A splits superset

Playing around with stretching for the splits over the last week or so, I have found a nice combination of variations of two exercises I have liked for a while.

Prior to performing this I suggest a specific warm-up. I really like the following (and it in and of itself can be used as a routine for the splits):

Front Split warm-up

1. Lunge position (knee on ground), lunge position with front leg straight, lunge position grabbing back ankle (quad dominant stretch)- 20-30sec each position

2. Lower into front splits-15 sec

3. Repeat using isometric holds/contractions- 10-20sec Iso followed by 10 secs in deeper stretch

4. Lower into front splits- 10-20sec passive, 10sec Iso, 10sec passive

Side splits warm up

1. Butterfly stretch- 20-30sec

2. Horse stance- 20-30sec

3. Frog stretch- 20-30sec

4. Lower into side splits- 10 passive, 10 iso, 10 passive

Splits Superset

Preamble:

There are three positions I will refer to here. Side splits, no need to explain. Martial art style split, front foot is pointing up and rear foot is pointing sideways. And the front splits, front foot is pointing up and rear foot is pointing down.

A1) From side splits rotate left into martial art split, hold 5sec. Rotate further into front split, 3 bounces, 5sec Iso, 5sec passive. Rotate back through martial art split into side split, 3bounces, 5iso, 5passive. Perform the same for the right side. Perform three times (i.e you will have gone through each front split position three times and side splits six times)

No rest.

A2) Lying on your back raise one leg as far as you can toward your face, keep the other on the ground. Rotate leg outwards in a circular motion while simultaneously doing the same with the other leg, ending up with the legs switched. You should have drawn a circle with your legs. Keep your legs straight at all times and perform this slowly and deliberately. Expect some cramping! Perform 6-10reps

Repeat the superset however many times you like.

During the split switches (A1) I would suggest having a chair in front and behind you if you are not very close to the ground with your splits. Also, it is more than acceptable to lift up slightly when transitioning between splits (it is about mobilising in that deep ROM not a dynamic stretch).

I really like the combination of active and loaded stretching and it has been giving me good results, feel free to tinker with reps, sets and hold lengths. However please use some common sense when approaching this, if you have not done much isometric stretching before please ease into this as it is quite strenuous and you can get hurt if unprepared (I know from experience).

Ed

According to stadion.com and Thomas Kurz, adductor and hamstring strength (and lower body strength in general) have a TON to do with flexibility potential. There are two great ways of developing this: full ROM strength movements (single legged stiff legged deadlifts for hamstrings and adductor flies/pulldowns/inverted adductor flies) and isometric holds at maximum stretch.

I have found that there's another great way to develop flexibility as long as you are doing the other two simultaneously; namely, relaxed stretching.

Since my adductors are fairly strong already (I do 3x12 inverted adductor flies* with my full body weight and 3x30 second isometric contractions**), I add about 6 hours (yes! 6 hours!) of relaxed stretching for my adductors a week. I've done so for the last week and my side split has increased about 6 inches already (only about 10-12" left). I read on T-nation.com that it takes 6 hours of relaxed stretching a week to increase the length of a muscle, and I decided to test it out on myself. It seems to be very effective AS LONG as you are doing the other two more important things.

I study while I do it, though, so the time is used effectively.

* I set up my rings hanging very close to the floor, stand on them, allow feet to spread, close them back up, repeat

** also on rings (doing them on rings actually make my knees feel better than doing them on floor)

This is just something that I think people should know about as well as what you wrote.

What are adductor flies/pulldowns and inverted adductor flies?

blackcat said:

What are adductor flies/pulldowns and inverted adductor flies?

Patrick Smith said:

* I set up my rings hanging very close to the floor, stand on them, allow feet to spread, close them back up, repeat

WRT the OP: The set is nice, but the inclusion of bounces makes me nervous. Just don't see results from ballistic stretching except for an increased injury risk.

Please report back on any improvements you make with the set - I'd be interested to see a comparison between hold times - personally would move every thing up to 10s (the static and isometric section) but doesn't necessarily mean it's better.

