It Doesn’t Have To Take 30 Years!
Weird title for a blog post, I know, and entirely relevant. You see, today I tried a trick I used to do back in my NPC Fitness Competitor days, some 30 years ago or so. And it didn’t go at all like I had thought it would…
After my workout at my local gym (shoulders and triceps to be exact) I moved into the open gym space where I usually do my mobility/flexibility work, and my handstand practice. This past weekend’s IFBB Pro Master’s Fitness Olympia had me waxing nostalgic about my competition days, so I decided to try a round off into a straddle jump after many, many years away from this sort of thing. The roundoff to straddle was really was the only gymnastics move I could do well when I competed. But this time, not so much! The momentum that I generated in the roundoff caught me off guard and as I landed my straddle jump, I fell right on my ass!
I happened to record it, because I had a feeling it wouldn’t be pretty. And I noticed something other than my fall that I didn’t realize; my straddle was WAY bigger, wider and better than it ever was at the height of my competitive career! Not gonna lie, I was feeling pretty proud of that =]
There is a reason that at 55 years old my flexibility has improved so much, and it isn’t because I’ve been working on it for 30 years. Because believe me, I have not. It’s because when I finally started focusing on my flexibility a little over a year and a half ago, I committed to the practice.
Here’s what I did:
I signed up for a weekly contortion class and have been doing it consistently for over a year and a half. Yes, it’s hard, and yes, I feel out of place because I’m not bendy. And I do it anyway.
I shifted my weight training to facilitate my flexibility gains, not hinder them. In simple terms, I work with lighter weight at my end ranges of motion to build the strength required for splits, straddles, backbends and more. I do this instead of lifting heavy to build muscle for a certain look like a bodybuilder would.
I’ve trained like this 3-4x per week, every week. I have been dedicated and consistent.
I really wish I knew in my 20’s what I know now. Coaches, fellow competitors and judges all told me I needed to stretch more to compete at the national level, but I thought I knew everything at that age and just didn’t listen. So I never made it past 6th place at any national shows. My routines sucked, for real, and I know that now. Thank goodness my physique was decent or I’d have placed MUCH lower!
What’s the point of my story? It doesn’t have to take you 30 years to figure out that you CAN improve your mobility, flexibility, or even your strength! Just get started, and be consistent and you’ll start seeing results. If I can do it, so can you =]
Want to learn more about improving your flexibility? Hit me up on IG or TikTok (@bodybyfran) or on YouTube (@bodybyfrantraining) or here on my website!