Cossacks

Two entries today - ETK Medium Day to follow.

Yesterday, Tuesday, an off/variety day, I found myself feeling tight in the shoulders, hips, and lower back - that's a too-long list of major joints in which to feel tight. The solution, the (drum roll, please):

Cossack

The Cossack stretch, if you haven't done it yet, is not only worthy of your investigation, it's worthy of an entire book and/or DVD on its own.

I found this video that I think demonstrates good form, although the "Full Monty" here would be to do the entire sequence shown in Pavel's SuperJoints.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWF5qGGrU0s

Although I cannot go into everything that's wonderful about the Cossack stretch here, allow me to make a couple of key points and suggest you try it.

- Treat it like a one-legged squat - keep your heel on the ground and your torso fairly upright.

- Flex your foot on the straight leg and get a nice hamstring stretch on that side.

- Stay facing front.

Did you know that the Cossack will stretch your lats? Do it correctly and enjoy the results!