Hi, a couple of things:

...lunge position with front leg straight

What do you mean by this? I thought that low lunge (knee down) had the forward leg bent?

lunge position grabbing back ankle

Is this totally necessary? It seems that you're just overstressing the knee that is down for a quad stretch?

Side splits warm up

1. Butterfly stretch- 20-30sec

2. Horse stance- 20-30sec

3. Frog stretch- 20-30sec

I would do horse, then frog then down into the butterfly. Just a preference I guess but seems a more logical progression to me.

Martial art style split, front foot is pointing up and rear foot is pointing sideways

I have never done it this way but where is the hip? Does it, along with the entire rear leg, rotate out so the foot can point sideways?

From side splits rotate left into martial art split, hold 5sec. Rotate further into front split, 3 bounces, 5sec Iso, 5sec passive. Rotate

I'm also not so keen on the bouncing and rotating. I'm not sure why, but it seems to me that all that hip rotation while in these extended positions on the floor is just asking for trouble.

A2)...Keep your legs straight at all times and perform this slowly and deliberately. Expect some cramping!

What is the value of the straight legs in this exercise? In my own work I have no issue bending my knees when in a stretch like this, especially when my back is on the floor. I can get my ankle behind my shoulder and my foot almost behind my head and my knee is generally bent during those.

IMO, the most valuable stretch to help you get a front split is low lunge elbows down. Front knee in at first, then splayed out to advance you into side split. I'm beginning to come of the opinion that the most valuable stretch for side split is frog.

blackcat said:

What are adductor flies/pulldowns and inverted adductor flies?

Adductor or hamstring pulldowns include setting up a pulley, running a strong cord/cable through, attaching one end to X number of weight plates, tying a loop for your foot at the other end of the rope, putting your left or right foot through that loop, and then raising the weight by closing your legs. It's a bit hard to visualize. I suggest you go over to stadion.com if you want more information about that. The inverted adductor flies are way, way, way better in my opinion and my experience.

To perform inverted adductor flies, simply set your rings up hanging about 8-12" off the floor. Put your feet in the rings and stand up, spotting yourself with your hands on the ring cables. Carefully allow your feet to separate and your legs to spread. Pause for a second once you reach your maximum stretch and then close your legs to stand back up. Make sure you spot yourself very carefully for the first few workouts until you get used to it. Concentrate on establishing and maintaining proper hip posture and really try to activate your adductors. Also expect some mildly severe DOMS at first.

I can do five of these consecutively with a 40lb weight vest on and mild spotting. It doesn't take long to get to this level, but I suggest you practice 2-3 x 8-12 reps for now. In my experience, higher rep (~15) yields higher flexibility gains than lower rep work. I do it 3 times a week, too. I wouldn't suggest any fewer than 2 times.

Patrick Smith said:

blackcat said:

What are adductor flies/pulldowns and inverted adductor flies?

Adductor or hamstring pulldowns include setting up a pulley, running a strong cord/cable through, attaching one end to X number of weight plates, tying a loop for your foot at the other end of the rope, putting your left or right foot through that loop, and then raising the weight by closing your legs. It's a bit hard to visualize. I suggest you go over to stadion.com if you want more information about that. The inverted adductor flies are way, way, way better in my opinion and my experience.

To perform inverted adductor flies, simply set your rings up hanging about 8-12" off the floor. Put your feet in the rings and stand up, spotting yourself with your hands on the ring cables. Carefully allow your feet to separate and your legs to spread. Pause for a second once you reach your maximum stretch and then close your legs to stand back up. Make sure you spot yourself very carefully for the first few workouts until you get used to it. Concentrate on establishing and maintaining proper hip posture and really try to activate your adductors. Also expect some mildly severe DOMS at first.

I can do five of these consecutively with a 40lb weight vest on and mild spotting. It doesn't take long to get to this level, but I suggest you practice 2-3 x 8-12 reps for now. In my experience, higher rep (~15) yields higher flexibility gains than lower rep work. I do it 3 times a week, too. I wouldn't suggest any fewer than 2 times.

Thanks, I believe I get the picture..

