This perhaps relates more to people who are younger, but generally speaking it's ludicrous to think that it's impossible to permanently increase height any way other than Limb Lengthening. Through stretching or some intense physical regimen that focuses on core areas of the body which affect height (spine and the knees) one can not just reach their genetic potential, but they can indeed supercede it. First of all let's admit a person's height is the accumulated length and size of bones and joints in the body, primarily speaking anyway. Yes, the bones fuse but let's not focus on those, let's focus on the areas that never fuse, the areas that in fact are responsible for our shrinking as we get older.
I should note my experience of the success that stretching can provide is perhaps unique since I decided to take the initiative while I was in that sweet spot of still growing. Here's my story:
To give you a little background, my father's 5"7, my mum is 5"4. I spent my early adolescence (13-17) with the worst diet, smoking lots cigarettes and cannabis, and drinking Pepsi Max by the gallon.
My whole obsession with height began when I was 17 - I was talking to this girl on the internet and she asked me how tall I was. Completely unconcerned with height, and oblivious to how tall I actually was I decided to measure myself. I being somewhat disappointed in reading I was 5ft 5. In fact such was my ignorance with inches/feet measurement system that I remember thinking that well if I'm 5ft 5 then I'm only half a foot away from 6 foot (a height I knew was considered tall). Anyway when reporting back to my lady friend I said I was 5ft 8. Her response was 'Lol. You're a shorty'.
This changed everything. If being 5ft 8 was a shorty, my true height of only 5ft 5 must mean I really was small. Suddenly I became paranoid, depressed, angry. I began to despise my parents for not putting an emphasis on diet; I began to regret my lifestyle choices which had condemned me to such a stature. Most of all though I got ambitious. I scoured the internet for information as to how increasing my height could become possible, how I could get taller.
The arsenal of information I accumulated fit into three main categories - the best diet to have, the best physical activities to engage in and most importantly stretching; I remember reading quite compelling accounts of why, but most importantly how, stretching could increase a person's height. So I began my mission. For a short period the life I lived was exclusively in service of stimulating a growth in height. Moreover I discovered the fact about 'growth plates fusing', therefore my mission needed to be put into practice straight away, I needed to double my efforts given the precious time I had left. That was indeed one of the reasons why my regimen was so intense. It was so intense my back would ache and burn, my knees would throb. But I continued stretching.
Then at age 18 I was made homeless. In all the hostels I lived in, in all the homeless shelters I stayed in, one thing remained at the forefront of my mind. Height. So I drank copious amounts of milk, eating the most protein heavy foods I could find and stretching every morning and night. I never forgot how important this was. In fact the success I later came to have in life was related to this discipline.
Whether or not I have me being at the right age when I began to thank is perhaps open to speculation. All I know is that from being very short to the height I am now, I can thank two things my diet and stretching.
For the record I woke up at 11am this morning. As I stand (I've just measured myself) I am exactly 5ft 9inches (or 175.3cm). I'm 23 years old. I should note however that I've probably been standing at this height for the last two years or so.
Recently I've gotten myself back into the idea of being tall. That's how I've ended up here. LL is interesting but in all honesty I'm truly frightened by the prospect of it. I think it's an extreme measure to take and the potential complications are very dissuasive. Furthermore I think that, although stretching isn't easy; it's perhaps one of the most difficult physical exercise routines to be committed to - one can't do it properly if one has a real life, it's a lot more of a practical option than LL. The most difficult part is the will to want to be taller.
The extreme methods a person must take when it comes to wanting to be taller through stretching is:
Drinking lots of milk.
Buying a very expensive memory foam mattress.
Sleeping in a pencil position.
Doing stretches first thing in the morning and last thing at night.
Hanging from a bar.
This list is not exhaustive, but these are perhaps the ones that are the most demanding.
Also I should mention that because of some of the measures I've resorted to, my shins do hurt at the end of each day.
If my growing hasn't stopped, which I don't think it has then given the lifestyle I want to live, achieving a height of eventually 180cm which would for me be perfect (I'd still wear my lifts which make me 179 at the moment - it'd make me 184 by then) would also be possible.
Furthermore with the simple logic that at we all at one point begin to shrink since there are parts of the body that eventually take away your height, then it also implies that focusing on these same parts of the body, and manipulating their 'softness', then regardless of one's age, height increase is indeed possible.
Any questions just ask.