Flexibility Books

A good buy! Very good information for the muscle groups and how they work in the stretch. I like that it was broken down into muscle groups and showed all the different ways to stretch.

As a Licensed Massage Therapist knowlegable with Anatomy I really like this books simplicty showing groups of muscles related with variouse streches. Its great at the end of my sessions for review. I can give clients informed ideas for different streches and know that I am specificaly addressing the tense muscles and tight tendons that I identified threw my massage sessions. Not only does this book do a great job with muscles I have enjoyed the Kinesiology aspect (muscle actions) incorporated within it! Well done! Great buy and value!

It's ok. I thought there would be more streches. Most are general knowledge. Didn't learn too much.

This book clear pictures and instructions show the muscles being stretched. I like it a lot - I can identify muscles being stretched and work out a routine using their stuff.. very good

Has a good description of the exercise, but does not give you a good guidance on how to plan an exercise routine and dangers or contraindications of the exercise.

Okay if you're into yoga and bending yourself inside out. Contained a few good stretching exercises that you could do without looking like some moron on the beach.

First of all,I'll review the book, then I'll tell you how it saved my life...

As a 31 year old surfer, I knew that I wasn't getting any younger, I also wasn't getting any better at surfing. I needed a lift, one that could help on days I couldn't get to, or it wasn't worth going in the water.This is it. Paul Frediani has written quite possibly the most important single book for surfers, ever published.

The book is a comprehensive training guide on flexibilty, strength, suppleness and balance, written exclusively with surfers in mind. With contributions from top surfers and watersports experts, it is also full of inspiring titbits.

The book is broken into four main training disciplines
, Flex time, the Surf Flex workout, Cardio Conditioning and the Wahine(womens)Workout.

The Flex time ection is a basic yoga guide and a guide to stretching and flexibility exercises. The exercises are accompanied by clear photos, and are a good starting point. (I would heartilty recommend "Yoga-Learn Yoga_Beginners Class 1" video, available from amazon as an excellent beginning companion.)

Cardio conditioning is a section of beach, pool and dry land workouts to get your heart pumping and your body working. I heartily agree with Frediani that all surfers need to swim at least a mile. This will help you het there.

The Wahine workout,(wahine is Hawaiian for women) is specifically designed to help women build their upper body strength and to avoid knee injuries specific to women. Highly commendable, and yes, some of the exercises are good for blokes too.

The piece de resistance is the superb Surf Flex section. This is a section designed exclusively to meet the needs of surfers. You need a Swiss ball to make the most of this section,(imagine a space hopper with no ears.)You can get them from any good sports shop, or Argos, for about $25. Money well spent! You carry out different moves, whilst balanced on the ball, such as sit-ups, knee tucks, and even pratice balancing on the ball, sitting, kneeling and then standing. This all works on the core muscles and improves your neuromuscular system, (your balance in other words.) It is superb.

This will improve your surfing, no question, but it may be more important than that...

Feb 2003 I was surfing with friends in North Devon, and after a good day of surfing, we were coming in to the end of our second session. It was a pretty big day, easily overhead, and with strong offshores. Tired but happy I decided to get out back for one last blast when I was caught in a rip and dragged into the impact zone. Try as I might I couldn't escape. To make matters worse my leash ripped off and I was left stranded with 6 footers dumping on my head and no board. I am convinced that it is only the fact that I had been following this training regime that I am alive to talk about it. The strength, determination, and cardiovascular power I needed that day came as a result of this book. The doctors actually said that if it were not for the fact that I was extremely fit I WOULD have died. Now that is an endorsement!

I have no idea where all these stars are coming from. Basically alot of stuff you already know. Nothing big at all and like half the book is dedicated to those swedish 3' diameter squish balls. If you are into those balls this may good for you, otherwise I don't recommend. nice sf surf shop plug though.

This book is by far the greatest source for surf training avaliable. Living on the beach or miles away, its exercises will put you in fit for all year long. Furthermore, it helped me out to avoid common surfing injuries, such as sore back. The cardio-workout section is the chapter that every surfer should know and do. Buy this book if your are looking for a complete guide for surf conditioning.

