Hi guys, Kris from Custom Fitness here, your Amarillo personal trainer. Today we’re going to be wrapping up the two part series on how to burn more calories by increasing flexibility in this one joint. Now be sure to read part one if you haven’t already at the link here: And as always, if you have any questions about today’s blog then please give us a call at (806)-322-3188
So maybe you passed that we were talking about in the last blog and you don’t have any problems. Well, what do you do if you do have those problems? Well, there are a few different stretches that you can do.
The first stretch that you’ll be doing is going to be in that same position that you were in when you were testing out that flexibility.
Get into the position that you were at to where you could tap the wall and move it back about a half inch to an inch, and then take it down and hold it.
Now, where you want to feel the stress is in the ankle joint and not in your knee. So if you feel pain in the knee, then you’re probably doing something a little bit wrong. But you want to feel that stress in the ankle joint, and feel that stretch. You aren’t trying to break it, I don’t want you to be feeling any pain in there, but I want you to feel like it’s opening up that joint and getting things moving again.
You’ll do 3-4 sets of that for about 15-30 second each depending on how often you’re doing this exercise. This is just a good place to start.
The next stretch that you can do is a calf stretch.
We were talking about the achilles tendon being short. Well, if that achilles tendon is short, then you definitely can’t flex that foot the way that you would like to. So what you would want to do is a rolled up mat or even a towel and place it against the wall. What you’re trying to do is that when you place your foot on that, you are elevating your toe. Then you would take all of that weight into that leg and lean forward into that calf stretch.
Now you’ll feel this stretch, and a lot of people leave it there and won’t go any further. However, with that stretch you are just working one of those calf muscles, you actually have two.
Take what you were using to elevate the foot and bring it out so that you have room around you to move. So if you take that drop that heel down without locking the knees, it will stretch one muscle. But what happens if you bend the knee? Well you would end up stretching the other calf muscle and you’re going to feel that ankle activate. So you feel a little more stretch in that ankle as you’re pressing down through that knee, and then you take it back in.
Again, remember to not lock the knee, but take it straight to where you can feel that stretch. If you can’t feel it, then step the other foot forward, and then lean into it and stretch like you would in a lunge.
So one last stretch that will help out this ankle. And some of it is also just practicing that movement. There’s a lot of fear that goes into a squat as well. Sitting back into a chair is a lot less scary than sitting back into thin air. So as you sit back, sometimes that fear comes in. So this is not only going to stretch that ankle, but it’s also going to help that fear as you start to learn how to balance your body in that position.
You start off in a doorway. Grab ahold of the frame, in a position to where you have a foot between the two rooms that the door is separating. Put your feet about hip to shoulder width apart, and keep your toes forward. While holding onto that frame, sit back into your squat.
Now, I want you to take it as low as you possibly can. Let the hands hold you up, but not pull you forward. You just want to sit back and just really feel that stretch in the feet and in your ankles. And you can walk the feet away from the frame a little bit if you need to, to really feel that stretch and learn how to balance. Now at that point, maybe don’t have all of your weight in your hands. Maybe you start to put some of it in your feet. If you bring yourself halfway up, could you keep some of it in the feet and not all of it in your hands? Try it out and see how far you can safely push yourself.
So these are things that you can work on as you’re going through. If you try these three things out it can help to increase that range of motion, which is going to get you deeper into your squats and lunges. And you’re going to get better better mobility in your walk of life, which means you burn more calories because you’re getting deeper into those muscle fibers every time.
So that ends the two part series on how to burn more calories by increasing flexibility in this one joint!
If you’re wanting the accountability and help with creating an action plan to see results, or are wanting to someone to help create a workout plan to push you to your greatest potential, then that’s what we’re here for. We have an entire team of dedicated professionals to help you with your health and fitness goals. To get your consultation set up, give us a call at 806-322-3188 or email us at info@customfitness.biz At Custom Fitness, we are YOUR personal trainers in Amarillo, Texas. Have a great day.