Stretch with Semi-supine: Why limber up when you can lie down instead?

My head of training at Alexander training school was an Olympic athlete. He ran for Canada in the 1952 Olympics in Melbourne. In his direct, down-to-earth way, Paul used to refer to limbering up exercises as “physical jerks”. He has been known to tell his running classes: “Physical jerks are for jerks”.

He was right. “Limbering up exercises” are no way to limber up.
Semi-supine is.

Try it next time you go out running, to the gym or for a game of golf.

To limber up you need to do active bends and stretches, right? After all, if you need to stretch muscles, then you need to s-t-r-e-t-c-h.
Wrong!

W-R-O-N-G

If you pull and s-t-r-e-t-c-h muscles guess what happens? They tighten and pull back. You end up tighter than you were before you weren't — and sore to boot. (It doesn't require much pulling to tear a few muscle fibres and end up sore).

But, hey, I can stretch, can't I?

If you're careful, yes you can. If you stretch very slowly and cautiously and stop as soon as you get a sense of stretching, then you can avoid the reflex tightening and pulling back I mentioned. If not, if you go overboard, then you're going to be sore … and the benefit will be non-existent.

So what are the benefits of stretching?

There are two:–

1. Limbering up
2. Increasing your range of movement

Increasing your range of movement is another subject. All I want to say about that here is to remind you: unless you stretch very slowly and cautiously and stop early, you'll just get sore. The extra movement will elude you.

Limbering up, getting rid of stiffness so you move freely, smoothly and easily. For this you need to get rid of postural holding patterns.

Your postural holding patterns …

are the habitual ways you stiffen to stand, sit and generally brace your body against gravity. They are unnecessary. Yet everybody has them. Get rid of them and muscles stop holding.

Your muscles lengthen.
They become softer and livelier, allowing your body to bend and move. They also release the stranglehold on your rib cage and allow you to breathe freely and deeply.

These are some of the benefits of learning the Alexander Technique.

… and semi-supine?

Semi-supine is a short holiday from your postural holding patterns. While lying down, you no longer need to support your body. So you don't (at least to some extent). When you get up from your short break, you're not stiff. You've stretched without stretching. Beats s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g any time.

So which will you do?

Physical jerks?
… or semi-supine as Paul recommends.

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