I am hoping to learn to surf since my past attempts were not huge successes. It seemed that my balance was a problem so I bought this book and have been following some of the exercises. It is great! I have even trimmed down a few inches so I can look good when I eventually manage to stay atop my board. I found some exercises difficult because I have limited space and hard-wood flooring is less giving than the sand on which the book recommends. I have enjoyed the book so much though and it encourages me to continue my pursuit because even though it is snowing outside, I am at least doing something to prepare myself for this summer's waves.

There are times when it is difficult to understand the book. The instructions can be as convoluted as the systems in the body, but once you figure them out they work very well. I have a greater feeling of wellness and better understanding of my body. I am more in tune with the interconnectedness of the body and have more to integrate into my yoga classes. It is better than the cover, even. I recommend it

Based on the glowing reviews, I checked out this book. It was a slow, slogging, complicated text that wasn't easy to follow or understand. After the discussions on chakras, prana, chi, meridians, nadis, imagery and a seemingless endless anatomical treatise, I was ready for a long nap.

If you are looking for a straightforward book with a series of exercises to strengthen your pelvic floor, look elsewhere.

Often overlooked, the pelvic floor is the key to core strength and feelings of power and self-control (or powerlessness). In every one of his books, Erik Franklin gives the most beautiful metaphors and excellent instructions to reclaim your body. These exercises are particularly fun.

Anita Boser, author of Relieve Stiffness and Feel Young Again with Undulation

This book takes pelvic floor understanding and excercise to a new level. the power of visualisation to heal does help the process

This book is a gem, though I agree with several reviewers that the cover illustration is a poor choice. Luckily, it was one of the few poor choices that the author allowed into this book. The sequence of exercises, the illustrations and the well constructed mental imagery make a topic that is very difficult to "wrap you head around", feel accessible. This is a difficult task because few persons that have any grasp of the material covered in this book would even attempt to teach it without a hands-on face-to-face access to a student. Teaching this material is made even more difficult since our culture imparts many social difficulties in even speaking about this portion of the anatomy.
I teach taiji and various moving meditations and have some knowledge of numerous martial arts and meditative body works that all consider subtle control of the pelvic floor muscles to be a critical step in internal energy work. Teaching or coaching a person to mentally discover, and then actively work with these muscles can be very difficult, for all the reasons Eric Franklin outlines in this book. If the only thing that I got from this book was improving my repertoire of images for working with students it would have been a great find. However, the most important aspect of this book was that I found his exercises helped me to improve my own connection with, and sensation into, these important integrators of my internal somantic space. I wish to express my sincere gratitude to the author for this book, the gratitude that a student feels towards a teacher when new learning blossoms. Thank you

I gave this as a gift. He never used it. It may be a great product but I will never know.

I purchased this book for my boss. He was a little thrown in the beginning, knowing that he isn't able to compete at the level these men are, but....he's still happy with the book itself!

It's tricky to learn yoga from a book, especially when limited to sporadic black & white shots every other page. the book does a good job of taking someone mildly athletic who has never done yoga (me) through a few good stretches. There are some great flexibility-improvers. Plus, I liked the quotes and inspiration from the top jocks.

Plus - how did they get Eddie George on the cover?!?! What a great selling idea. If he and his atlas quads can do this stuff, I ought to be able to . . .

Full disclosure - I am a complete newbie when it comes to yoga. This probably explains why I picked up this book in the first place - an experienced yoga practitioner probably doesn't need to turn to a book for guidance.

But as a newbie, I can highly recommend this book for its easy-to-understand yet comprehensive walk-through of basic yoga.

At first, I was turned off by the use of famous professional athletes in this book. I prided myself on being from a more cynical generation than my parents, where they bought Mr. Coffee because Joe DiMaggio was its spokesman. So I was bit turned off by the prominent photos of Eddie George and Dan Marino, to name but two of the prominent athletes depicted in this book. I'm well aware that pro athletes will do anything for a buck, so their pictures in the book did nothing to impress me.

But then I read the book, and the athletes' testimonials started to make sense when I started to understand the exercises described in its pages. And thanks to those thorough - yet basic! - explanations, I have been able to start my first yoga routines.

