Seiza stretches question

I have been doing the Front Splits stretching course for about 3 weeks now and I have a question about the correct position of the seiza stretches (the 3 stretches at the start of the program after each of the calf raises). By the way my overall mobility/flexibility is terrible in all aspects. I have been practicing Aikido for about 10 years and I am used to sit in seiza. One of the things that I saw in the course though is that the ankles must be touching when sitting, where in Aikido the ankles are drifting apart. Trying to have my ankles touching while sitting is nearly impossible I need to have my body almost straight from the knee up (and sit up almost like standing) to be able to touch my ankles. I have found that if I move my knees further apart while I am sitting the situation improves, but still it is hard to do it for more than 10 seconds, as the ankles drift apart. By the way even with the ankles apart I am getting a very good stretch.

Can you please give me some pointers/help on what to do with my ankle position and how to improve it? Or can I have my ankles further apart?

Thanks,

George

Hi George,

Yes make sure you follow the form in the video. The form used in martial arts is a bit different in GST because it is important to maintain proper alignment in gymnastics as it would carryover the more advance movements. I suggest that you don't stress on it overthinking about how it would improve. Mobility takes time and it will definitely improve over time. My suggestion is that aside from doing the stretch courses is that you incorporate Foundations along with it. There are a lot of mobility drills in Foundations that will compliment your Stretch Courses. I hope this helps.

I also have my ankles drift apart in seiza, so I (and many others on the forum) use a band use a band or strap to keep the ankles together in the stretch. I've noticed big improvements with this method. Hope it helps!

If you find your ankles drifting apart during the seiza, look to the front of your ankle/shin as possibly being the culprit.  Try stretching and strengthening the front of the ankle and the tibialis and stretching the calf a lot.

Thanks for your feedback guys. I tried to tie my ankles together and I managed to keep them closer during the stretch, but it felt weird. I think I need more practice