The most obvious leg stretch is the split.  There’s my split!  It will get better I promise.  To do this you have to have flexible hip/leg muscles, and a slightly flexible back. **Just a note:  I might have put these stretches on the main “Exercises” page but they are also leg stretches so I’ll put them here too.

Before I stretch anything I WARM UP!  Meaning I run or do something to get my heart pumping, until I start to sweat just a bit.  I then do calisthenics like push ups, crunches, V-ups, pull ups, etc.  When you start stretching, remember to breathe :)

Common leg warm-ups are standing and grabbing one foot and pulling it towards your butt.  You should feel a stretch in your quad.  Repeat on each leg.  Then, put your hands on a wall and put one leg in front.  Bend the front leg and lean into it.  Keep your back leg straight and your foot flat on the ground.  You should feel a stretch in the calf of your back leg.  Repeat on each leg.

After this, I usually start with high kicks.  You just basically hold onto something and kick your leg.  Do 10 kicks forward on each leg, 10 kicks sideways on each leg, and 10 kicks backward on each leg.  Sometimes I’ll go through this twice, and on #10 of the last set I’ll hold my leg up to strengthen my leg/hip/side muscles.

After high kicks I put my leg on something higher than my hips and lean forward, making sure my hips aren’t turning out.  I’ll hold this for about 30 seconds to 1 minute on each leg.

I then do leg stretches on the floor.  Sit down in a straddle.  You don’t have to straddle as far as you can go, but it shouldn’t be a small straddle either.  Stretch to one side.  You can keep your stomach facing straight, you can turn your shoulders so they are facing your foot, or you can do both.  Hold for about 20-30 seconds on each leg.  You should feel a stretch in your inner thighs.  Then go as far down as you can in the middle of your straddle.  Hold for about 20-30 seconds.  You can do this stretch when you are just watching TV or something to keep up your flexibility when you aren’t intensely stretching.

Now you can do a pike stretch.  Put your legs together and lean forward.  Aim to have your hands go out further than your feet and you eventually want a flat back.  Hold for however long you want.  This stretch can seem really tight for people just getting started with stretching, but you will eventually loosen up.

You can also stand up and do a pike stretch, trying to get your palms on the floor and again trying to have a flat back.

I’m not sure what the correct name for this next stretch is called but in gymnastics we called them needles or oil dippers, because you look like an oil dipper doing it haha I don’t know.  Put your feet and hands on the ground, straightening your legs.  Lift one leg and kick it up.  You want to aim for a split and eventually an oversplit while kicking.  Make sure your supporting leg is straight.  Kick 10x on each leg.  You can hold the last kick to strengthen your back/hip/leg muscles.

Splits

When I do the splits I do a few stretches beforehand.  The first stretch is a lunge.  Go on your knees and put one foot in front.  Put both hands on your front knee and push your hips forward, making sure your front knee isn’t going over your ankle!  Your shin should be perpendicular to the floor, otherwise you can mess up your ankles.  I hold for about 20 seconds.  Now, stay in this same lunge position and shift your weight to your back leg.  Straighten your front leg and try to ‘kiss your front knee’.  Hold for 20 seconds.  I go through these twice on each leg before going through splits.

I tend to forget this stretch but it is a really good stretch also!  Go in a lunge position, lift your back leg up and grab it with the opposite arm.  Pull it towards your body and push your hips forward at the same time, trying to keep balance.  You should feel a stretch in your quad of your back leg.

Once you feel stretched out enough, you can start on splits!  There aren’t really any special stretches for splits, besides trying them.  If you are really close to being flat you can do the splits on two chairs, or two things of equal height off the ground.  I will post a pic of this once I try it.

 

For me, middle splits are the most painful stretch!  I usually do a butterfly stretch beforehand and then I just stand up, straddle my legs and gently go down into middle splits.  Make sure that your legs are in a straight line with your pelvis and that your knees aren’t totally turned towards the ground; this is bad for your knees.  If you aren’t sure that you are in a straight line you can do middle splits against a wall to help this.  I end up holding middles for about 1 minute and I do the stretch 5x.  If you have a stretching partner you can have then GENTLY push down on your lower back.  Remember to relax, and breathe!