And that's saying something, because I'm the last guy that anyone would expect to pick up yoga - stiff as a board, father of two young girls with no free time whatsoever.

But this book worked for me. It lays out reasonable explanations of why I should do these exercises. No mysticism, no tapping into my inner being, just good plain common sense - even in the section about meditation!

If you're an experienced yoga practitioner, this is probably not the book for you. But if you're a guy and you're looking to give yoga a shot, this is one of the better books you can pick up. It's educational, cautious (no "You'll look better and start turning heads in 10 days!" promises), and yet optimistic about the benefits yoga can provide to the average American male who gives it a try.

All in all, well worth the investment.

After reading the other reviews, and looking inside the book, I knew this wasn't going to have as many different postures or routines as other books. I hoped to get some motivation to practice more regularly and I did get that. Just reading about the many benefits to making a yoga routine a regular part of your life got me motivated to practice almost every day. Right now I'm lucky of I do 30-45 mintutes a day, six days a week, but even with that little practice, I'm seeing a difference in the way I feel.

It feels good to be getting looser. I don't know whether I'll ever be able to do the lotus or even half lotus, and to be honest I'm not ever going to try crossing my legs behind my head. (I am trying to talk my wife into that one, however.)

Anyway, Real Men Do Yoga is a good book if you are looking for motivation and for proof that it is possible to get strong using yoga although not the same kind of strength you get from lifting. It is not a book with comprehensive routines.

As a stretch therapist who was trained by Kit I am aware of the many years of practice and research that has gone into these stretches. He is brilliant and these stretches work

This book shows you how to progress in your stretching. There is always a basic stretch and then an advance stretch. This book does not assume that you are already flexible. Many of the stretches are good for people who are not atheletes and just want to improve their general flexibility. However, atheletes will be well served by the advanced stretches. The narration is good and replaces an instructor well. The book even goes into common errors that people experience with particular stretches so that you can avoid those mistakes and improve your technique.

As someone who has never been flexible and couldn't figure out why (I always thought something was just wrong with me), I was truly delighted to find this book. Lesser books show models falling into position as if it were pleasant and easy, with no real narrative of what it might feel like to an adult just starting to work on this. Yet even as a youngster I couldn't sit on the floor with my legs straight out and did not understand why it was so hard for me.

This book addresses people like me directly. It opens with Laughlin's account of his own puzzling inflexibility. Dancers he knew had such an ease about them that he was convinced they were somehow made differently from him. The rest of the book is a detailed explanation of what flexibility is, followed by the exercises.

Some of the exercises were nice surprises, ways I never would have thought of to stretch. Sharing them with friends ("try this!") has provoked many "wow"s. I showed one to a friend, and now he has other friends convinced that he's a healer because they feel so good when he presses down on their shoulders for them, as shown in the book.

I also bought the DVD. A no-nonsense, no fluff production. Well worth it.

This book is full of good information on the subject of streching. It has been very helpful, and is well worth the money.

Kit Laughlin has produced the best stretching book ever. From a clear and understandable discussion about stretching through a well layed out structure and progression of stretches for your entire body. Wonderful.

This book is okay. I can't complain because its relatively inexpensive otherwise would be 3 stars. Still, I don't find anything truly great about the book. The one nugget of information I did get from the book was that your knee actually rotates your lower leg (we all know it extends and flexes, but the book actually proves to you that your own knees rotate the lower leg as well). Due to the price, I don't mind the purchase. I wouldn't recommend this to any younger readers, I myself am 30 and don't find the 'treatments' all that relevant. I sometimes have mild knee pain that for me seems to be better treated by doing full depth squats (yes, full depth squats, performed properly are good for you and do not hurt your knees).

I read this book cover to cover and found it most helpful. I don't believe in surgery unless absolutely necessary. This book guides you through all the things to do to improve your own knee health without the surgery. Fantastic!

After reading the reviews and suffering from knee pain, I decided to buy this book. My expectations were pretty high since all of the reviews were glowing. Perhaps that's where I went wrong.

I was expecting a series of ailments and exercises to help alleviate them. Instead you get one strengthening exercise, a few stretches, one prioperception exercise and a recommendation for some endurance exercise. All of this could have fit onto a single sheet of paper.

