Since I stretch everyday, I am wondering if it is appropriate to also do EQIs everyday? Right now, I only do EQIs before/after weights or HIIT.
(Forgot to note. I read over this chapter several times in the Modern Trends book. However, I read I should periodize it if I want to improve in these. If I simply want to use EQIs for recovery purposes, can I do them everyday?)
I find them pretty intense
Flexibility is quick to develop. You can gain 95% of all possible ROM in the joints in about 6 months. I wouldn’t periodize it, but would simply use it as an aid for recovery. If you want to get stronger in them… the question is for what purpose? Most people that say they’re always working on flexibility do not understand that it is neural in nature. You should be able to develop just about all the flexibility that you’d ever need if you perform static and dynamic stretches twice a day for a few months. Other than that stretches are a valuable recovery and warmup tool.
You can do EQIs everyday if increased ROM is the purpose.
You say you “stretch everyday.” I assume you are referring to static stretching. However, I see no benefit and some potential harm to performing these types of stretches for most athletes. Unless you need extreme ROM (martial artist, gymnast, etc.) I would stick to active stretching methods like EQIs.
Yes, you can use them everyday. However, I would reserve them for after your heavier sessions. If you are using a typical split (upper/lower or bodypart) then you should only (for recovery purposes) use EQIs for those muscles that were contracted to a great extent during your workout.
If you use full-body sessions then it is best to pick 1-2 EQIs that involve a great deal of muscles (“compound EQIs” if you will). For example, EQI 1-leg Squat and EQI Push-up.
[QUOTE=Tony Schwartz]You can do EQIs everyday if increased ROM is the purpose.
You say you “stretch everyday.” I assume you are referring to static stretching. However, I see no benefit and some potential harm to performing these types of stretches for most athletes. Unless you need extreme ROM (martial artist, gymnast, etc.) I would stick to active stretching methods like EQIs.
Tony,
If you’re looking to improve your ROM:
What would the duration for an EQI be?
How many sets/day?
Thank You!
Thanks for the answer Tony and everyone!
If I simply want to use EQIs for Hipertrophy purposes, can I do them everyday?
There are better ways to stimulate hypertrophy. If you have CT’s book you know what these are.
Generally speaking, going until technical or muscular failure (whichever comes first) is the quickest way to increases in ROM.
Typically, 1-2 sets per day is optimal. However, if you are taking each EQI to technical or muscular failure, it is not advisable to do this everyday. This will interfere with recovery and adaptation to strength or speed work. If you would like to use EQIs everyday, then you need cut the duration short of failure. The exact amount is so variable from person to person (heavily dependent on the rest of training program and the variety of factors influencing adaptation) that I cannot give you any recommendations in this regard.
However, I believe that if you incorporate EQIs done to failure 1-3 per week you will be very happy with the increases in ROM.
Exactly. EQIs may stimulate some hypertrophy (not to mention hyperplasia), but they are not the most effective way of doing so.
EQIs are fantastic for many purposes, but like any method they have their limits.
Thank YOU!
Tony,
What EQI’s would you recommend on a low body day? I would really like to work on my hip flexors, quads and hammies, so I was thinking of using the single leg (or Bulgarian) squat, possibly RDL’s, and I heard you also use regular squats. How is this done, just held in the bottom position for as long as possible?
Would you recommend just doing these 3 to failure on my low body workouts?
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Stay strong
Mike
Mike,
The three main lower body EQI movements I use are:
I occasionally use the RDL, but I usually stick to the three above.
What are your goals? Increased flexibility? Recovery?
Let me know and I can give you a better recommendation.
Tony,
Yes, I’m actually interested in both. I want some basic increases in flexibility to make my body more efficient for powerlifting, and I have some anterior rotation to my pelvis so I really want to work on the hip flexors there.
Otherwise, yes, I’m very interested in speeding recovery and keeping myself injury free. Any help you can give would be greatly appreciated…I’m going to review what you wrote in Christian’s book, as well as Supertraining to make sure I’m up to speed!
Stay strong
Mike
Could you shoot me an e-mail? I tried to PM you, but it says you are over your account limit. My e-mail is mikerob022@yahoo.com
Stay strong
Mike
If you are a powerlifter you will benefit greatly from the EQI push-up. If tight hip flexors are the cause of your anterior rotation then the EQI 1-leg squat will be of great help.
Feel free to PM me, as I should now have enough room to receive them.
I use a forward leaning - leg supported dip instead of pushups now 
has improved my tricep, pec and shoulder flexibility - you can really feel the the tricep tissues/fascia tingle from the extreme stretch!
also stretches the muscles around the ribcage as well
Well I am gymnast and I never saw someone harmed by doing too much streching… and I don’t understand why he would hurt himselft by doing some static stretching. It would prevent injuries more than causing some I guess.
I know it wouldn’t be that useful, but it would’nt harm.
It’s not that you will get hurt while performing a static stretch, rather it is the long-term effect that static stretching has on the body.
If you read the chapter I wrote in CT’s book you will see that this assertion is backed-up by research done on actual athletes in the former USSR.
As for your assertion that you are a gymnast and you have never seen someone injured from static stretching:
I would say that gymnasts have a great deal of injuries, and to say that an over-reliance on static stretching plays no role in many of these injuries (particularly those related to hypermobility) is premature. I am not familiar with the current flexibility regimens of gymnasts (nor the mechanisms of injury), but if they do indeed incorporate a large amount of static stretching, then we have research (not casual observations) that tells us they are putting themselves at risk of injury as well as harming their performance.
So it is up to you which path you will take. You can rely on what you believe to be true based on your casual observations, or you can rely on what the research has shown. But when an athlete’s career is on the line, I will take quality research over casual observations any day of the week.
I believe you completely if you talk about sprinting.
But, having a greater ROM in gymnastic help to elude injuries everytime you miss an element. Our injuries usually come from a lack of ROM or flexibility and from an overuse of some articulation. It is only a casual observations, but I would probably have broken my ankles a couple of time if I hadn’t work on flex for a few years.