“Intense stretching” is an oxymoron. You want to be as relaxed as possible when you stretch. Technically everyone can do middle splits, it’s just muscular tension governed by the nervous system that prevents one from doing so. Just do a little bit, pain-free, as often as you can.
What kind of stretching do you do? you can’t just sit in middle splits, you need to do over splits if you’re getting close to flat, have someone gently push on your lower back while you’re in them. Sit in frog position, this will stretch your inner thighs and put less pressure on your knees. Watch some YT videos of rhythmic gymnastics dynamic stretching, you have to get warm first and them move through the positions. You’ll only get so far static stretching (sitting in middle splits).
Learning any skill is challenging without help; my go-to suggestion is always the same; Seek professional help.
Getting into full middle splits is pretty extreme (unless you’re a dancer, gymnast or figure skater etc. who has mastered this skill at a very young age) … but it is not impossible.
Join a martial arts class or yoga/stretch class …or work with a professional one-on-one to learn some basic stretches to help you become more flexible. After mastering these, you are probably safe to embark on your journey to “full middle splits.”
Please avoid “hurrying” the process. While some people can accomplish full splits within weeks, others (like me) will work on mastering this skill for a lifetime. While I once could get pretty close to the floor, I NEVER looked like the gymnasts or martial arts experts whose bone structure allow greater movement and flexibility.
We tend to gravitate toward physical endeavours/activities that suit us. “Looking” and moving like a gymnast was never my gift.
The middle splits is probably harder and take more times. But when you made it you’ll figure out that it’s more comfortable than the front splits (this is my personal experience)
By the way, everyone has different flexibility. Like those skinny girls in my class takes less time to get the splits. Their bone are thinner. Me with big bone frame needed more than 6 months to get the splits while those skinny girls only need 3 months. I know that it’s unfair. But when you pay more effort, you gain more satisfaction.
