Yes, I've been doing them for several years now. Wait until you get to the throat board. LOL

Let me give you some advice, make sure that you ALWAYS relieve the tension in your tongue after doing these exercises. I went through a period of time were I was constantly choking and my throat felt like it closing off. Needless to say, it was not fun.
And it was because I was skipping the VSR and not releasing the stress in my tongue. Don't skip warming up or your cooling down period. These are just as important as the rest of your training, and they set the pace for it.

That is the great part about hindsight. Looking back, I can see that part of the problem was this: my tongue was retaining so much tension that it was drawing my larynx up against the bottom of my epiglottis as tightly as possible.

I lived like that for months on end, and I almost felt like I was suffocating, I couldn't even lay down to go to sleep, I would literally pass out from exhaustion while sitting in a recliner - if I laid down, my throat closed off and I would start choking and couldn't breathe - and i went through a period where I was eliminating everything trying to find something that I might have been having an allergic reaction to.

So make sure that you ALWAYS - ALWAYS - release the tension in your tongue. It will save you months of discomfort.





Tim

Thanks for the insight!

When you say "relieve the tension", do you mean pull the tip of the tongue (like in VSR) or massaging the back of the tongue? Or both?

Also, are you talking about the exercise where you press the throat board on the raphe? I've been using the side of my finger and I'm not sure if I'm doing it right. Am I "yawning" and then pressing against the hard, disc-like part? I'm pushing against it horizontally. Is this correct?

Yes, pull the tension out of your tongue by physically pulling on it, and massage the entire tongue to release all of the stress.

Yawn and lower your larynx. While holding it in a lowered state, press in above the larynx. Start in the middle of the Mylohyoid and after about a week or so, you can start to work around each side.


Tim

I didn't exactly answer this.
Do each exercise for two weeks minimum (my suggestion is a month)- personally, I would say don't start the second exercise until you have performed the first for two weeks, then do both for two weeks, then drop the first while doing the second exercise for two weeks afterward. Then move onto the next exercise. I know it seems like it will take a long time doing it in this manner, but keep in mind that you are directly exercising muscles that you have virtually never used before.
Follow them in the order that they are given in the book.



Tim