Sitting Cross Legged

Hi lovemydogs,
Sorry to say there isn't really a fast track to stretching out stubborn muscles, just time and patience. I find that taking too much time away from my whole woman workouts tend to make me stiffen up all over again, and I walk quite a bit as well as ride bike. I do notice that my nagging hip pain can be eased by a little time on the bike or some gentle stretching. Maybe others will have more suggestions for you.

Dear lovemydogs,
It depends on how flexible you are as to how quickly you will be able to do things like sit cross legged.
when I started with WW about 4yrs ago, I worked on the posture first, and then needed to do the hips program to further help hip instability.
In the beginning I really never thought about the outcome of WW, until I saw results quite often, some surprises, and some things that had crossed my mind.
That led to me daring to believe for more, and yes I got so much more..... Yes much more flexible now, as cross legged sitting has been a very gradual process since then. I have gone from holding the position for a few seconds to quite a few minutes now - I haven't timed myself yet, but am grateful that I can.
I learned to listen to my body and it would tell me when it was ready for progression. I learned patience and now in my fifth year I am in my second yr of learning scottish country dancing, which Christine does, and building up WW running very slowly when the opportunity arises, a far cry from the physical and emotional mess I was in for almost 2 decades before WW...

I wish you all the best, keep on going and enjoy the Whole Woman journey, and you will get there in time.

Aussie Soul Sister

Lying flat on the floor with a pillow under your lower spine, and assuming a froggy-like position with the soles of your feet together and your knees out to the sides, may help you gently stretch these muscles. Aiming for a good cross-legged sit is truly an important goal. It can be challenging at first to sit this way without flattening lumbar curvature. So keep working on it, gently. - Surviving

Get yourself a nice yoga mat. That's what I use when I am just sitting on the floor, even if it is carpeted. My bones couldn't take tile!

By all means, do use whatever you need to make yourself more comfortable. Pillows make a very nice cushion when sitting in certain positions. I know I don't wear socks while doing the exercises, because I slide too much. Perhaps some socks with grippies would work?

Hi lovemydogs,
I found that sitting with my feet in the kneeling position I think you are describing was not possible for a long while when starting with WW.
I have strengthened my feet over time and can now tolerate bare foot running around my mum's house which has concrete and pebblecrete...I can do the foot exercises as well on concrete. I used to get carpet burn on the soles of my feet before!
I would have to sit on some cushioning/mat on a concrete floor to do the kneeling position you describe, however I couldn't in the beginning sit at all that way even on a mat or cushion on carpet or just on carpet. I do position myself carefully before doing it on carpet now and can do it without pain on my shins, knees and tops of my feet, and in relative comfort for a few minutes.
I never dreamed that I would be able to tolerate hard surfaces with my bare feet, and now I can. I hope that gives you hope.
P.S. that doesn't mean that the soles of my feet don't ache at times.... :)

Aussie Soul Sister

You are truly an inspiration, Aussie! I do barefoot running inside the house, but have often wondered about taking it to the woods. We have a nice park not to far away.
I like my carpeted floor, but I do agree that the foot exercises do strengthen the feet so much! Another part of me that stiffens up are my feet and ankles when I don't do the exercises, especially since I walk so much. There is nothing like some good old whole woman stretches to keep everything limber.

I actually had the FAFP for some time, just because Christine hadn't come out with the other videos yet. But, I did add them into my routine as they came out, alternating them daily and still do. Use caution though, taking things slowly and notice how they make you feel. You may want to do a new video for a few days or longer just to get used to a new routine.
I just love them all, as they offer a little something different in each one.

I just want to reinforce to our readers that all the exercises that Christine has are great and really help us strengthen our way into posture as well as give us a wonderfully therapeutic stretching, but don't forget that the posture work itself is the key. Relaxing belly and lifting up in chest as well as all of the posture elements should be at the forefront of our minds while doing any activity. It is that mindfulness that we should carrying with us throughout the day.

Yes, If you liked yoga to begin with as I did, you will love these yoga videos. What I really like about them is that I don't have to worry if a certain poses go against the posture principles as with traditional yoga and some of the male orientated poses.

Hi Lovemydogs, I am a holistic personal trainer. With regards to opening the hips you might find it easier for your muscles to relax if you prop your thighs with a couple of cushions or yoga blocks underneath them. This way your body feels safe to relax.

Sitting crosslegged is not a great position if you can’t get your knees fairly close to the floor. Otherwise, your lumbar spine is flattened and intraabdominal pressure is pushing your pelvic organs backward instead of pinning them into position at the front of the body.

I’ve found that helping women sit crosslegged with one or two small cushions under their bottom is the best way to increase external hip rotation. This way we are using gravity to slowly and gently push the knees toward the floor, while maintaining lumbar curvature.

Just my two cents ;-)

Christine

For me, sitting with legs straight out in front is tiring and requires a lot of strength and flexibility not to flatten lumbar curvature. So it's good to work on it, for those very reasons. I tend to prefer sitting on my knees, with a cushion under the butt. The cushion is not only for comfort but to leverage more curvature of the lumbar spine. - Surviving

Anything in the workouts can be modified to suit your abilities. Just concentrate on staying in posture and protecting that lumbar curvature. - Surviving

I would gently work on increasing hip turnout, as it is important for the mechanics of pelvic organ support and hip health. I meant that sitting constantly on the floor with your knees at navel level isn’t doing your prolapse symptoms much good. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t work daily to increase flexibility. :-)

Yea, I agree that the pillow tucked slightly under the buttocks really feels good too. I know when I have done that, my hips don't ache. There is just a nice stretching feeling.

So good to hear of your progress, lovemydogs!
I always feel my best prolapse-wise, after a bike ride.
Keep up the good work!

Great update, thanks! One thing I discovered when I was a couple of years into this work, was that a long, long, long hike in good posture made me feel the best I ever felt! Whole Woman works. - Surviving

Have been watching WW videos all evening and was becoming depressed watching Christine in different positions and sitting cross legged. I just felt that at my age (75 last week) I would never master these and might need one to one help. It was good to read the generous advice on this post from you all and am now determined to keep going. I had not thought of trying for just a few minutes at a time. I have walked every day for last two weeks as I had got out of the habit. Problem is that gardening is my life and that requires a lot of standing, moving and dare I say lifting. Have stopped that and found a young keen helper but it is so easy to forget. Also I do not like to leave my garden just to walk the roads but have determined to find an hour each day for the walk. I hope I can keep it up as I am self employed and there are not enough hours in each day! I have stayed up after midnight to do this research tonight which I know is not wise. I have a question re sleep.... although I have always slept on my back it occurs to me that turning onto the tummy would leave the pelvic organs in a better position during the night hours. Is it worth trying to do this? I forgot to say that I have a cystocele for a year that is becoming more pronounced. Wren in Ireland.

Hi Wren - if you are 75 and have always slept on your back, it's unlikely you can form a new habit now, and there is really no need. Sleep however you are most comfortable. I suspect that your cystocele does not particularly bother you when you're lying down anyway. The important work of prolapse management happens when we are upright, working with gravity. If you had any back pain or hip issues, I would say try sleeping on your side with a pillow between your knees. If not - I would say just continue as you are. - Surviving

It’s great to hear your progress, bike ride is always relaxing also walking and yoga helps me with the pain so Good Luck!!

Bane,
Can you tell us more about yourself and what brings you to the forum?