Three years ago I could not do a bridge. It did not seem hard, but when I tried, I could not do it. I managed to lift myself up for a few centimeters for an instant, but that was it.
That was years ago. Now I do it better. Video from January 2019:
I should have more weight over my hands. I will fix it.
Do not hurt yourself
Do not be as stupid as I was. I tried to force my bridge just once and payed for it with two months of lower back pain.
I was not that out of shape. I have been climbing, running, cycling and dancing tango regularly. I was also taking hatha yoga and bodywork classes that focused on control and not forcing ourselves into positions our bodies can not handle.
Still, I hurt myself. The muscles that were supposed to lift me up were weak, yes, but my other weak spots were:
-
Wrists. They were neither flexible nor strong. It hurt me if the angle between my forearms and wrists became sharper that 90 degrees. Whereas now, the position you see on latest videos—much more extreme that my old maximum—is comfortable.
-
Low flexibility in shoulders and hips, which combined with
-
low core strength and control caused my lower back to take most of the bend.
It only took one attempt and hello, painful back! I was lucky not to injure my wrists also.
I am much gentler with myself now.
To try to heal my back pain, I went through the GMB Elements program. That program focuses on movements on all fours, which strengthened my back and conditioned my wrists. After a few months of exercises, I tried bridging again. Slowly, very slowly, and stopping immediately if there was any pain.
Could I progress faster if I tried harder? Probably, but I am in no rush. As long as I can see progress, I am happy. I still have lost of time and I am not trying to be a gymnast.
Getting better, slowly
This exercise is part of the GMB Integral Strength program. On average, I only do two minutes (4 series of half a minute) of it about every three days, but I also do other exercises for the core. Of course, I began with an easier version.
My best in December 2016, after 1.5 months of practice. I can only lift myself enough to put my head onto the floor.
After 0.6 years of practice I can get higher, but I can not do it slowly. I can not control the speed on the way up or down:
After 1.6 years I have more control, but in the last few centimeters of descent I still fall.
After 2 years I have better control:
What now? I will try to put more weight onto my hands, which will also require more flexibility in my shoulders.