How to Middle Split - Complete Guide to get flat & beyond

Free Customized Middle Split Workout

More Middle Split Related Content

The Middle Split is one of the most popular flexibility skills. The goal in the Middle Split is to open the legs into a fully flat line with a straight lower back and the knees pointing in the same direction as the head but the opposite direction of the seat bones.

The Middle Split combines hip mobility, hamstring flexibility, adductor flexibility and to some extend abductor strength. Advancing in your Middle Split Stretching will allow you create a mechanical advantage in handstand and calisthenics skills, to be more stable when ever lifting your legs and to simply look visually more appealing in all bodyweight styled movement cultures..

When training for the Middle Split begin by isolating the adductors and hamstrings. This will allow you not only to make fast gains early on in your journey but also to identify possible weak spots.
Once you gain initial mobility begin extending the legs and practice the whole shape.

CAUTION!! When practicing the complete middle split shape with extended legs it is essential that your knees are fully locked and your quads are engaged to protect your knees from injuries!

The road to the middle split can be long for some but over the years I have come to realize that every single client of mine was able to unlock their middle split. Warm up well, stay consistent and combine different stretching techniques into a well organized program to maximize your gains and sustainability.

Coach Bachmann Social & Website

Timestamps:
00:00:00 Intro
00:00:48 Attempts are not training
00:01:23 Components of the Middle Split
00:02:57 Pancake for Middle Split
00:05:10 CAUTION!! Bent Knees
00:05:54 Dynamic Stretches
00:06:55 Static Stretches
00:07:27 PNF Stretches
00:10:52 Active Stretches
00:12:20 Weighted Middle Splits
00:13:15 Recap & Sample Routine

[RJ]

you got a charismatic way of speaking and teaching. Thanks for sharing this.

[oj]

No one is mentioning how the way the arrows are animated and rotate is one of the most helpful visual cues that not many fitness youtubers use (or use well). They make the already solid content so much easier to understand.

[Anime_world_]

The level of information coach provides is always top tier 🔥

[devssb]

Thank you brother. I will practice it.❤

[ArloKnudsenFit]

Your physique is simply on another level.

[jego]

My tight hamstrings and inner thighs have been preventing me from achieving certain yoga poses, particularly pancake. I've been working on it for weeks with little progress, but this video has been incredibly helpful. The visual cues with the arrows showing how each muscle should be engaged are exactly what I needed.

[remabeal]

I just love his teaching approach & cues ❤❤

[woah]

I love dynamic stretches! Long passive ones just leave me feeling really sleepy.

[hmongvampire]

thanks for sharng. very informative. just subscribed.

[lingolombosky]

Pubic bone on the floor!!! This is an OMG moment!!😃 YES!!

[TheTimHall]

Great video. Pancake was always the most useful progression for me. Even now I still always do pancake before middle splits. I do an oversplit pancake before a middle split oversplit. It has always been the most useful entry for me, with the least amount of injuries.

I understand the benefits of PNF, but over the years I've picked up injuries because of it. It's too easy to be aggressive. I prefer other ways of increasing strength in the extended range, including resistance bands, long lunges and Cossacks etc.

[lucasterable]

"The anatomical structure of your hips is not what is holding you back. What's holding you back is your unwillingness to buy my program"
- every fitness guru on the Internet -

4:35 elevated pankake w/ yoga blocks
6:27 slow dynamic passive stretches; 2-to-4 sets: side lounge, frog w/ sliders, frog squats v wall
7:46 PNF
9:25 Frog PNF
9:47 standing hamstring PNF
11:00 active stretch (fire hydrant)

Sequence:

14:29 dynamic: standing pancake slides (toes point forward, horizontal torso); cossack swap (toes point otward, vertical torso); squatting pike warmup
14:50 static: runner's stretch; side runner stretch slides;
15:15 PNF: frog;
15:25 dynamic: elevated pancake reps
15:30 static: middle split on back v wall

Anyway, no advice on warming up before anything -_-. Why am I not surprised?

[ryandevil]

Started my mid splits journey this week. What awesome timing - going to follow this guidance 100%
12:55 --> had to time stamp the frustrated bit

[philonhands]

hey, first of all, really great video! For me personally pnf and passive stretching did not work that much. I actually saw significant progress when I started treating my flexibility training like actual strength training. I mainly used the leg adductor machine you have in most gyms and did reps of those trying to open my legs as far as possible and then contracting.
I now have the full middle splits after years of unsuccessful training (with not high enough intensity). I think by strengthening the muscles (for me the adductors) in the end range of the middle split our body realizes it is a save position to be in + I don't really need to do a big warm up to get into my splits (I think that is also due to actually having control in the range).

[sunilsharma-srxt]

I am commenting here before watching the whole video because I know that you guide us in best possible way thanks 🙏

[katyeah]

Great video, thank you so much! <3
When stretching for my middlesplits I often experience lower backpain for several days afterwards. Any thoughts on that?

[mrsbootsworkouts]

Thank you for motivation!! I need to be patient, my progress is so slow.. I keep feeling pain on the outside of my hips, I wonder if it’s just my skeletal structure.. I will keep practicing

[Sentinelledederision]

Following the bill wallace méthode since 1990, i did that during 30 years. But à 54 years old, the tendon of the harmstring get split ! And now is médical treatment on medical treatment !

[hmpf]

Beauty Thanks so much. Never seen someone talk with knowledge like that about middle split as you.
Would appreciate pancake tutorial as well.

[WyattSaysHi]

Very useful information! Thank you. 👍🏻