foundation one leg work

Hi, everyone 

I am on foundation 2 with hollow back press and manna and side lever but I am still on foundation one for single leg squat. I am have hip and ankle mobility and flexibility problems.

when I squat i lean forward for lack of ankle mobility because me knees hit like a wall when going forward because of my ankle problems. 

now for my hips. I have very open hips for some reason they are not the main problem but (every time i am getting in the squat my hips pop back into place and it was painful at first nut now its just a big pop).but  I was just wondering if practicing splits will help me get a squat with me heels on the ground or is it mainly my ankles?

I know I have to stretch them and it will take a long time before i get my squat because they are both tendons and are very tight. but i was just wondering if anyone else had this problem and what stretches help them achieve a squat with heels  on the ground.

I am still very young (teenager). I  am just a enthusiast of many sorts of the realm of movement or fitness. what ever you would like to say and i just want to get help with this mobility and flexibility problem.

any stretches for the ankle that have help anyone?

also i lack flex ion with feet which is how i know it is because tight calves. but pointing my feet i am just fine.

(any suggestions sorry i am very disorganized with all the information)

Hi! I'm around your age as well (14) and am also on the Foundation Series, but haven't progressed as much as you have. Here's what I think of your questions:

1: I don't think the SLS is supposed to be done with forward lean. If you KNOW for sure it's your ankle mobility, then address it! MobilityWOD is a good place to start, and see if you are good for Coach Carl Paoli's mobility tests in his Air Squat progression 1.

2: you can practice the splits if you think it could help. Otherwise, see 1. If your hips "pop," it isn't a great indicator that everything is golden; consult a healh professional if this has been continuing for some time.

3: If your calves are tight, then stretch them! Foam roll them.

My go-to exercise for calf and ankle problems are tempo calf raises. But you may want to stretch out your gastrocnemius first.

no i have not passed a single test for foundation one of the single leg squat because i can not get into a squat with my heels on the ground.

Aadil Siddiqi said:

Hi! I'm around your age as well (14) and am also on the Foundation Series, but haven't progressed as much as you have. Here's what I think of your questions:

1: I don't think the SLS is supposed to be done with forward lean. If you KNOW for sure it's your ankle mobility, then address it! MobilityWOD is a good place to start, and see if you are good for Coach Carl Paoli's mobility tests in his Air Squat progression 1.

2: you can practice the splits if you think it could help. Otherwise, see 1. If your hips "pop," it isn't a great indicator that everything is golden; consult a healh professional if this has been continuing for some time.

3: If your calves are tight, then stretch them! Foam roll them.

My go-to exercise for calf and ankle problems are tempo calf raises. But you may want to stretch out your gastrocnemius first.

no i have not passed a single test for foundation one of the single leg squat because i can not get into a squat with my heels on the ground.  and i know i was just wondering if anyone had the same problem with this and had any other suggestions.

and don't worry you will get to where i am in no time with foundation.

i am lucky that i have friends that train with me doing foundation work so we push each other and what not. but the reason i am in foundation two already in some movements is because i was training pretty good with my dad which knows what he is doing and now has changed to my training from weights but i was training about two years before foundation.

You will get there!!

You are on Foundation 2 on hollow back press and Side lever? Or you are on Foundation Preparatory Exercise 2 (F1 PE2) on hollow back press and side lever (meaning you are working on Push-ups and Arch Body Rocks)?

Check out Kit Laughlin's material for some excellent Soleus (lower calf) stretches. You might also want to do a little bit of "Paleo squat" holds (not so much that it really tires you out or hinders your SLS PE1 work though) to get your body accustomed to getting into a full, feet together squat position.

It's probably ankle mobility.  This will help.

It's also a good idea to stretch out your calves, with both straight and bent legs.

Just spend some time in the squat!  Hold onto something or put your hands on the floor.

Michael17 said:

when I squat i lean forward for lack of ankle mobility because me knees hit like a wall when going forward because of my ankle problems.

You know your knees aren't supposed to go past your toes when you squat, right?

Deck squats are actually quite hard.  Can you do just a standard squat, with your feet apart and your knees out?

I will get there, yes!

Did you see the Air Squat Progression? Some very basic squatting mechanics are addressed, and I think you could benefit from that. Ido's Squat Clinic is a good resource, but you may not be there quite yet. Paleo Squat is a good idea, but I would stay away from being in there too long. There's a reason that women in Pakistan (where I'm from) are employed to squat and pick crops; it is too stressful for men to do it!

Erm.. you could see some of the stuff on exterior websites, maybe on t-nation or something similar, where there may be articles about these issues.

Good luck!

Aadil Siddiqi said:

(...) There's a reason that women in Pakistan (where I'm from) are employed to squat and pick crops; it is too stressful for men to do it! (...)

Why does this sound so wrong? :facepalm: :facepalm:

oddly enough, my squat has significantly sunk to the point of when im at the beach, i can half sit on the sand and half be on my feet and either choose to recline on the sand or forward on my ankles. can't do that on cement ground though

if you have a means to foam roll, this has significantly taken my mobility results to be more fruitful and made SLS progressions actually more challenging due to the newly acquired ROM(i'm talking about the first iM to the foundation owners here)

my tightest spot in my calves has (for some reason) been the highest outside part of my calves bordering on the shin muscle(essentially where they meet)

I have pretty good mobility overall, but I think my ankle mobility (most likely also hip) has improved with the SLS/PE3. Left side is still a little stiffer than right, though.

To improve your weak positions - spend more time in them. I sit in ATG squats now and then, just to do it.