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Paperback
Publisher: Stadion Publishing Company, Inc.
Use our method to attain maximum height in your kicks and to be able to kick at that height with no warm-up! Learn:
* How to stretch safely and quickly to achieve and maintain your maximum flexibility
* How to make your muscles grow stronger and longer so you stay flexible all the time
* How to do splits even if you are over 40 or 50
* How to kick high and do splits with no warm-up
* How to develop each of the three kinds of flexibility—dynamic, static active and static passive—to suit every athlete's needs
* What exercises are "no-no's" if you want to stretch your muscles
* All the factors limiting flexibility
* Brilliantly simple tests of hip joint mobility and muscle length that dispel common misconceptions of what limits flexibility the most
| Customer Reviews: |
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| very informative |
| Customer Rating: 4 out of 5 |
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prior to reading this book, i used to have a lot of misconceptions on how to gain flexibility. my own methods were all wrong and maybe, even dangerous. i also missed out a lot of things on pre-requisites for flexibility training such as strengthening the muscles first.
after reading this book back to back and following the methods, within a few weeks my flexibility and also strength has improved a lot. my endurance too! never in my life did i feel physically fit.
i gave a rating of 4 stars instead of 5 because:
i) there should have been more illustrations and examples.
ii) it should have a more logical presentation of ideas rather than bits of topics scattered all over the book (some useful ideas can only be found in the q & a portion).
iii) detailed samples of workouts and explanations (e.g., i had to search the internet what does "adductor flies" mean).
iv) i am not that versed in physical education and human anatomy as the author assumes. maybe, simpler explanations for the layman would make it easier and even more enjoyable.
overall, this is a good buy! and i don't regret it.
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| Scientifically good but practicaly no good at all |
| Customer Rating: 1 out of 5 |
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I've been in martial arts for more than 20 years of which I spent the last 10 training other people. I am flexible to do both the front splits and the straddle split and I know how crucial it is to have a good coach teach you how to do the splits, I myself have had troubles at the beginning before finding the right way.
I bought the book (and the DVD too) cause I was interested in the scientific part of stretching, anatomy of the human body and wondered if there are some new techniques in this book. The scientific part is good although there are so many scientific books of the same kind (for free) on the internet. But besides the scientific part this book is NOT a guide to flexibility training as the title says. The method of getting to the splits is really not the best one, specially the part when Kurtz suggests standing in the horse riding stance for long times or strengthening the inner thighs to get to the side-split (I wonder if the author knows that it is called a straddle split?). The other thing is that he does not do the front split but a variation because his hind leg is clearly in a straddle position, he is unable to stick the hind knee into the floor and perform a real front split. I am amazed how long Kurtz managed to maintain hip flexibility by doing the side ballistic throws of the leg, I give him credit for that. But following the advice from the book like ballistic side leg raises might lead to serious injuries without proper warmup of the hip muscles because that movement is not a usual movement in everyday use. The DVD is even less usable, there might be two clips that are useful and the rest is strenghtening of the inner thighs and abductors. His 'Test your flexibility potential' is a good thing for people to see that they are capable of doing the splits but the rest is going to be of little help if someone want practical advice how to do the splits in a fast, efficient and safe way.
Kurtz is clearly demonstrating in this book that he can do an excellent straddle split but not the front split properly. The method he proposes is unfortunately not the best, nor is it worth the money I paid for the book and the DVD.
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| Great book |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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Great book still reading it but it seems like the stuff really works and made me understand more about stretching its anatomy
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| Train Smart and USE this Book |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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After 2 months, I'm inches away from splits in all 3 directions and am confident that another month or 2 will do it. I'm a 36 year-old, long-time martial artist and athlete that has never had this kind of flexibility, not even as a competative gymnast many moons ago. My foot speed, grappling agility and explosiveness have also improved greatly as a direct result of this book's stretching methods.
Reading is no substitute for training, but you can apply the information here easily, with little time and effort and make great gains. The book isn't organized perfectly, so I'd encourage you to read and re-read. I've gone over it several times, highlighted it, dog-eared it and still pick up new bits of info. on the next read. If you want to train smart, this is a great resource.
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| Not Impressed |
| Customer Rating: 2 out of 5 |
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This book explains some things about stretching , puts labels to some things that you might not have had a name for, and reminds you of some stretches that you may not have pulled out and dusted off in a while, but it isn't a great resource if you are looking for a a magic routine. stretching routines, like any other exercise routine, must tell you what to do and when to do it. This book is good for the what, but not so explicit on the when.
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