Introduce Yourself - Flexible Strength Forum

Show latest posts

Welcome, Guest
Please Login or Register. Lost Password?

Flexible Strength Forum

General

Introduce Yourself (1 viewing) (1) Guest

Post a new message in "Introduce Yourself"

Name:

Email*:

Subject:

topic icon:

Boardcode:

Colour: Size: Close all tags

Message:

Emoticons





More Smilies

[b]Luther wrote:[/b]
[quote]I am excited about the opportunity to share my knowledge of Resistance Stretching (aka Meridian Stretching) with you.

I started out with Resistance Stretching when I attended a teacher training intensive out in San Jose, CA with Bob Cooley, the founder of RFST.  Since then, I have practiced RFST for countless hours on my own doing individual stretches and have also helped others with assisted stretching.  I am now traveling to and from New York to learn advanced techniques with Bob Cooley and two of his top trainers.  I am eager to share the knowledge that I have learned from Bob and have discovered on my own with others.  I find this method of stretching to be highly beneficial for physical, spiritual, emotional, and intellectual well being.

The main idea behind RFST is that in order to get a maximal stretch, you must contract the muscle while elongating it.  For example, when you are doing resistance strength training, or weight training, you start with your muscle as long as possible, apply resistance (using weights or something else) which causes your muscle to contract, and then you shorten the muscle against the resistance.  This is how you strengthen a muscle.

Now, to get a resistance stretch, you perform the opposite movement.  You start with your muscle as short as possible, apply resistance to contract the muscle, and then elongate the muscle.  This differs from the way many people stretch because it incorporates resistance during the stretch, just as resistance is incorporated into strengthening exercises.

If the muscle being stretched is not contracting while elongating, it is being overstretched.  In addition to this, a muscle must have sufficient strength in order to fully contract while elongating.  Therefore some muscles must be strength trained before reaching an optimal resistance stretch - which is performed by reversing the action of the stretch while continuing to contract.

The Meridian Flexibility System is also tied into the energy currents or meridians explored in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).  There are 12 meridians in TCM with each one corresponding to an organ of the body as well as a specific emotional, psychological, or spiritual attribute.  Bob has adapted this system and incorporated 4 other meridians for a total of 16.  Lung, Thymus, Skin, Heart, Pericardium, Appendix, Large Intestine, Spleen/Pancreas, Liver, Sexual, Bladder, Small Intestine, Kidney, Brain, Gall Bladder, Stomach.

Each organ or meridian muscle group has its own stretch pattern.  There are eight leg and eight arm meridian muscle groups.  The goal is to work through the beginner, intermediate, and advanced resistance stretches until your body is flexible enough to end in the classical Hatha Yoga pose associated with that meridian while still contracting.  Assisted stretching is also available for more immediate and dramatic results.

I would like to meet with you and go through the 16 resistance stretches.  I would like for you to get a feel for the system to see how it works for your body, and hopefully you will see some capability in the system for helping yourself and others.

I am able to guide you through the beginner, intermediate, and advanced stretches.  I would first demonstrate the movement, and then monitor your performance, taking you through all 16 meridian muscle groups.  I can teach up to a few people at a time using this method, or one on one if desired.

I am also available and eager to do assisted stretches with you.  This is much more hands on, and involves you resisting against me as I physically take you through the movement.  This would require a one on one session.  For maximal gains in flexibility, I recommend working with a certified trainer on assisted stretches because the person doing the assisting must ensure that you are contracting during the movement in order to prevent an overstretch.  Assisted stretches can be done by two people without equipment.  There is also a board that is used to strap down one of the legs and the waist.  This allows the waist and leg to be stable while the other leg is free to resist maximally in many different angles.

I have gone through the individual stretches enough times to where they keep my body energized and most of them, though not all, are quite easy and satisfying.  I generally need assisted stretching in order to get dramatic changes in my body posture and movement patterns.  However, in the beginning, many of the beginner, intermediate, and advanced stretches prove to be quite the feat, especially for muscle groups that have been chronically tense for years.  Many people are surprised to find that the Meridian Flexibility System is workout in addition to a relaxation exercise because it incorporates strengthening and stretching, both with contraction of the muscle.

If one delves into this system with devotion and persistence, the emotional, spiritual, and psychological effects of each stretch will surface.  For example, if a person who has had chronic stomach problems throughout their life begins to routinely stretch the stomach meridian muscle group along with the balancing muscle group (spleen/pancreas), not only will their stomach problems subside, but they will also begin to dismantle their addictive, gluttonous, eccentric, and digressive behavior and will embrace a much more non-addictive, sympathetic, straightforward, optimistic, and self-expressive way of being.

In the beginning, I generally do not focus on the emotional, spiritual, and psychological counterparts to the exercises.  One reason is because it can be hard to believe, as our culture is not very exposed to the body-mind-spirit-emotion connection.  Also because the physical act of resisting while stretching is enough of a new concept.  With enough stretching, the psychological connections will reveal themselves.

I look forward to working with you![/quote]

Preview:

Enter code here

* - your email address will never be displayed on the site.

