Stretching the BC?

[Schmukk]

If your back is arching with the squat then you aren't ready to do it.
When you say your back is flat on the floor you need to check this. I mean your lower back should be so flat on the floor you can't even squeeze a finger under your back.
With APT it will be months until your back is completely flat, it takes time.
Just google hollow body and you will see videos explaining this.

So when I get into the squat, my back is actually more neutral to rounded (as opposed to arched). What do u mean by not rdy to do it?

[Schmukk]

Simply put, yes.

As mentioned before if your BC muscle isn't able to get rock hard you'll start having massive erection problems. It's hard and it's meant to be hard as it traps the blood from leaving your penis which results in an erection.

If you've got a solid APT workout and you're putting in good effort into pelvic floor stretching then the next area i'd strongly recommend looking into is your TVA & abs. Hows your core strength in general? And this is a big big question, does your stomach tend to stick out & do you unconsciously suck in your gut when standing/walking?

Literally had no idea what TVA was till this haha. But I did a quick search and I guess it’s the deeper muscles below the abs?

I used to have a fairly strong core (8pack), but that’s kinda gone now so I guess my core isn’t what it used to be. Stomach does stick out ever so slightly but not by much (I’m an ectomorph).

I guess I do tend to unconsciously suck in my gut (and actually cleanse my anus somewhat). But is it even possible to have ur stomach not stick out without sucking in your gut??

[Paul789]

what i meant was if you have pe/apt your aim is to keep your pelvis in a neutral position 24/7, even when you are sleeping. For this reason it can take weeks/months to do a squat with perfect form as you need v good flexibility. Many people think they can immediately do a squat when in fact the are massively arching their back and putting the stretch there rather than the required muscles. 'hyperlordosis'

Google this and see how it is correctly done and I guarantee you will feel the stretch. But you will only be able to do this position correctly if you have good flexibility esp. in the quads.

[andrewvi7]

Literally had no idea what TVA was till this haha. But I did a quick search and I guess it’s the deeper muscles below the abs?

I used to have a fairly strong core (8pack), but that’s kinda gone now so I guess my core isn’t what it used to be. Stomach does stick out ever so slightly but not by much (I’m an ectomorph).

I guess I do tend to unconsciously suck in my gut (and actually cleanse my anus somewhat). But is it even possible to have ur stomach not stick out without sucking in your gut??

The reason I asked this is because the weaker the core is, the more tense it will tend to be as its trying to provide core stability. And the core muscles have a very strong connection to the pelvic floor, as in if the abs engage, the pelvic floor will most likely do too. Now if it's constantly overengaging because of their weakness, or if you're sucking in your stomach, you might be doing a light subconscious Kegel through out the day which could result in hard and regular IKs despite the stretching or APT work.

[Schmukk]

The reason I asked this is because the weaker the core is, the more tense it will tend to be as its trying to provide core stability. And the core muscles have a very strong connection to the pelvic floor, as in if the abs engage, the pelvic floor will most likely do too. Now if it's constantly overengaging because of their weakness, or if you're sucking in your stomach, you might be doing a light subconscious Kegel through out the day which could result in hard and regular IKs despite the stretching or APT work.

Makes complete sense. Cue more core exercises!

Is there anything in particular you do to strengthen your core? I know Paul wrote previously about the hollow body hold

[Schmukk]

what i meant was if you have pe/apt your aim is to keep your pelvis in a neutral position 24/7, even when you are sleeping. For this reason it can take weeks/months to do a squat with perfect form as you need v good flexibility. Many people think they can immediately do a squat when in fact the are massively arching their back and putting the stretch there rather than the required muscles. 'hyperlordosis'

Google this and see how it is correctly done and I guarantee you will feel the stretch. But you will only be able to do this position correctly if you have good flexibility esp. in the quads.

I get what you mean. I don’t actually think over arching of the back is my problem, and in fact it might be more rounded than arched. Kind of like butt wink.

I do feel a stretch around the anus when in a Hindi squat but I wasn’t rly sure if there could be better stretches out there that are more effective (esp since Hindi is rather uncomfortable after a while).

I’ve been experimenting with trying to point toes forward or spread feet wider apart and that seems to amplify the stretch.

One thing I also notice is whenever I stand up from the squat position, I get a big IK or anus clench, not sure why. would you agree an anus clench is the same as an IK? And any tips on how to get rid of them? I try real hard to breathe out, rk (to best of my knowledge) and prevent the IK but it’s almost second nature

[andrewvi7]

Makes complete sense. Cue more core exercises!

Is there anything in particular you do to strengthen your core? I know Paul wrote previously about the hollow body hold

I mostly do the classic vacuums, leg raises, side leg raises, weighted cable crunches and plank variations. Not in that order lol.

[Schmukk]

Thanks for this.

Does this also mean that your stomach doesn’t stick out and you don’t suck it in unconsciously? Is it possible for your neutral position and “flat” stomach can be maintained without any effort?

If I let my belly go it would push out I guess, and mostly into an apt position. That’s if I really really let it all go.

[andrewvi7]

Thanks for this.

Does this also mean that your stomach doesn’t stick out and you don’t suck it in unconsciously? Is it possible for your neutral position and “flat” stomach can be maintained without any effort?

If I let my belly go it would push out I guess, and mostly into an apt position. That’s if I really really let it all go.

In theory that's exactly what it means.

In practise, i hope so. I've developed a lot of hamstring and glute power with APT stretching that done magic for my lower body posture. However my core/abs have been lacking as it's just so dam hard having the motivation to train core after doing 1.5/2h gym sessions lol. But the muscle responsible for keeping your core tight and stable is the TVA. The more power that muscle group has the less effort you will need to exert. in keeping your belly from flopping forward (which is a huge indication of weak TVA).

Also, if you think of your midsection as a container with all your organs inside it and the lid of this container being the diaphragm, TVA and spine are the walls of the container and the pelvic floor is the bottom. Now if your think about it, if you are able to strengthen and tighten your midsection and TVA, it will create more pressure in the midsection giving your spine much more stability (say goodbye to back pain) but also cause the pressure to push against the pelvic floor mostly adding counter resistance to the tightness of the pelvic floor which is essentially what we use RKs for. I think this is super important as most of the people that suffer from PE will have huge muscle imbalances due to prolonged sitting or physical inactivity. So here's an experiment to for you guys... When watching porn, observe the guys in the videos, and either their posterior or balanced pelvic tilts but never anterior. Or the fact that their midsections only stick out very minimally even when they belly breathe whereas most of us can probably look like we're about 7-9 months pregnant by simply relaxing even if we're relatively lean. Would you agree with this?

[Johnny D]

Perhaps you shouldn't consider core training as a supplement to your workout. You should be able to get plenty of core training into a 1.5/2hr gym session if you're training multiple days/week.