So I've been wanting to get a little bit more flexible but I just realized when I tried to stretch that I think there might be something wrong with me. My boyfriend and I decided to try and stretch every night do to the fact that one night I couldn't sleep because my hamstring was hurting so bad and I could not find a comfortable position where it wasn't pulling it. So one night he goes to stretch my leg in the way where you lay one leg flat and put you leg on someone's shoulder and the lean on you while keeping your leg straight. It was the most painful feeling I have had in my leg in a while and my leg was barly at an incline or even close to being straight in the air. So he straightend my leg which remind he was not pushing my leg that far.. within 30 seconds of my leg being stretched straight my entire leg and foot was tingling and numb. My boyfriend said he has never seen anybody so unflexable. I wouldn't be as concerned but the average person should be able to do this without pain and I cannot. I also cannot come very close at all to touching the floor while standing up. I keep my legs perfectly straight and reach as far as I can and it gives me that horrible feeling in my hamstring. I made an appt to go see my chrio to see if maybe he can figure out the problem. I would be very thankful if someone could give me some feedback on how to fix this issue. Do I need to just constantly stretch all day and night?

You may have a pulled or torn hamstring (aka hammie). This is very common, but is in fact painful when you do it. You may have done it while stretching if you do not play sports. There is nothing you can do to fix it, it will heal itself. Just take some Advil, Tylenol, or otherwise and it will go away in a few weeks. I would not suggest stretching for a while.

Doing nothing is a very bad idea! This will not simply go away by itself, and masking the pain of inflexibility is NOT the way to correct it! That is a recipe for even greater problems, down the line! You need to check out Pain Free by Peter Egoscue- that book talks about how to increase balance, flexibility, and healthy motion to your body by stretching and *re-aligning* the body! The reason that your muscles will not stretch to a normal place is because your muscles are refusing to release, which is a symptom of your body trying to use them in the wrong way! Think about it- if your fire alarm went off in the middle of the night, would your solution be to unhook your smoke alarm and go back to bed? Analgesics cover up alarms, but they DO NOT put out fires. You may actually get some benefit from muscle relaxers, but only in conjunction with some expert advice on stretching and YES some more stretching! Try that book, or look at his web site, and good luck!

Doing nothing is a very bad idea! This will not simply go away by itself, and masking the pain of inflexibility is NOT the way to correct it! That is a recipe for even greater problems, down the line! You need to check out Pain Free by Peter Egoscue- that book talks about how to increase balance, flexibility, and healthy motion to your body by stretching and *re-aligning* the body! The reason that your muscles will not stretch to a normal place is because your muscles are refusing to release, which is a symptom of your body trying to use them in the wrong way! Think about it- if your fire alarm went off in the middle of the night, would your solution be to unhook your smoke alarm and go back to bed? Analgesics cover up alarms, but they DO NOT put out fires. You may actually get some benefit from muscle relaxers, but only in conjunction with some expert advice on stretching and YES some more stretching! Try that book, or look at his web site, and good luck!

I have a similar problem: I have never been able to touch my toes (or even come close) because the particular stretching where you bend over and try to touch both feet (whether standing or seated) causes the most terrible pain (localized especially right behind my knees) and eventual numbness along the entire length of my legs. However, if I only stretch one leg at a time (usually seated with the non-stretching leg bent), I'm still not terribly flexible, but I don't experience the searing pain or the numbness at all. This is true for either leg.

I have always assumed that my physiology is just different from most other people's. I regularly stretched as a kid in martial arts and other sports, but I've never been able to gain much flexibility in my legs. So I stretch to the extent that I can, stopping at the point of that abnormal pain I described above. I don't put too much stock in the idea that I'm somehow "out of alignment" or that my muscles are perpetually tight. I've regularly been adjusted by a chiropractor for a number of years with no change in my flexibility. I have just accepted that leg flexibility is a limitation of my body and moved on since I don't experience any other pain, numbness or aggravation related to stretching that I would characterize as abnormal.

I don't know if my situation is analogous to yours, but it's sometimes comforting to know that there are other people out there that aren't terribly flexible despite their best efforts.