MN/PE1>iM Stiff Leg Windmill

Wow. Tough one for me. Not only challenged my hip mobility and shoulder mobility, I simply could not coordinate the windmill motion with my left arm overhead. I was surprised.

Looks like the demo achieves one full rotation of the dumbbell with combo of shoulder rotation and forearm rotation. That's tough as well.

I scaled the movement on the first day and did it from my knees. I know it's not the same as standing and as I am able to, I will move to my feet. For now tho, since I cannot preform the movement on the left, I feel equal development on both sides is important and will occur by doing the exercise on both sides from my knees

Fo me, i had an easier time using a heavier weight: 15 to 20 lbs, less weight made movement harder to rotate.

You could also try using a kettlebell, it sits differently and I found it less of a stability challenge for the shoulder to start with. This may allow you to feel the movement a bit better and as you improve you could go back to using the dumbell.

Thanks guys. Right now I'm at 10 lb dumbbell. Left side has considerably less mobility than right but anticipate an equalization as I progress through.

Wow. I used a 2kg weight.

I found the kettlebell a little awkward when adding the extra twist at the end there and switched to dumbbell.

I can't even go a third of the way as far down as the guy in the video.  It feels like I can barely even start this exercise. 

Not sure how I'm going to work this one out.  Maybe bend at the knees like the original poster until I build up the mobility to do it stiff legged?  I have to bend quite a bit to get into that position -- if I keep my legs straight I can hardly even start to move in the direction I'm supposed to go in.

Probably best to just give up.

What? No thats not right.

Practice, practice, practise, practissismo, practile, practilize, practicate, pra......

Matthew,

you can try holding off the arm/shoulder portion of the windmill until you get some bend in the hips.

you can scale that two ways(one involves you do use the weight overhead): add an extra step to the windmill in this way, start with slightly bent knees, lower down, do your best to keep the depth and straight your knees. re-bend legs, go up. repeat. you can then come up with straight knees. then do the iM as demonstrated on the video. remember not to move onto Jefferson curls(iM2) before you master these.

you can also just hold the weight to your chest or hanging downwards to help you sink into the position. remember that you might need a something a little heavier than 5lbs if its helping you sink. you can also warm up with a static portion of a windmill, the bottom position.

post a video if you can, more specific instructions could be noted, if theres an actual view of what your currently doing. thats a highly recommended option

Matthew DellaFera said:

I can't even go a third of the way as far down as the guy in the video. It feels like I can barely even start this exercise.

Not sure how I'm going to work this one out. Maybe bend at the knees like the original poster until I build up the mobility to do it stiff legged? I have to bend quite a bit to get into that position -- if I keep my legs straight I can hardly even start to move in the direction I'm supposed to go in.

I really suffer during these. Something that helped me in the beginning; placing your other hand (the one without a weight in it) on top of your leg and let it slide down with you as you descend.

This should let you perform the movement in a very controlled way and achieve a greater depth. Later you'll need to relearn this IM without the supporting hand.

Another point; using a very slight bend in the knee will help you get deeper but this will need to be corrected later on. Also don't let the knee collapse in when you bend it.

Even though this IM is really tough it does wonders for your flexibility, it's worth the effort.

Best of luck!

Thank you all for the replies.  I'll have to read over the recommendations and give it a try and see if it helps. 

I didn't have the camera angle high enough to show my arm holding the weight, but I don't know if that's necessary.  You can see the rest of my body and my range of motion.  I can re-record and re-upload if anyone would need to see more. 

In the video, I'm first holding the weight, then I'm doing it without any weight and without engaging my arm or shoulder, then I'm doing it while bending my knee without engaging my arm or shoulder.  The dumbbell has 6 pounds on it and including the bar is probably around 8 pounds.  I originally had 16 pounds on the bar but trying to go into the movement even a tiny bit literally felt impossible -- my body would just not allow me to do it.

Even though I'm not very far down when I'm not using the weight, my hamstrings are definitely feeling the stretch.  They're so tight that even if I could stretch my upper body down farther, I don't know if my hamstrings could take it where they are right now. 

Not 100% sure about foot positioning, but I read an article by a PT (totally unrelated, was leafing through a magazine on the plane) and she said to point the toes of both feet slightly to the side that is NOT holding the weight. For me, this makes me feel it more in the hamstrings and makes the torso movement feel smoother and more natural. Before that I just pointed the opposite toes. With both feet it feels better, IMO.

Matthew, this is one I am really continuing to struggle with after 8 months. I really dreaded it at first as the whole thing seemed impossible, putting all the individual elements together. Your ROM seems very similar to mine when I started. A few things I have found that have helped :

• Warming up with alternate toe touches or shin touches in my case.
• Use the correct ROM, straight legs, toes pointing away from the folding hip, push weight above the head.
• Only go down as far as you are comfortable with, the ROM will increase. I hardly moved at first.
• As Murray said slide your hand down your leg.
• A kettlebell is easier to start with.
• You need a weight to help stabilize the shoulder but not too heavy to unbalance it. this will be able to be increased over time.

By my fifth set I am now just touching the floor and am able to twist the dumbbell all the way round, I still have to fight not bending my legs but overall its Happy Days !!

From your video: check your foot work; one toe should point out further than the other and your hips should move so they "stack" on top of less dominant leg. Watch the video again.

Another thing than can help: keep your eyes on the dumbbell, this will help you twist at the torso.

As Tfeal said this is an IM that improves by degrees and slowly at that! Be patient, I was on it for about 8 months as well and I still keep it in my warm up.

Thanks for all the replies.  Very helpful.

Changing my footwork and looking at the dumbbell helped *immensely.*  Now I feel like I have a fighting chance -- even though I can hardly move, I can move a little bit.  And it's reassuring to know it took so many people 8+ months to get it down.  

Thanks again.  I'm going to keep at this.   

This one's a keeper: I'm still doing two-three sets in my warmup, one set @24, one set @32 kg

Also make sure you are bending at the hip, not just twisting sideways.

EDIT: Fun fact: the athlete in the course video says something after the fourth rep. Probably 'just one more, you can do this'

Just starting today. Is there a guide somewhere as to how much weight to use on these?

Ever think about doing yoga? 8 months on this seems out of the question. 

i've tried using 6lb's as a starter but it felt way too light so i took it to 10lb's and that was my weight for quite a while..

10lb is a pretty good place to start, if the 25 reps can be done in control. YMMV.

It's a good exercise, but I didn't notice big improvements to my pancake/straddle up until I started adding twice weekly stretch sessions to focus on my hamstrings, calves+ankles, and piriformis.  Stretch One can't arrive too soon.