@SmirkingRaven Yup! Very, very hypermobile.

@LianaBrooks That could explain it! For hypermobile folks, our muscles tend to have to overcompensate for the extra loose ligaments after stretching. Static stretching is bad for hypermobile people. We have to do a mix of active and end range work--prep, reinforce, strengthen, otherwise the tension just remains or gets worse. I danced for years and never realized this until I started training for circus and doing active flex work--such a difference.

@SmirkingRaven I used to be super active, but I ruined my knee about ten years ago, and then had severe seasonal depression in Alaska, so every time I get back to working out it's a disappointment and hard.

I'm trying to bribe myself to keep at it for the next few months to avoid going back to physical therapy. Do you have any (very gentle) workout recommendations?

@LianaBrooks Dr. Jen Crane, @cirque_physio on IG has many wonderful and obtainable area specific active flex drills and most of them are especially for hypermobile people because the circus community seems to be filled with us for some reason.

@SmirkingRaven Circuses are one of the few places where being super bendy is a good quality on the job application.