DAY 2: 4 hours stretching + my stretching plan

Today I stretched a lot! My stretching plan is either too long or I’m taking too much time in certain areas. After rehearsal/class, I did my dynamic stretches and almost all my lower body stretches for 2.5 hours. After teaching, later in the afternoon, I did 1.5 hours finishing lower body and doing all upper body stretches. I ended with dynamic stretches.

I was planning on committing to dance conditioning plus this flexibility challenge but I’m not sure when to work in the conditioning if stretching will take like 3 hours.

Here is my routine:

Dynamic Stretches (10-20min)

• Forward battements
• Side battements
• Back battements
• Kneeling – back battements (engage back)
• Kneeling – side battements (parallel + turned out)
• Butterfly flutter
• Squat – rock side to side, straighten one leg, turn to lunge
• One legged pigeon – grab foot in hand/elbow/armpit
• One legged pigeon – foot to head (no assistance)
• Cat – Cow
• Yoga sun salutation – arch, roll down, Downward dog, leg up, lunge, arm circle, push up , upward dog, downward dog, forward, childs pose
• Camel pose rock; on knees grab ankles & rock
• Cobra feet to head – 10X single legs; then 10X both
• Rock and roll
• One legged pigeon, foot to head (not assisted) 10X
• Lunge, foot to head (grab foot if you want) 10X

Foam Rolling & Tennis Balling (10-15min)

• it band
• Quad
• Hamstrings
• Ball: pecs
• Ball: calves
• Ball: TFL/glutes
• Ball: hip flexors

STATIC STRETCHES

For Essential stretches, hold at least : 3 X 30 Sec

*breathe into deeper stretches

Hips & Quads

• Butterfly, soles of feet together
• Cross-legged butterfly
• One-leg bent side/hip stretch
• Pigeon pose
• Twisting stretch
• Hip/glute stretch on back (supine)
• Squatting hip/glute stretch
• IT band standing stretch
• IT band sitting stretch
• Quad stretch against wall

Calves

• Pedal through feet
• Stretch with calf stretch tool or on a step/edge

General Hamstring

• Plie, elbows to knees
• Flat back, front foot flexed, back in plie
• straddle (sitting, standing, against the wall); reach through the legs AND ASSIST (past where the legs are)
• sitting/standing pike, back straight/round and then reaching past the legs
• one leg bent pike (to the side and over) AND ASSIST (past where the legs are)
• ballet barre stretches,
  • front, side, side/slide, arabesque
• foot in hand stretches
  • front, side, back – knee in hand, back – ankle in hand

Hip Flexor & Splits

• knee ALMOST against wall, hands on knees
• pigeon pose, one leg up (mermaid)
• deep lunges (push forward for hip flexor, push pelvis up for hip flexor stretch, stretch arms to the side, then flexed foot/straight back, straight foot, hold back leg)
• normal splits parallel (30 sec X 3; 1min X 3)
  • let go
  • lift back leg up 10X without assistance + 10X grabbing foot
  • put back leg down; plie the front leg
  • curl toes under
  • reach back with arms / head back
  • split using wall to prop back leg up
• normal splits turned out
  • reach back with arms / head back
• oversplits (small surface and large surface; front leg up; back leg up)
• wall side split – back leg up (30 sec X 3)
• wall side split – front leg up
• vertical split/penche using stretch strap
• supine split stretch (+ developpe stretch) –WITH ASSIST (truss / stretch band)
• Center
• • Frog
  • frog w/ one leg out
  • center splits – normal
  • center splits – vertical against wall

Back

• Spiral
• Half-bridge/camel pose
• Bridges (regular, hands close to feet, straight legs, push through shoulders)
• Advanced Bridge – touch hands to ankles, touch hands to knees
• Advanced Bridge – go down to elbows, straighten knees
• Advanced bridge – Elbow bridge, one leg straight up, one leg bent
• Cobra, legs straight
• cobra, look at my feet, bring head and feet close together 10 X
• cobra with legs up, then grab them
• cobra assisted – with thighs on wall
• Advanced cobra – grab one leg at a time and put foot on shoulder
• wall crawl

*Things in italics are things I am working up to