In this video we talk about intensity and your overall effort during Kinstretch Classes.

Kinstretch is a form of strength training so it can totally be normal to feel sore for 24-72 hours after classes (similar to weight lifting). This soreness can be in some very unique areas as well (unlike weight training), like the deep capsular tissue around the joints. Saying that, if the soreness is overwhelming, or lasts several days, or if there is ever any pain, you’ll know you likely over did it and those tissues weren’t strong enough to absorb the amount of force that was coming into them. So if this is the case, you’ll want to lower your intensity during the classes and work in more moderate ranges of motion. It's important to adhere to progressive overload and gradually build up the intensity and range over time.

When you're new to Kinstretch, it's important to start off light and slowly build up over time. And honestly, this goes for any new form of training. For example, when you first start weight lifting for the first time, you start off with lighter weights, lower intensities, and you really just focus on the technique and mechanics of the movements. Then over time you gradually build up the weights. Well, in Kinstretch, we want to take the same approach and ease into it, especially when you're training in an area of past injury or weakness.

The quality of tissue in certain areas might not be very strong, so the amount of stress/force/load these tissues can absorb will be low at first. So keep those intensity levels low in the beginning, especially during PAILs/RAILs, and then gradually build up over time. When you hear me cue things like ‘greatest and safest effort’ during PAILs/RAILs in the classes - this is relative to the individual and their capacity in a certain area. So if you know you’re training in area where the tissue quality might not be very strong, you want to keep your overall intensity levels really low. How low is dependent on the individual, but the lower the better at first. For some people that could mean 30% max effort, for other people 20%, for other people even as low as 5-10%. So the internal tension, how much force you create into ranges of motion, and your overall effort can be light. It’s totally okay if it doesn’t feel like you’re getting a ‘great workout’ at first.

Always listen to your body and go at your own pace, and never work in any painful ranges of motion. Discomfort can be normal, but we never want that feeling to move towards a sharp pain, pinch, or twinge. Also, when you’re setting up into PAILs/RAILs bases, feel free to utilize any modifications you need to regress the bases and sit into them more comfortably if needed. For example, in Class 1 for the hips when we’re setting up into the Bearsit position, its’ totally okay to sit on 2-3 yoga blocks or even a step stool/chair, or to rest your back against a wall, or to play around with your hip/knee/ankle angle to get into a more comfortable position. Always give yourself freedom to play around with bases so you can sit into them more comfortably, even if you’re not doing it exactly like how it’s cued in class. The cues in class or just a general starting point, give yourself the freedom to explore what works best for YOUR body, because we all have different limitations.

I hope this helps!