Are your ankles messing up your hamstrings?
"Brainy What-Why-How"
Your weekly nibble of science-backed goodness to help you move better and feel unstoppable.
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What (the TL:DR)
Weak or tight hamstrings may be remedied by stretching the back of the ankle đź
Why (the geeky neurology)
Because our ankles receive the first impact of every step we take, they send very important signals to the central nervous system about how safe you are as you tread through life.
If the ankles become compressed
(which they often do, *especially** at the back, due to the design of modern footwear),*
this can lead to weakened and/or tight hamstrings.
(Because if your brain thinks: "hmmm ankles aren't in great shape"
it will also think "my human won't be able to run from danger very well"
and therefore "I will keep my human safe by making them weak and thus less likely to take risks, more likely to stay curled up in a ball.")
How (apply it to your life)
First: test your hamstring compression strength by pulling your heel to your butt.
Then: stretch the back of your ankle, aiming to create space between the calf and heel.
Finally: retest your hamstring compression strength.
If it improved, it may be a sign that you are missing out on your optimal hamstring mobility because of your ankles!
If you noticed no change, that's cool too! This doesn't work for everyone đ
We incorporate this into the new Gentle Ankles and HIps Wonder-Flow on Move With Adell!
Happy ankles = happy hips = happy YOU,
Adell xoxo
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