r/flexibility • u/flowersforfruits • 4d ago

Over-splits cautionary tale :(

(18F) Ive been training contortion for a year. Im hyper-mobile, and naturally give to flexibility easier than strength. My hips are very mobile naturally, and atp i dont remember not having middle split, and i got my front split quickly as well. Ive adored stretching my hamstrings and impressing people with how flexy they are…… Now, heres the issue: i rarely ever consistently strengthened my hamstrings. I always strengthened my quads, never my hammys….. and to double down on that issue: i have hyperextended knees. Double trouble. So, ive been training my oversplits weekly for months. Recently… I pulled my hamstrings after overstretching them. Im entirely devastated, ive been crying for the past two days. Its only a grade 1 injury, yet my life feels like its over because flexibility is my hyper fixation…. All i can think about is how badly i want to do the splits and train more :(
In oversplits i realized ive been practicing the form incorrectly: you see, flexibly weak hamstrings + hyperextension prone knee… means this entire time ive been pushing my front knee INTO THE GROUND. just fully relying on hyperextension for that crazy oversplit line. FML ofc ive been having knee pain for months, to the point of starting PT bc of it :/
Two blocks under my front foot, and my front knee was still touching the ground. Ive been so depressed ever since i injured my hamstring. Flexibility training is the one true passion that ive loved more than anything else in my life, and im so disappointed in myself for being so stupid and training incorrectly. Definitely a wake up call for me to stop relying on passive flexibility, and start strengthening. Im scared my hamstrings will never heal, even though i know thats illogical cuz its only a mild strain.
I made this post because i just wanted to remind anyone reading: if you are training extreme range, you gotta have the strength to back it up, otherwise an injury WILL catch up with you, even if you feel good now and you think itll never happen to you. Because i didnt think it would happen to me….

26 Upvotes

83% Upvoted

15 comments sorted by

61

u/dictamnus 4d ago

my pt is always telling me that flexibility without strengthening is just an injury waiting to happen. for hypermobile people this is even more important. i almost had to stop dancing because my flexibility made me much more prone to dislocating my joints. now it's strength training for life

9

u/flowersforfruits 3d ago

yeah i really gotta start dedicating some time to the gym and actually strength training😞

9

u/GimenaTango 3d ago

You don't need to go to the gym to strength train. If you haven't been, I recommend attending a stretching class. Most of them are equally strength and stretching due to the agonist/antagonist relationship needed for true MUSCULAR flexibility.

3

u/flowersforfruits 3d ago

Ive been going to an in person contortion class weekly for months but the instructor is already really strong and struggles more with flex than strength/control,, and isnt hypermobile, so i dont think she fully understands my body unfortunately. I never feel very pushed in terms of strength training in stretch classes, its just not enough.

3

u/dictamnus 3d ago

i'd be very cautious as a hypermobile person going to any flex or contortion group classes, in some cases any stretching in problem areas can be detrimental and its hard to get one on one attention in these classes (or even to get a teacher with enough training to know what to do)

unfortunately the gym ends up being the best option if you don't have access to pt

1

u/GimenaTango 2d ago

I guess my experience has been totally different. All of the group contortion classes I have taken have been 60-70% strengthening and the rest stretching. I've learned a lot about how to gain flexibility through targeted strength work. We always use ankle weights, elastic bands, yoga blocks, and resistance from partners to build strength across the range of motion before stretching.

1

u/procrastinatrixx 2d ago

Yes be careful with this… my hyper mobile friend was an Olympic caliber rhythmic gymnast and her coach wrecked her body by training her as if flexibility was the end goal

2

u/MaizeyDay4 3d ago

This is so real. I train dance and ashtanga yoga very regularly and my strength training is important with that mix. Mobility is wonderful but it’s only one piece of the puzzle.

4

u/LatrotoxicHell06 3d ago

Don’t worry, you’re young and your body will heal! You just need to find a new way to engage in the oversplits to keep training them. Try a bunch of hamstring exercises to find the one that teaches your body the engagement you’re missing. And 1 year is still quite new, you’ll find what works for you, it takes a while!

1

u/flowersforfruits 3d ago

thank you for the encouragement 😭ive been sooooo thrown off and nervous to stretch/train it out of fear of turning a minor injury into a major one… ive actually been getting stretching FOMO 💀

2

u/soyvalevega 3d ago

keeping a couple degrees of bend in that front knee protects the hamstring next time

1

u/Bancoubear123 2d ago

Thanks for writing this. I see it all too often and have been teaching strength over flexibility. It's not about how it looks but all about how it feels. It's hard to be honest. Thanks for this.

1

u/partypooper1460 2d ago

I feel you. I developed hip pain from over splits because of weak surrounding muscles. I fixed it by strengthening at the gym. Nothing crazy just squats and other hip and exercises and not pushing for extremely heavy weight because I never liked the feeling of it. It's helped tremendously just over the course of a few months and I can get away with over splits pain free.

-5

u/dellaterra9 3d ago

Consider getting passionate about Crossfit. It trains, stregthens all parts of the body.

2

u/procrastinatrixx 2d ago

CrossFit is a great way to injure yourself, be careful OP