Straddle splits can be difficult to achieve many people find that they have a sticking point that they think they can't break through.

This article addresses a number of emails I have received from people who are experiencing a "Sticking Point" on their journey to ultimate flexibility.

They are fighting feelings of:

I am never going to get this

• maybe I am just not flexible

• I'm too old

• I'mtoo tall

• I'm too big...

... and any other defeatist thought processes which enter our minds at these "sticking points".

This month I've put together a quick video which can certainly help with those through the sticking points of achieving straddle splits: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZkT0-coMUo

The sad reality is, most people give up when they don't get the results they think they should have in the time frame they think they should have it in.

The second most popular question I get asked is "how long will it take me to achieve full straddle splits". This is sometimes a hard question to answer. It is the same as someone asking how long will it take them to run 100 yards in under 10 seconds or how long will it take them to squat 500 pounds or how long will it take them to perform at an elite level in any chosen discipline. The truth is, is takes time and persistence. The amount of time is commensurate to the amount of time allocated to perfecting the discipline.

The trouble here is, that in society, we are conditioned to have everything instantly. You know: three minutes to the new body, the diet pill which makes you lean overnight. We have instant coffee, instant noodles, microwave meals, instant gratification and this "instant everything mentality"has affected the very thought process of everything we do or set out to achieve.

Persistence and stickability has been lost in a three minute world.

Here is an extract from one of my favorite books. Napoleon Hill's Think & Grow Rich . It gives an account of a true story of someone who quit just before victory. It was written many years ago but still rings true today in every arena of life:

THREE FEET FROM GOLD

One of the most common causes of failure is the habit of quitting when one is overtaken by temporary defeat. Every person is guilty of this mistake at one time or another.

An uncle of R. U. Darby was caught by the gold fever in the gold-rush days, and went west to DIG AND GROW RICH. He had never heard that more gold has been mined from the brains of men than has ever been taken from the earth. He staked a claim and went to work with pick and shovel. The going was hard, but his lust for gold was definite.

After weeks of labor, he was rewarded by the discovery of the shining ore. He needed machinery to bring the ore to the surface. Quietly, he covered up the mine, retraced his footsteps to his home in Williamsburg, Maryland, told his relatives and a few neighbors of

the strike". They got together money for the needed machinery, had it shipped. The uncle and Darby went back to work the mine.

The first car of ore was mined, and shipped to a smelter. The returns proved they had one of the richest mines in Colorado! A few more cars of that ore would clear the debts. Then would come the big killing in profits.

Down went the drills! Up went the hopes of Darby and Uncle! Then something happened! The vein of gold ore disappeared! They had come to the end of the rainbow, and the pot of gold was no longer there! They drilled on, desperately trying to pick up the vein again - all to no avail.

Finally, they decided to QUIT.

They sold the machinery to a junk man for a few hundred dollars, and took the train back home. Some junk, men are dumb, but not this one! He called in a mining engineer to look at the mine and do a little calculating. The engineer advised that the project had failed, because the owners were not familiar with fault lines. His calculations showed that the vein would be found JUST THREE FEET FROM WHERE THE DARBYS HAD STOPPED DRILLING! That is exactly where it was found!

The "Junk" man took millions of dollars in ore from the mine, because he knew enough to seek expert counsel before giving up.

Before success comes in any mans life, he is sure to meet with much temporary defeat, and, perhaps, some failure. When defeat (or what appears to be defeat) overtakes a man, the easiest and most logical thing to do is to QUIT. That is exactly what the majority of people do.

The greatest success often comes just one step beyond the point at which defeat seems to have overtaken. Failure is a trickster with a keen sense of irony and cunning. It takes great delight in tripping one when success is almost within reach.

Persistence is a major key in every success story. Flexibility, speed, coordination, endurance, balance, diet and a fit, lean, healthy body is a journey to a destination with bumps along the way...keep going and you will achieve your dreams.

Here is a quick video to help you along the way to pushing past your own sticking point in achieving straddle splits.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZkT0-coMUo

Enjoy!