The Ready State: Mobility Training with Dr. Kelly Starrett › Forums › General › mobilizing for a deeper squat

Viewing 12 reply threads
  • Author
    Posts
    • 01/30/2017 at 5:50 am #71727
      AvatarLonnie Arroyo
      Participant

      my hips, and ankles are extremely tight, and it is tough for me to even break parallel for a body weight squat. I have been mobilizing for a few years now and haven’t seen much lasting change. I know kelly recommends only 10-15 min a day for mobilizations, but how often should I be doing soft tissue work, contract relax stretching, and end range squat sits to make long lasting changes and increase lower body mobility? Should it be as much as I can, or can I overdo it?

      Thanks!
    • 02/02/2017 at 2:33 am #76740
      AvatarPatrick Thomas
      Participant

      If you are doing work and not seeing change you need to take a new approach.
      A systems approach.
      Is this true on both sides?
      Has anyone looked at your squat mechanics?
      Squat Quick Test: Is it Tight Ankles or Tight Hips? | Community Video

      Soft tissue work, contract relax, smashing can be done daily.
      Are you working up/down stream of these areas?
      You aren’t seeing lasting change because there hasn’t been change in the joint capsule or connective tissue.
      Have you done banded distractions?

      What are your sliding surfaces in the area like?
      Does the skin move around the ankle or is it tacked down?
      Tack & floss, ball whacking, and stacking are good to start working in.
      Check these episodes to start with:
      Episode 85: Unglue Your Sticks Man
      Episode 115: Lower Leg Sliding Surfaces
      Episode 258: Ankle Mobility-Self Mulligan Technique
      Episode 350: Tack And Floss: Heel Cord Edition
      Jamie and Roop have a 5 part foot and ankle series.
      Tuesday, December 6th, 2016 – Ankles
      Wednesday, December 28th, 2016 – Ankles

      How is your trunk positioning?
      Organized?
      This is prioritized first. Downstream tightness can originate here.
       

    • 02/02/2017 at 3:56 am #76741
      AvatarLonnie Arroyo
      Participant

      -I have tight hips and ankles! ( 5 years of college soccer, without proper stretching)

      -Yes I do banded distractions daily every time I stretch (preworkout, and before bed) , and my joint capsules feel nice and mobile after I mobilize, then later on in the day, after my workout, or the next morning I stiffen up again, and its just the same cycle every day. How can I make lasting change in the joint capsule and connective tissue?
      – i’ve had my mechanics looked at my strength coaches and everything is good, I just have limited range of motion. squeeze my butt, big breath then brace, hips back, then knees
      – My sliding surfaces are pretty tacked down on my ankles. How often should i add in the ball whacking?
      Thanks for the response!
    • 02/03/2017 at 3:23 am #76743
      AvatarPatrick Thomas
      Participant

      It isn’t just the ankle and hip it is the whole system.
      Banded distractions are one aspect of the system.
      What about the other aspects?
      There is a piece which is missing where things revert back.
      Tacked down sliding surfaces need attention.
      Here are some episodes which show the technique.
      Episode 25: Heel Cords of a Cheetah, Achilles Well Being (3:40 mark)
      Episode 85: Unglue Your Sticks Man (3:34 mark)
      Episode 115: Lower Leg Sliding Surfaces (2:20 mark)
      Episode 167: Unglue That Heel Cord (1:48 mark)
      Episode 220: Lower Leg Business (2:19 mark)
      Episode 285: Sliding Surfaces; Ankle Range of Motion Case Study Part 1
      Episode 293: Haiku Winner, Travel Ideas, And Your Feet (4:27 mark)

      Have you looked at trunk organization?
      If things are not set here there can be downstream implications.
      Torque and Trunk Stability Part 1: How to Stand
      Pro Episode # 21 – Pro-User Request Friday: Not Seeing The Change? You Need a Systems Approach.

      Episode 52: Up Against the Wall, Snatch Prep and Nerve Gliding Too!
      Episode 234: Improve Your Proximal Hip Mobility and Nerve Tunnels

      Do you have full hip flexion?
      Do your feet turn out when you squat?

    • 02/03/2017 at 5:06 am #76744
      AvatarLonnie Arroyo
      Participant

      no I am limited in hip flexion and internal rotation. On my back trying to bring my knee to chest i can only get slightly past 90 degrees. Yes, my feet turn out a lot when i squat, i can’t get low at all with feet straight. 

      I also get a pinch in my hip when i try to do internal rotation stretches and adductor stretches.
    • 02/08/2017 at 12:16 am #76750
      AvatarPatrick Thomas
      Participant

      Limited hip flexion and internal rotation are the limiting factors in getting the depth you are looking for.
      How is working on the soft tissue going?

      Are there differences in mobility side to side?
      Episode 78: Un-impinge yourself from mental slavery (3:10)
      Episode 87: Hip Impingement 2: Band Variation (2:50)
      Episode 144: Ze Hip Flexion
      Episode 161: Hip Impingement: AIS
      Episode 262: Hip Flexion Case Study and MobRx Part 1
      Episode 262: Hip Flexion Case Study and MobRx Part 2
      Psoas Flossing and Biker Hips | Episode 301

      IR
      Episode 230: Squatting With Turned Out Feet? Hey Duck Squatter, IR Yourself.

    • 02/08/2017 at 5:43 am #76753
      AvatarLonnie Arroyo
      Participant

      i’m pretty much the same on both sides, maybe a little tighter on my right side.

