Got Tight Hip Flexors Just Stretching Isn’t A Solution!

Jessica Bento, Physical Therapist (Creator DVRT Restoration Certification, DVRT Rx Shoulder, Knees, Pelvic Control, & Gait Courses)

It’s a common complaint I get with not only my patients but my coaching clients as well. The tightness they feel in the front of the hip. I even get people specifically saying their psoas is tight and how do they work that out.

So what’s the psoas? Glad you asked.

The psoas is a muscle that helps connect the upper body to lower body. It helps with hip flexion as well as helps to stabilize the lumber spine while seated and is also part of the core muscles we often talk about. That is the cliffs notes version…it also does a bit more but for the purpose of this blog you get the general idea.

It actually originates from our lower thoracic spine and lumbar spine (low back) and inserts into the femur. It’s the only muscle that connects that spine to the legs. Pretty cool, right?

So why do so many people complain specifically that their psoas is tight?

Well, its not necessarily tight, that’s where people go wrong. They think because they sit often the muscle becomes tight or shortened or also becomes weak. People also think you can isolate the psoas (there is A LOT of tissues and muscles in the same area and the psoas doesn’t function by itself). You have heard us here at DVRT often times say isolating specific muscles is basically impossible and when were are talking about the psoas, it actually works with a few muscles, the psoas major, psoas minor and the iliacus (all muscles that make up the hip flexor complex).

Remember when I said its part of the core as well? Well, problems or issues with psoas can point to issues with the pelvis or SI Joint. It can be a sign of pelvic instability or core instability.

 

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That’s why stretching and trigger point work won’t always solve the issues, they can be a great start to feeling a bit better but if we don’t address the root cause we won’t really fix the issue.

So if you are experiencing a “tight” psoas and stretching and trigger point work doesn’t seem to be helping, adding in pelvic and core stability exercises my be of benefit.

Below I show some exercises targeting the SI joint focusing core stability

Don’t miss getting a FREE Core Ultimate Sandbag on ANY of Physical Therapist, Jessica Bento’s DVRT Rx online courses. Just use code “dvrtrx” HERE for this week only!

 

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