Sure the discussion of the studies is interesting but it really doesn't help me treat my knees. By taking the step of buying the book, I already had commited to wanting better knees and the author didn't need to convince me to do exercises or stretch.

All in all, it was a quick read and at ~$10, was less than most people pay for a co-pay. I'd recommend it if you want some general information about knee health and studies but not if you are looking for rehab exercises to get better knees.

the book is clearly and concisley written.the method prescribed is simple,but effective.i have also read his back pain book .he presents a clear and simple method with dealing with pain in that book also.at first one might say ,is that all there is?;but the proof is in the pudding.if you are diligent and consistent in your efforts,you will be rewarded.in these cases less is more.the author knows his stuff.

I've never written an Amazon review before, but this little book impressed me so much that other readers should share its benefits.

I damaged my knee in a motorcycle accident and had recurring pain for two years. A string of hospitals, therapists and acupuncturists were all unable to diagnose, never mind treat, the problem.

Enter Jim Johnson Stage Right>>>

6 weeks after doing only part of the exercises, my knee has stopped locking up and I don't feel any discomfort after playing soccer.

In short: I can't recommend this book highly enough. Well done Mr. Johnson and your team.

this book is really, really great. A lot of the stretches are common, theres not a lot of new ones, just with little twists and new techniques. The real jem is assisted vs unassisted stretching, dynamic vs static and combining. balancing you strong and weak muscles. You'd never think you could sweat from stretcing. it gives great advice for athletes such as soccer players have strong calves and weak shins, so emphasixing shins is more important (lifting toes and holding it). I would highly recommend it.

There are no new ideas or stretches here. Although doing these stretches regularly will work - I was looking for something a little more groundbreaking.

This is a pretty good book with tons of static and dynamic stretches for all muscle groups. It also contains several different stretching "routines" at the end of the book, which appear valuable.

The content is basic, but thorough, and I learned at least a few new stretches, which is why I bought the book.

My only complaint is that lots of the directions seem to be pretty vague and cryptic.

Pretty solid book.

I'm middle aged and was ordered by my doctor to exercise. I have to stretch to keep my lower back and shoulders and neck loose and to recover from aerobic exercise. The stretches in this book work to keep me flexible and loose. The descriptions are clear. I find the sets of stretches described in the last portion of the book useful: I do the 10-minute series after using the elliptical trainer and do the 20-minute series on my day off from aerobics. The book is inexpensive and you get very good value for the money.

Athletes stretch before and after exercise sessions in order to warm up their muscles, prevent injuries, and cool down after their exertions. Personal trainer and fitness educator Jay Blahnik blends the best of yoga, Pilates, martial arts, and sports training in Full-Body Flexibility to create "user friendly" stretching sequences that anyone can safely use for warm-ups and cool-downs, as well as during the course of performing challenging workouts on their own. Blahnik operates with three key stretching principles in mind: Variety (challenging muscles with multiple techniques to attain maximum flexibility); Strength (ensuring that muscles can support the body throughout the entire range of motion); and Balance (developing equal strength and flexibility in opposing muscle groups on both sides of the human body). Offering 10, 20, and 40 minute fitness routines; sport-specific sequences; and specialty stretch sequences, Full-Body Flexibility is an ideal and recommended introduction for even the most novice of beginners, while also holding much of value for even the more experienced athlete and fitness enthusiast.

Betsy L. Hogan
Reviewer

This book illustrated to me what needs to be done to be a leader in the new economy.Management really needs to read this book and implement some of its philosophies. People in most companies are not always satisfied with what they do and old techniques simply don't always work anymore. Organization managers need to accept this fact and commit themselves in making a change. After reading this book, I can clearly see that the company that I work for has a long way to getting where it needs to go and time is of essence.

I thought this book was awful for three reasons.

First, the author spends way too much time discussing how to placate the 20-somethings in the workforce today. Managing a workforce isn't that difficult. Identify what motivates workers, and then establish opportunities to help workers achieve goals. Managers shouldn't be in the business of catering to the whims of their immature staffers. Managers should be leading by example.