      I have been doing soft tissue work daily for the last month mostly focusing on the areas surrounding the hip (tfl, glutes, high medial hamstring, quads, adductors). I do the hip capsule mobilizations with the lateral distraction and other hip mobilizations for the squat archetype after the soft tissue work and before/during my workouts. 

      I feel great after performing these mobilizations, but just haven’t experienced any lasting changes in my hip flexion or internal rotation. Just tighten right back up later on in the day. 
      Just trying to figure out how to make these changes stick 
    • 02/09/2017 at 3:16 am #76754
      AvatarPatrick Thomas
      Participant

      Have you used the next band up when doing banded distractions?
      Have you addressed motor control (movement, movement mechanics)?
      Are you moving correctly?

      Feet turned out when you squat causes you to load incorrectly.
      How often are you taking the ankle and hip through full range?
      Working up/down stream?

      Have you watched Pro Episode # 21 – Pro-User Request Friday: Not Seeing The Change? You Need a Systems Approach.?

      Addressing the calf?
      As Kelly notes a dysfunctional hip usually has calf tightness on the same side.
      When you see change and it goes right back there hasn’t been a change in the connective tissue proper or joint capsule.

      Have you looked at trunk position/organization?
      Trunk control?
      If things are not set here there can be downstream implications.

      Friday, November 25th, 2016 – Hip Flexion
      Thursday, November 10th, 2016 – Hip Flexion

    • 02/09/2017 at 6:18 am #76755
      AvatarLonnie Arroyo
      Participant

      i am trying to move as best i can with the mobility I have. My feet do turn out when I squat but my knees do track over my toes when doing so. My tight psoas pulls me into an anterior pelvic tilt so i really have to focus on tucking my pelvis before squatting. 

      Maybe my biggest problem in the past was only focusing mostly on the banded distractions and stretching, but neglecting the daily soft tissue work. I am a soccer player so I know I have a lot of junky tissue that needs cleaning up. Will this make stretching and mobilization methods ineffective if my tissues are not supple enough to begin with?
    • 02/09/2017 at 6:36 am #76756
      AvatarLonnie Arroyo
      Participant

      I bring my hip to end range everyday via mobilizing in flexion external rotation and kettle bell goblet squat holds for 5 min a day.

      Also to improve hip flexion and IR, how often should I perform the hip capsule mobilization and for how long? once, twice a day? more than 2 minutes per side?
    • 02/10/2017 at 2:21 am #76757
      AvatarPatrick Thomas
      Participant

      Have you thought about getting help addressing these?

      A tight psoas can cause serious postural problems. It pulls the low back vertebrae forward and down toward the femur, often resulting in over extension.
      With poor trunk control there are downstream implications.

      There is a downstream neuro response. When disorganized at the trunk downstream muscles get tight to protect the nervous system.
      Episode 04: Silent P in Filet, Very Paleo
      Psoas Flossing and Biker Hips | Episode 301
      Episode 26: Hips and Seppuku: Psoas and Hip Soft Tissue Mob

      Turned out feet causes you to load muscles/soft tissue improperly.  Walking, running, squatting multiple does throughout the day. This can cause things to shut off downstream to protect nervous system.

      You need to spend more time using the full range. 5:00 per day isn’t enough.
      Flossing, stripping, tack and floss addresses the deep sliding surfaces & stiffness within the system.
      Skin sliding surfaces are one aspect.

      First you need to address the spine & trunk control.

    • 02/10/2017 at 5:33 am #76758
      AvatarLonnie Arroyo
      Participant

      Wow thank you so much for all this knowledge I really appreciate it! 

      I really do try to be conscious with the way I move and my posture at all times, its just tough when I feel so restricted in my range of motion
      So if i need to spend more time in the bottom of my squat, is it alright if i turn my feet out to reach my maximum depth? and maybe hold onto a pole or use a band for counter balance? I cannot even get to parallel with straight feet. 
      As for my tight hip flexors, I do the couch stretch multiple times a day and before bed i smash the psoas and quads (super painful and tight) with the supernova. Should I add anything else here?

      I spend hours a day doing mobility and it gets frustrating not making progress. Any suggestions on an efficient daily routine I should focus on?

      thanks again Kaitlin!
    • 02/27/2017 at 1:43 am #76802
      AvatarPatrick Thomas
      Participant

      I understand your frustration with spending time and not seeing lasting results.
      Conscious of your movement patterns  and posture is an important first step.
      Now that you are aware of where changes are needed you have more direction on where to go.

      Spending more time in the bottom of a squat with incorrect position does not help.
      This reinforces incorrect positioning.
      An acceptable turnout is 7-11 degrees.

      As you are working through your restrictions use a depth where you are able to maintain idealized position/technique. At first this won’t be full depth. Working within where you are at.
      Proper technique/movement patterns first, then begin lowering the depth slowly.
      First goal is a parallel squat with proper form.
      Write down the what you need to do to get to that point.
      Work toward achieving that everyday.

      Here is an example where JStar uses a band when doing the 10:00 squat test.
      Episode 120: Ten Minute Squat Test #4

      Are you seeing improvements in the hip flexors, psoas, and quads?
      If using the supernova is super painful then use a different tool.
      Should not be going into the pain cave. Need to always be able to breathe.
      I’d recommend a Yoga Tune Up Alpha Ball or Therapy Plus . When the tool that you are using is too hard you’ll be inducing a flight or fight response, chances are you are too deep. You’ll scale back up to the supernova in time.

      Have you voodoo wrapped your hip flexors and/or quads?
      If you aren’t seeing improvements with the work you are doing its time to take a new approach to the situation.

  • Author
    Posts
Viewing 12 reply threads
  • You must be logged in to reply to this topic.