Hi Students! Have you heard the term "reciprocal inhibition" and do you know that it can reallyyy help you improve and progress in your flexibility?! Read on :))

jamimah asked a really great question this past weekend, and it’s the perfect chance for me to talk about a really important concept in flexibility training. The fancy term for this concept is reciprocal inhibition.

✅ Simplified definition:
When one muscle contracts, its opposite tends to relax.
Example: flex your quad and hip flexor → hamstrings relax.

We use this in stretching to “communicate” with muscles so they release and let us go deeper.

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👉 For the lizard/runner’s lunge in Jamimah’s photo that she shared:

FRONT LEG
To open the glute and top of the hamstring on the front leg:

* Engage the front-leg hip flexor (think: gently pull your knee toward your chest).

* This tells the glute/hamstring to relax more and can deepen your fold over that leg.

✅ Cue: “Lightly pull the front thigh up to help the glute relax.”

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BACK LEG
To open the hip flexor of the back leg:

* Squeeze the back-leg glute. That glute activation signals the back-leg hip flexor to relax more.

✅ Cue: “Squeeze the back glute to deepen the back hip flexor stretch.”

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So in short:

* ENGAGING Front-leg hip flexor = deeper front-leg fold.

* ENGAGING Back-leg glute = deeper back-hip opening.

Let me know if that helps or if you want more cues OR if you want other examples for other stretches.

Thanks always to those of you that share questions here in the community feed. It helps us all learn <3

xoxo
Coach Steph

Welcome Das to the Community!! 🥳❤️🎉