Ultimate Flexibility: A Complete Guide to Stretching for Martial Arts

by Sang H. Kim

Ultimate Flexibility is the book you've been waiting for. More than a collection of exercises or an explanation of technique, Ultimate Flexibility is a complete guide to stretching for martial arts, from the very basics of why you should stretch to detailed workout guidelines for every style and level of martial arts practice. Written by acclaimed author and martial artist Sang H Kim, Ultimate Flexibility is your guide to achieving maximum flexibility in your training. Begin with an in depth look at the hows and whys of flexibility and stretching. Learn about the many types of stretching, which methods are best for beginners, when to graduate to advanced techniques and why you should completely avoid certain types of exercises. You'll also find information that you wont find in any other martial art book, including a detailed exploration of how your body works for or against you in your training and how flexibility can make you stronger and faster. Building on this foundation, Sang H Kim teaches you nearly 200 flexibility exercises that he has personally used to achieve the highest levels of flexibility. You'll get detailed instructions, workout planning guides, goal setting tips, difficulty levels, injury prevention and recovery, and over 400 photos to guide you. Special bonus 10 Tips for Full Splits, 20 Tips for High Kicks and 10 workouts for specific martial art types.

Genres: Martial Arts, Nonfiction, Fitness, Reference, Health, Self Help

302 pages, Paperback

First published January 10, 2004

About the author

Sang H. Kim is a martial artist, author, teacher, motivator, and researcher. He has authored over 20 books including the widely acclaimed Vital Point Strikes and the classics Ultimate Flexibility, Martial Arts After 40, Teaching Martial Arts, and 1001 Ways to Motivate Yourself & Others. Dr. Kim conducted clinical research on the effects of mindful movement and deep breathing (MBX-12) for treating PTSD, and published the results in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, and was featured in CBS News, Huffington Post, Fox News, and others. He was born in South Korea, moved to the United States in 1985, created over 200 martial arts video programs for YouTube.

Reviews

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

More torture.

[Bwnichol · Rating 4 out of 5]

An effective primer on the all-important topic of stretching in martial arts. Like many long-term practitioners, I spend the first 20-30 minutes of my workout with static and dynamic stretching. Still, I would like to deepen my splits and learn techniques for preserving my flex range throughout my 30's. Sang Kim is a TKD stylist, and most of his techniques will be familiar to anyone who has spend much time in a dojon.

I appreciate the clear photographs that Kim's book uses to demonstrate techniques. He shows a variety of models, with a range of body shapes and abilities - not just the muscle-bound cage-fighter or "gumby" contortionist. It's also refreshing to have an author approach the subject as a "mature" martial artist over 40. Kim's attention to proper form and injury prevention outshines other guides in this regard. I guess the explanation for the others is that most readers of martial arts manuals are in their late teens or twenties - when natural flexibility and recuperation powers are greatest. Furthermore, this topic is far more mundane and hardly sells books like four-color prints of high roundhouse kicks and shovel punches.

Interestingly, Kim also groups stretching exercises by category, such as non-contact or light sparring, grappling, and full contact. This is very useful; however, I would have also liked the book to delve deeper into the "internal" and meditative aspects of this part of practice. Spending 15 to 30 minutes "listening" to one's body through stretching is a form of meditation, and it can easily bridge into deeper forms of self-awareness. But maybe that's the book I should write.

Until that day, I would gladly recommend this book to my students as a reference.

[Anton · Rating 4 out of 5]

a great guide to stretches - now I just need to do them

[Belal Khan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book for those who are looking to learn about basic flexibility exercises and should be in the library of any person who takes personal fitness and/or martial arts seriously.

However, this book lacks symptom based exercises.

For example, people who bike will get lower back pains. The key to alleviating that is to better stretch your hips and quads, since they're very much connected to the muscles in the back.

This book helps lays the foundations, but then seek out YouTube videos and tutorials on specifics and video demonstrations.

Personally, I have tight ankles and hips. For ankle stretches, I found levering stretching exercises used by parkour specialists helped in that area.

I was recently introduced to Kelly Starrett. Looking forward to reading his book, "Becoming a Supple Leopard"

[Ed · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding book on flexibility/stretching for martial arts and combat sports in general. About 1/3 of the book is something you can "read through" for general information/education about the hows,whys,whats etc. of stretching from a scientific perspective that works towards defining goals via measured progress.

The other 2/3 of the book contains a massive repository of stretching exercises that can be used as a warm-up, cool-down and suggestions for various types of activities. This probably isn't something you would read from cover-to-cover, but it exists as an amazing reference that isn't going to remain useful for potentially the duration of a martial artist's career or even life.

[Jason Kelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first picked up this book when I was studying Kung-Fu. It helped immensely with me opening up my body for the stances as well as damage control from heavy training. Although I'm not studying Kung-Fu anymore, I reference this book just as much if not more than I did before. See, I got this physical labor job and it's super hard on my body, and I find that stretches for martial arts practice are perfect for offsetting the detrimental effects of this job. Mans gotta eat you know, and he might as well be feeling good while he's doing it.

[Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book should be required reading for all martial artist. It’s for every level of athlete. It’s a great resource for those who are training. It offers stretching plans and training advice. There are stretches for each major body area that’s used for a martial artist with pictures. I’ve already adopted the core workout for my daily stretching and will begin target area stretching in the near future.

[Contrariwise · Rating 4 out of 5]

A straightforward collection of good stretching exercises for a range of experience levels. I would have liked a little more information on the science behind the exercises and what combinations of exercises are most effective, but this will be a useful manual.

[Marguerite Nico · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is excellent for giving different stretches for all body types.

[Mauri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Surprise Christmas gift - from someone who knows my good points aren't speed or strength.

[Nic Brisbourne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good practical guide to stretching. I would say it is for people who know a little and are in reasonable shape up to full experts.

[Josh Street · Rating 3 out of 5]

Practical and to the point - gives you enough anatomy to understand what you need to know and then gets with the parts you really want, the stretches.

[André Lucas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book to study flexibility.

[Grant Germaine]

Very Good Reference

I like the detail at the beginning of the book and I especially like the stretching routines in the back.