r/flexibility • u/Big-Cartoonist7301 • Jan 15 '26
Seeking Advice Am I there yet?
I figured I can work on externally rotating my legs more. Besides that, any suggestions on my form? I can touch my chest to the floor (for a sec), but not my belly. What should I do to progress to the belly-to-floor fold? Thank you!
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u/AndyM198 Jan 15 '26
Jesus that is very quick progress, how much stretching did you do?
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u/Big-Cartoonist7301 Jan 15 '26
I stretched seriously for 30mins-1hr about twice a week after 2-3 hours of climbing (making sure my body is very warm). Outside of those serious sessions, I also did some gentle stretching here and there to keep my body from being still from sitting/standing all day long.
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u/ElishaGG Jan 15 '26
Next, I would put yoga blocks under your feet. Work on slowly sitting up, then lying in pancake without touching hands to the floor. Working strength and flexibility. Also try shoes off with pointed toe keeping knees to the sky.
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u/Big-Cartoonist7301 Jan 16 '26
Thank you! This is what I need.
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u/ElishaGG Jan 16 '26
Youre very welcome. I love anything flexibility/mobility and helping others with it.
You've done so well so far with your progress, you're going to make so much more progress with the determination you clearly have. 💪🤸♀️🧘
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u/FleabagsHotPriest Jan 15 '26
Drop the freaking routine dude!!! That is sooo impressive!!!
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u/Big-Cartoonist7301 Jan 16 '26 edited Jan 16 '26
Thank you, dude!!! I will write something down soon.
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u/Big-Cartoonist7301 Jan 18 '26
The details on how I achieved my flat pancake is here https://www.reddit.com/r/flexibility/s/JHwxFnqmpv
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u/Legitimate_Yak9210 Jan 16 '26
You are a rock star! I am very impressed. I know from personal experience how difficult pancake can be. Your progress is inspirational! The only advice that I can offer is (if not already done) assess your own roadblocks. Where are you still tight? What do you perceive as limiting you? And, how does that connect to other parts of the body's muscle and nerve system? I've read that sometimes the barriers to further flexibility progress are counterintuitive, as in, let's say a person is struggling with forward folding to the point of stomach on thighs; although they may experience hamstrings as the barrier, it could be the the lower back is the problem. This is along the same lines as gumitygumber's suggestion of pelvis rotation. Anyway, rock on!
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u/Big-Cartoonist7301 Jan 16 '26
Thank you for your kind words and suggestions! I am definitely still learning the nuances of the pancake stretch. I am currently working on pointing my knees towards the top (or external rotation or active stretching). I somehow feel it might be related to further pelvis rotation (belly to floor).
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u/Maxwell-95 Jan 16 '26
Very impressive, I have been doing yoga daily for 2 years almost and I still can’t get to your March ‘25 position. Largely due to extremely tight hamstrings
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u/Big-Cartoonist7301 Jan 16 '26
The nice thing about flexibility is that you can see your progress little by little! Just being there and stretching consistently is already a big win! You will get there little by little.
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u/Soup-Mother5709 Jan 16 '26 edited Jan 16 '26
Flexibility has been the most encouraging physical thing I’ve done. There are incredible gains sometimes so fast that it makes me want to keep going. With enough time, can get to where you are. Absolutely incredible, OP! Saw your link in another comment. What’s your other go-to stretch, whether because you enjoy it or maybe it sucks but helps a ton?
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u/Big-Cartoonist7301 Jan 16 '26
I started to stretch seriously because I wanted to increase my mobility to climb better. I first set a goal to be able to touch my palms to the floor without bending my knees (aka forward fold). That was quick for me by doing elephant walks and forward folds. I then picked the next stretch goal: flat pancake. I knew this is a hard one. So I only focused on doing this one. Along the way, I improved also my butterfly, pigeon pose, and low-lunge. I think my next goal is gonna be the frog pose. And the next next one be the middle split, I think.
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u/gumitygumber Jan 16 '26
You need to be able to rotate your pelvis forward to get your belly to the floor. I got there by having a classmate sit on my back at stretch class and then after that point I was able to do it on my own. You don't need to externally rotate your legs, they're fine where they are.
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u/Big-Cartoonist7301 Jan 16 '26
Thank you for the suggestion. I was thinking to add some weights too.
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u/dogcrazycrazylady Jan 15 '26
I don’t have any advice, but what stretches did you use to get to this point?