To viewty and jl5555,

I disagree about the bouncing being god for nothing but injury, it has it's purpose. As Coach Sommer said at the Australian seminar we live in a ballistic world (yes he uses ballistic stretching). This is not to say they do not pose a risk, ballistic stretching should be approached cautiously, this type of stretching should be trained with diligence and common sense. The bounces should not be wild or extreme, they should be controlled.

jl5555 said:

...lunge position with front leg straight

What do you mean by this? I thought that low lunge (knee down) had the forward leg bent?

lunge position grabbing back ankle

Is this totally necessary? It seems that you're just overstressing the knee that is down for a quad stretch?

from a low lunge straighten the front leg, this effectively means it is no longer a lunge. This position allows a good amount of leverage/weight to be used to stretch and also seems, to me, to better prepare the hamstrings for front splits than a pike.

I do not believe it overstresses the knee. For myself at least, this position provides a better quad stretch than the classic standing quad stretch (less stress/stretch on the knee cap and a better ability to apply more pressure to the stretch).

If you are talking about stress from the knee being on the ground, put a towel under it.

jl5555 said:

Side splits warm up

1. Butterfly stretch- 20-30sec

2. Horse stance- 20-30sec

3. Frog stretch- 20-30sec

I would do horse, then frog then down into the butterfly. Just a preference I guess but seems a more logical progression to me.

This part is all just a warm up, feel free to do what/how you like it personally I just like to start with some bent leg stuff. I'm curious why you think horse, frog, butterfly is a more logical progression?

jl5555 said:

Martial art style split, front foot is pointing up and rear foot is pointing sideways

I have never done it this way but where is the hip? Does it, along with the entire rear leg, rotate out so the foot can point sideways?

You should be facing toward your front leg, hips don't have to be perfectly square. The rotations should pretty naturally take you through the position, try not to overthink it.

jl5555 said:

A2)...Keep your legs straight at all times and perform this slowly and deliberately. Expect some cramping!

What is the value of the straight legs in this exercise? In my own work I have no issue bending my knees when in a stretch like this, especially when my back is on the floor. I can get my ankle behind my shoulder and my foot almost behind my head and my knee is generally bent during those.

Why keep your legs straight during a pike stretch or leg lift? This an active flexibility exercise, you are not attempting to put the foot behind the head or anything with your hands. Your are lifting your leg using the strength of the leg. If you don't understand my description of the exercise let me know and I'll try and film it.

Ed

Ed,

Thanks for the time and trouble to share your routine; hope it's paying good dividends for you! Can you share your current split or oversplit depth, and any measurable progress since?

Patrick,

You may be interested to read Coach Sommer's post from Feb 2008 regarding Power Splits: viewtopic.php?p=268&highlight=#p268

It is, as has been pointed out before, a Loaded Passive Stretch.

It sounds like you have experienced great results with your routine, too. I am curious, what is the current depth of your splits? Meaning, are you able to do 180-degree Power Splits with the vest, as mentioned? How close are you to oversplits, and can you lower and raise into splits with just your legs?

Again, thanks for sharing

j

Hi, Jason.

I only started concentrating hard on flexibility (side and front splits) about 3 weeks ago, and really started on it consistently a week ago; however, I only have about 10" left in my side split and about 5" left in my "martial arts" split. I haven't tested my front split.

I REALLY appreciate you directing me to that Power Splits post by Coach Sommer. I have not seen it, and I can't wait to read it. It looks fantastic.

I'd like to get the side split and full martial arts split (with full front split coming later) within 2 months (probably sooner), and then start working on the oversplit for front split. I don't need side oversplit, just the front (very applicable to kicking, I think). I will start implementing the suggestions Coach makes in that post and see how it goes.

I generally feel that my side split flexibility is hindered by my hip joints and not my actual muscles, but I am doing tons of mobility (mobilityWOD) and SMR to try to get everything as properly placed as I can.

I do active flexibility work for my side kicks (no front kicks right now) by just supersetting inverted adductor flies and side kick holds. Again, I've only just restarted doing these, but I can already hold my foot at about head level in side kick position with light chair spotting.