Flexibility Goals

I've been getting into yoga lately. This is in part because my joints are getting older and running is hard on them. And it's in part because running and other cardio exercise does little for flexibility. In fact, I found that just doing cardio exercises actually made my joints, tendons, and ligaments tighter. Which can make them more vulnerable to problems. When I was doing karate, I had developed quite a bit of flexibility. But in the years since I stopped, that flexibility has almost disappeared.

So yoga. Like most forms of exercise, however, you get as much out of yoga as you put into it. The more often you do it, the better you do. This is particularly true for the flexibility aspects. I find that if I do yoga a couple of days in a row, I am much more flexible on day 2 and 3. Likewise, if I don't do any for several days in a row, the next time is almost like starting at the beginning in terms of flexibility.

Because there are no belts to achieve and because I do better with goals, here are my flexibility goals:

1) Be able to get my head to my knee in one-legged stretches. I'm almost there. My head is probably an inch or so above my knee if I do yoga a couple of days in a row.

2) Be able to get my head to my knee in seated forward bend. Again, I am close so this is pretty attainable.

3) Be able to put my palms on the ground and fully stretch in standing forward bend. Right now, I can usually get my fingers on the ground in the second or third round of this stretch. But full palms will take a while.

4) Be able to get my chest to the ground in wide angle seated fold. Right now, I can get my arms up to my elbows on the ground with my legs wide open. I'd like to get my chest to the ground. This is a pretty audacious goal. We will have to see.

5) Be able to open my legs wider than 90 degrees in wide angle seated fold. When I was doing karate, I got to about 135 degrees. I can't imagine getting to a full 180. The instructor on my yoga DVDs does, but he was a dancer before he took up yoga. That might be cheating.

6) Be able to get my feet flat on the ground in downward dog. My heels are still a couple of inches off the floor. This too will take lots of stretching and diligence.

Some poses are beyond me and I don't really desire to get there. Plow pose, for example, where you fold your outstretched legs over your head and touch your feet on the ground behind your head. No desire to be able to do that. It's just really uncomfortable. Likewise, I have no desire to do upward bow. In this pose, you balance on your hands and feet and push your body up in the air. So the only parts of you touching the floor and your hands and feet. I simply don't have the arm strength for this pose, and I can't imagine getting there.

As with karate, I am finding with yoga that I have challenges with my balance. I'm fine with warrior 1 and 2. But warrior 3 is a challenge. I can do it most of the time, but sometimes my balance just isn't there. Same problem with star pose. Triangle is no problem. But moving forward to rest on one hand and one foot with the opposite leg outstretched behind and the opposite arm straight up is something I have definite problems with.

For now, I'm sticking with flexibility goals. I'll save balance goals for another time.