Vertical Lounge Straight

At my level of "unstretchiness", it's impossible to do the vertical lounge with a straight leg. It's ridiculous. What should I do? Try anyway or substitue for the bent leg version for now.

I have the same problem... I guess my hip flexors and quads just won't stretch enough to be able to perform this. Is there any tips how to do this or just start with a bent knee and gradually try to get it straight?

Have you tried putting your hands/arms up on two elevated surfaces (one on either side) to raise the stretch up to where you can hold it? You could use stretch blocks, physioballs, chairs, stools, really anything that can help you support yourself in a higher version of the stretch would work.

I have the same issue.  I can barely get into position with the bent knee, and so straight leg is right out.

I scaled it by keeping my knee out from the wall so that I could keep my torso vertical.  I know that the focus point was to keep the knee and shin pressed against the wall, but it's impossible for me to get there and hold the stretch without wanting to die...even with the adjustment, I'm still slightly sore from the session on Monday...

Is this type of scaling okay, or should I get my knee against the wall and just start by trying to get vertical, or what?  My quads and hip flexors are, I have found, made of wood.

Shmikey said:

I have the same issue.  I can barely get into position with the bent knee, and so straight leg is right out.

My experience sofar:  In my first session, I had a huge stack of mats on either side of me for support and my knee was, more or less, touching the ground.  This was after 30-60sec of time just to get into that position in the first place.  Afterwords, I kinda fell over to get out of the position and had to rest before repeating with the other side.  In my second session the following week, I was using a much smaller stack of mats.  I was also able to get into the position slightly faster and it was marginally less horrible to hold. 

A few years prior to discovering GB, I made my first foray into the world of strength training.  When I started, the only way I could squat was on my toes and thighs perpendicular to the ground.  I spent the next 3 years or so relearning on a daily basis how to squat.  With this front and middle stretch series, I feel that Im now relearning how to walk after only 2 weeks.  Ive also noticed that its suddenly now becoming uncomfortable to sit for an hour.

stephen