Second, the author is extremely vague about the companies she worked with and the accomplishments achieved. The author should have provided a list of concrete examples - company names, their problems and the solutions to those problems. Instead the author dances around the specifics and speaks in broad generalizations. It leads me to believe the author was called into failing companies and made recommendations akin to rearranging the deck chairs on a sinking ship.

A company can have the best management in the world. But if nobody is buying its products and services, the company is doomed to failure. Companies need to figure out what customers want, and then give it to them. Unfortunately, too many e-businesses were trying to convince customers to buy products or services they didn't want and didn't need.

Finally, the author's speaking voice reminds me of nails scraping over a chalkboard. Very squeaky and irritating. Her voice lacked any sense of confidence. This lack of confidence was compounded because she failed to list specific businesses that may have benefited from her advice.

Most speakers do a better job in person. I would like to hear the author in a live presentation to see and hear the difference. I recognize that the book was written at the tail end of the dotcom boom and released in the midst of the dotcom bust. In the heyday of the dotcom revolution, what worked early on did not always apply down the road.

I also noticed that Nextera, "the leading global management consultancy firm" that the author use to work for, has sold off all of its operating units, and is looking for a partner to help relieve the net operating loss of $43 million as of December 31, 2003. Nextera's failure raises a series of questions such as:

Did Nextera not listen to it's own consultants?
Did Nextera follow its own consultants' advice and still fail?
Did Nextera's advice to other companies help or hurt those companies?

Then again, perhaps all the good consultants left the company before the financial problems started. I have searched the web some sort of rebuttal or follow up commentary from the author, but have not found anything.

The Bottom Line: I cannot recommend this book. Read Patricia Seybold's newsletters and publications to see what is and is not working in the technology field.

eLeadership is written not for new companies but for established companies whose formerly effective business rules are now causing them problems. Change-management specialist Susan Annunzio provides a five-step process for transforming established cultures and structures to enable flexible and fast-paced leadership. The author starts off with observations about the differences between the Baby Boom generation and the X and Y generations. This does serve to focus executives' attention on improving communication between diverse backgrounds, though it inevitably overgeneralizes.

A core part of her book revolves around the 20/60/20 rule. The top 20 percent of the workforce are the change leaders and high-potential performers at every level of the organization. These are the people who can be spurred to ignite change throughout the enterprise. The bottom 20 percent are the complainers and enemies of change. The middle 60 percent can be influenced by either the top or bottom groups, so Annunzio's strategy is to show executives how to use the top 20 percent to influence the middle group while diminishing the power of the obstructive bottom group. The best chapter is probably chapter 4: "Ask the Unaskable, Speak the Unspeakable". Through real-life examples and clearly articulated strategies, this chapter shows how to break through fear and open communications throughout the enterprise, allowing real change to begin. Most of the value of this book can be extracted by careful attention to this chapter while skimming the rest for the key points. The easy style of writing and the author's restraint in book length makes gleaning the core points rapid and painless. If you are part of a company where everyone feels trapped with old rules but where no one dares break out of the mold, this is a fine book to read and put to use.

I finished this lovely little book about 10 days ago. Is the book any good? Well, I have already been using some of what I found in there with my clients and my employees, both to good effect. That would be a yes! :)

One of the things I really like about the book is that it is a "dipper". I can browse through and stop at almost any page, dip in and pick up an illustrative real life story that reminds me of things I could do, suggests new things I might do or confirms things I am doing. This book is both a great reminder and an inspiring boot in the ***.

I finally got to read your book. Well done! Your steady use of interesting cases illustrated your points extremely well. It's applicable to far more situations than leading change in "e" business. The approach you advocate would work well in any company in today's talent short environment. Here's hoping the publisher's marketing efforts obtain the widest audience possible. The book deserves it.

Informative and practical. Everyone should learn Thai Massage. This manual shows you everything you need to know.

A wonderful addition to my ThaiMassage Library. Appreciate it's availability and good pricing.

This book is easy to follow and learn. In the book the pictures with explannation and stap by stap. So I like it verey much!

just like what i said this was what i wanted after watching so manny thai massage video i could get easily lost but with this book i can quickly go back and find confusing technics. you see i'm not really into thai massage however once in a blue moon, clients ask me to do thai massage just to see how it is, in this case this book is very handy.

