leg tightness and cramp

[Pranaman]

 

The very back near-outside of my leg is really tight and cramps, my flabby gluteal muscles seem to cramp easily too. The really tight muscle is from the ischial tuberosity through the semi-tendinosus on the right hand side.

 

The cramps occur sometimes in horse stance and big step stance.

 

Any type of massage and/or stretch and/or acupressure that could help me loosen this thing up?

Edited September 6, 2008 by Pranaman

[Aetherous]

If you really want to heal it:

 

Take a break from standing practice for a couple of days. Put your hands on the area, and with your mind pay attention to the exact location where you experience the problem for a good amount of time each day. At least 15 minutes at a time. A few times a day is better than once. Give your leg a massage at random times, starting from the foot and working your way up...don't worry about massaging really deep, just do it so it's relaxing.

 

It can also help right after you get done with standing practice, and it's bothering you, to put ice on the area. Just fill a plastic bag with crushed ice, put a cloth over it and put it on the area...I guess you could sit on it. Then leave it for 20 minutes.

 

You should do some stretches before and after training, as well as when you're taking a break. When you stretch out your legs, don't push into the stretch. Just relax, move slowly into the position and when you feel tension, breathe into that tension point as you hold it there. Do not keep pushing it. Hold for like 10 seconds, then start all over and repeat a few times. I like these two stretches...

 

 

There is also another stretch which is great, but I couldn't find a picture...standing, put one of your heels on the ground in front of you, keeping that leg straight, and bend down to reach your toes...keeping your back straight of course.

 

Doing Intuflow is really good. The beginner portion is free on youtube! Takes about 20 minutes. It's a great warm up.

 

This is just basic stuff. If you are really serious, and this problem isn't going away for a long time, go see a physical therapist or something.

 

Anyway, I think especially in the beginning you can't just do one practice. You will come upon issues like this, and then have to bring in other practices...like stretching. Good training is using whatever tools available to fix your issues so you can continue on.

[Gerard]

May I ask: is standing the only practice you do?

 

Are you fully relaxed (including the mind) when you stand?

 

Thanks.

Edited September 7, 2008 by durkhrod chogori

[phore]

Try mineral ice and hot baths

Edited September 7, 2008 by phore

[shontonga]

Try mineral ice and hot baths

 

Magnesium is something that helps me a lot with that stuff

and epsom salt baths ... guys should take more baths?

Good for ya and just plain feel nice!

 

Also, with standing, it is a part of it.

To learn to relax through tension,

to be relaxing,

once it clears up in one spot lots of times you'll find it in another.

It's kind of a desolving practice to just do it, watch it, BREATH,

let your flesh hang loose on the bones.

Re-lax-ing.

There are reasons you don't keep your body tense when your doing it.

That's another form of practice like iron body or some such.

 

And to stick with it beyond the point you can't last any longer teaches so Much!!!

It's hell. It's training. Tortuously, torturously, good fun, Enjoy!

 

Hope it gets better fast!

Mind set does influences a lot, too, you know!

It just starts to get interesting at 15 min. to me,

that's when I start to see a lot with standing?

Not sure about it for other folks though?

But RELAX !

Good luck

Shon

Edited September 7, 2008 by shontonga

[Pranaman]

Standing is all I do it home. twice a week I practice many kinds of yiquan drills and the Chen taiji form.

 

Standing didn't cause the injury, i'm not sure what did.

 

Yes, it makes it all the more worth it to go beyond the point that you've never been close to before.

i've been standing for a month. I can only do the horse stance, with my knees at about 90 degrees, for ten minutes. and Big Step for ten each side. Health stance, I don't know how long, i'm definitley not tired at twenty minutes, i'll have to go for much longer and see. Thanks for every ones words.

[guangping]

The easiest way is to have your teacher correct your stance.

 

If you are teaching yourself I can just about guarantee that you are doing it wrong.

 

It could be from the way you distribute your weight when you sit down, almost everyone in the US has problems as a result from driving a car for many years. Also, the hip, knee, and ankle are inter-related, where one joint will freeze up and cause problems in the others.

 

There are reflexology points in your thigh bicep and gluteal muscles, they can be triggered using a knuckle or elbow, if someone is willing to help you.

 

Lastly, you can do it while visualizing in standing posture. The secret is that muscles have two states, tense and relaxed. When you can get in touch with the tense muscle group, then when you breathe in, feel the whole body expand, when you breathe out let it relax. This is all that water method of standing meditation is.

 

When practicing don't take such a wide stance, make it smaller until you don't feel that muscle hurt. This is your comfort zone and is where you should work until its comfortable for you. Then you can gradually work back out into a wider stance.

[Pranaman]

I am being taught standing.

the stance never directly caused any pain, it was only when my body called for other muscles that it could start to cramp.

Now horse stance doesn't ever cramp.

so i'm just avoiding the big step stance for now.

[zanshin]

Also, it might be good for you to drink more fluids and get more potassium (grapefruit, bananas, orange juice are good for that).