Does anyone know if contortion is safe?

Question

I have heard that doing contortion and back bends can give you a bad back and neck in the future.

I really want to learn contortion but don't want to wreck my back.

anyone know?

Answer 1

No, not if you practise according to instructions. I have done it for over 10 years and have no problems at all. On the contrary, I have never felt so good. I have used two sites http://how.to/contort and http://members.fortunecity.com/tchb1/ as I couldn't find a coach nearby.

Answer 2

I'm not sure whether or not doing routine stretches to increase flexibility would injure you in any way besides doing them incorrectly.  On the contrary, I read somewhere that it may help prevent joint diseases such as Arthritis, but I'm not sure. Looking at things on the web I've never come across accounts of people complaining about their flexibility.

From what I've read, the worst it would do if you're not careful is give you torn ligaments or other stretching associated injuries. Basically, if you take it slow and don't go outside of your limits, you should be fine; just like any other sport/art (especially those that require flexibility, like ballet and gymnastics)