facing the floor, bring your shin bone as close to your shoulders (parallel to them is the goal) and lower yourself towards the floor as far as you can. Once you can do that, there's another step, but it takes a while to get that far.

For inside of the knee we do something similar in Capoeira. Stand with feet far apart, then crouch all your weight down onto one leg -- all the way down -- and leave the other extended. With the extended foot on its side you get a decent knee stretch. Point the foot towards the ceiling to stretch the hamstring and a bit the calve.

For the outer ankle, lean your weight forward (hands on a chair or something can help) with one foot extended behind you, the top of that foot against the floor. You may have to play with how far you lean, whether or not you should raise or lower your weight on your front foot, and the angle of the extended foot to stretch the problem area.

That's how we do things around my academy, anyway. Goodness knows I'm not a PT.

[fintach.livejournal.com]

I forgot something:

Personally, I think the most important thing to do with ankles to get them loose is rotate them. This can be done either seated, with one hand holding the shin and the other spinning the foot, or standing. The standing method is to put all one's weight on one foot, point the toe or ball of the foot to the ground, and spin the foot by rotating the shin in a circle. Either way, make sure you go both directions.

[racerxmachina.livejournal.com]

I can't wait to do all of this when I get home-- sitting hurts! Ironically, I'd feel better if I wasn't resting.