This is a wonderful Thai massage reference book. The pictures are easy to follow, the text is understandable and includes precautions, healing benefits and muscles stretched and pressed for each asana. There are pictures of men and women with sen lines imposed on a skeletal layout - it seems to make it particularly understandable in locating the sen lines on the body. There is a section on muscles - including diagrams and a chart listing the attachments, action and key thai manipulations acting on the muscle, and which lessons address the muscle. For my particular learning style this is a wonderful book and has been very helpful to me. I think that this is an excellent book for beginners and experienced therapists as well.

There is also a chapter of massage routines to ease specific chronic pain and a program for beginners to follow.

Ms. Mercati has solid training in Thai massage as well as Chinese Tui Na Massage and accupuncture. I received my initial training in Traditional Thai Medical Massage from students of Dr. James. It was a wonderful introduction to Thai Massage and as I further my education I know that it provided a solid foundation on which to build.

I got this for my husband. It's very nicely illustrated and shows you clearly what the position should like. She inludes goals; target msucles; and techniques information beginning in chapter 3 and onward. That being said, the other Pilates for Men book seems better. The following is the table of contents.

1 - Why Pilates Is Not Just for Women
2 - How to Use This Book
3 - Getting the Most from Your Workout
4 - Foundational Series (Ab Series Level 1)
5 - Stretch Series Level 1
6 - Ab Series Level 2
7 - Back Series Level 1
8 - Ab & Hip Series Level 1
9 - Back Series Level 2
10 - Ab & Hip Series Level 2
11 - Lateral Moves
12 - Spine Stabilizer Series
13 - Stretch Stabilizer Series
13 - Stretch Series Level 2
14 - Ab Series Level 3
15 - Back Series Level 3
16 - Maintain Your Motivation

Appenix I - The Pilates for Men Program
Appendix II - Making It More Challenging

For men looking for books on the Pilates method, do not get fooled by this one. The exercises it are very loosely based in the Pilates method. Being a Pilates instructor, I am always seeing what is on the market in order to make recommendations to students in my classes on materials to use at home.

A Pilates book aimed at men is long over due . . . I was completely disappointed when I sat down and started reading this through. For the reviewer who was not seeing results he wanted in the Pilates method (six pac abs, big muscles, etc.), you have been miseducated on what to expect from doing it. So please, don't "dis" the Pilates method because you didn't see visible results. And, you were probably doing it wrong.

This exercise routine may work for some, but if you are new to Pilates, this is a far cry from the real thing. I would suggest doing a search on Amazon's search engine and getting the other Pilates for Men book that appears. It is far better.

I highly recommend this book to any men out there who are looking to get in shape. Traditional Pilates was created for dancers as a rehabilitation program (which is not the general male population).

I read this book thoroughly, and McNergney has created a strong pilates based program called IM=X. After trying the exercise routines I find this program to be very powerful and has helped me improve my "core strength" (lower back trunk muscles and abs). If I tried the traditional pilates moves I would probably end up on the couch with a strained back because of the dancer moves.

By supplementing the IM=X Program with some cardio (biking) I am in the best shape I have been in a long time. I also no longer have lower back pain. Being in shape is not about how big your muscles are (anyone can take steroids illegally to get big). If you're looking to do a exercise routine that actually is helpful, this is it.

I received this book as a Christmas gift from my daughter. I was skeptical at first that Pilates could help out a weekend softball player like myself. As a new years resolution I work out 3 times per week at home. Through the first 3 weeks of the year I have lost 10lbs via working out with IM=X and a new diet. It's a great workout and I don't have to worry about injuring my arm lifting heavy weights at the gym. Thanks to McNergney for this wonderful program.

On the recommendation of my personal trainer, I started learning IM=X Pilates to improve my golf game. Through regular IM=X Pilates workouts I have been able to improve my core strenght an increase my drives by about 30 feet.

I bought this book at the recommendation of my trainer to have it complement the traditional IM=X reformer classes that I take when I can't make it to the gym. It's great to use at home and when I travel on the road for work. I've taken "traditional" pilates classes at another gym but they don't challenge me like IM=X.