Topic History of: Welcome!
Max. showing the last posts - (Last post first)

Author	Message
Janet	Maybe i will be coming to Austin soon with all this COLD DARK weather we are having up here in Massachusetts! Had a great stretching week this week, working on one of my friends who had developed beginning signs of plantar fascitis. i used ST/SP stretches, GB/LV and straight leg bladder/kidney. Then the ULTIMATE in foot massages, which she said mine were better than her massage therapist!!! Foot work was plantar flexion, dorsi flexion and rotation all with resistance, then pulling apart the ball of the foot and toe area deeply massaging and finding tight areas. Lots of cracking and pulling, then the relief!!! I love Meridian! Janet
Luther	Janet! We miss you too. When are you coming to Austin?
JanetPlanet	Hey everyone! My name is Janet, I am currently training to teach Meridian techniques. I teach Pilates in Wellesley, Massachusetts in a private studio. I love the site and the instructors!!!! Miss you guys Janet
William	Hi I'm new to Austin and look forward to attending the next intro class.
Luther	I am excited about the opportunity to share my knowledge of Resistance Stretching (aka Meridian Stretching) with you. I started out with Resistance Stretching when I attended a teacher training intensive out in San Jose, CA with Bob Cooley, the founder of RFST. Since then, I have practiced RFST for countless hours on my own doing individual stretches and have also helped others with assisted stretching. I am now traveling to and from New York to learn advanced techniques with Bob Cooley and two of his top trainers. I am eager to share the knowledge that I have learned from Bob and have discovered on my own with others. I find this method of stretching to be highly beneficial for physical, spiritual, emotional, and intellectual well being. The main idea behind RFST is that in order to get a maximal stretch, you must contract the muscle while elongating it. For example, when you are doing resistance strength training, or weight training, you start with your muscle as long as possible, apply resistance (using weights or something else) which causes your muscle to contract, and then you shorten the muscle against the resistance. This is how you strengthen a muscle. Now, to get a resistance stretch, you perform the opposite movement. You start with your muscle as short as possible, apply resistance to contract the muscle, and then elongate the muscle. This differs from the way many people stretch because it incorporates resistance during the stretch, just as resistance is incorporated into strengthening exercises. If the muscle being stretched is not contracting while elongating, it is being overstretched. In addition to this, a muscle must have sufficient strength in order to fully contract while elongating. Therefore some muscles must be strength trained before reaching an optimal resistance stretch - which is performed by reversing the action of the stretch while continuing to contract. The Meridian Flexibility System is also tied into the energy currents or meridians explored in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). There are 12 meridians in TCM with each one corresponding to an organ of the body as well as a specific emotional, psychological, or spiritual attribute. Bob has adapted this system and incorporated 4 other meridians for a total of 16. Lung, Thymus, Skin, Heart, Pericardium, Appendix, Large Intestine, Spleen/Pancreas, Liver, Sexual, Bladder, Small Intestine, Kidney, Brain, Gall Bladder, Stomach. Each organ or meridian muscle group has its own stretch pattern. There are eight leg and eight arm meridian muscle groups. The goal is to work through the beginner, intermediate, and advanced resistance stretches until your body is flexible enough to end in the classical Hatha Yoga pose associated with that meridian while still contracting. Assisted stretching is also available for more immediate and dramatic results. I would like to meet with you and go through the 16 resistance stretches. I would like for you to get a feel for the system to see how it works for your body, and hopefully you will see some capability in the system for helping yourself and others. I am able to guide you through the beginner, intermediate, and advanced stretches. I would first demonstrate the movement, and then monitor your performance, taking you through all 16 meridian muscle groups. I can teach up to a few people at a time using this method, or one on one if desired. I am also available and eager to do assisted stretches with you. This is much more hands on, and involves you resisting against me as I physically take you through the movement. This would require a one on one session. For maximal gains in flexibility, I recommend working with a certified trainer on assisted stretches because the person doing the assisting must ensure that you are contracting during the movement in order to prevent an overstretch. Assisted stretches can be done by two people without equipment. There is also a board that is used to strap down one of the legs and the waist. This allows the waist and leg to be stable while the other leg is free to resist maximally in many different angles. I have gone through the individual stretches enough times to where they keep my body energized and most of them, though not all, are quite easy and satisfying. I generally need assisted stretching in order to get dramatic changes in my body posture and movement patterns. However, in the beginning, many of the beginner, intermediate, and advanced stretches prove to be quite the feat, especially for muscle groups that have been chronically tense for years. Many people are surprised to find that the Meridian Flexibility System is workout in addition to a relaxation exercise because it incorporates strengthening and stretching, both with contraction of the muscle. If one delves into this system with devotion and persistence, the emotional, spiritual, and psychological effects of each stretch will surface. For example, if a person who has had chronic stomach problems throughout their life begins to routinely stretch the stomach meridian muscle group along with the balancing muscle group (spleen/pancreas), not only will their stomach problems subside, but they will also begin to dismantle their addictive, gluttonous, eccentric, and digressive behavior and will embrace a much more non-addictive, sympathetic, straightforward, optimistic, and self-expressive way of being. In the beginning, I generally do not focus on the emotional, spiritual, and psychological counterparts to the exercises. One reason is because it can be hard to believe, as our culture is not very exposed to the body-mind-spirit-emotion connection. Also because the physical act of resisting while stretching is enough of a new concept. With enough stretching, the psychological connections will reveal themselves. I look forward to working with you!
Luther	Hi everyone! This board is here for us to create a community for discussing stretching and other topics. Please let me know if you have any questions about flexibility or strength training and feel free to offer suggestions for this message board or the website.