Giving Gumby a Run for his Money with Donna Flagg’s Lastics DVD

I’m not the biggest person on stretching—gasp! How can that be true? It’s not that I don’t believe stretching is important, but when I only have an hour to get in and out of the gym, I’d rather spend my time doing one last lift than seeing how far I can stretch.

With that said, I always know when I need a good stretch because my body yearns for it. It’s almost like my Ben and Jerry’s craving that happens once a month, and thank goodness it happens ONLY once a month. But unlike most food cravings, which can be a guilty “balancing act,” stretching can be enjoyed as often as you’d like with many added benefits. Can your Cherry Garcia do that? Booyah. I didn’t think so.

So to get my stretch on during a recent lunch break, I did the Lastics: A Stretch Workout Like No Other DVD instructed by Donna Flag. Now I want to make this clear before we jump to conclusions: stretching does NOT equal yoga. Flagg’s hour-long DVD gets to the core techniques of how to build flexibility and give Gumby a run for his money. The Lastics technique, which was designed by Flagg, gives people of all ages, body types, and fitness levels a way to improve their flexibility through stretching internally and pulling each muscle in opposite directions. Unlike most stretching techniques, which are done externally or just plain quickly, Flagg demonstrates the most common stretching mistakes in hopes to re-educate and make stretching a valuable experience. I mean, if you’re going to dedicate an hour to attempting the splits and bending yourself in half, you might as well be doing it right!

The whole DVD is broken down into four mini-series that target specific parts of the body. Much of the mini-workouts incorporate hamstring and quad stretches, which can get quite intensive if stretching isn’t on your daily checklist. Although lacking on the overall excitement factor, Flagg’s instruction and routine is one-of-a-kind. The basic knowledge she offers can be incorporated into any regimen and with benefits such as lengthening and strengthening muscles, increasing your body awareness and control, and relieving tightness and tension, there is no reason not to give Lastics a try.

FBG Rating (Out of 5):
Instruction: ★★★★★
Long-Term Likeability: ★★
Music: ★
Fun Factor: ★★
Meets Expectations: ★★★
Overall: ★★1/2

Fit Bottomed Line: If you’re already made like Gumby and can bend yourself in half, then this Lastics stretch workout is probably too easy for you. But for the rest of the fit bottoms out there, sometimes a good stretch is all you need to reach your goals and keep moving forward.