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Lower Back Pain Causes & Solutions Hip Flexor Stretch

(The Sir Galahad)

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Hip Flexor Stretch:- Start Position
  1. Kneel with your right knee on the ground and your left knee up (see diagram).
  2. Pelvic Neutral
  3. Anchor your scapulas.
  4. Chin gently tucked and neck lengthening upwards.
  5. If you need to, steady yourself by resting one hand against the wall or on a chair back.
Hip Flexor Stretch:- Action
  1. Zip and hollow and breathe in.
  2. (Breathing out): clench your right butock & lean forward while keeping torso and pelvis upright.
  3. (Breathing in): maintain "Zip and Hollow", and at the same time, return to the start position.
  4. Five times each leg!
Note: To emphasize the stretch in the psoas muscle, arch your back & lean backwards as you perform the stretch. Provided you clench your buttock on the side being stretched & maintain "zip and hollow", this is a safe stretch.

Watch Points for the Hip Flexor Stretch

  • The aim is to maintain a stable pelvis, not to do an all out stretch! Do not let the Psoas and other hip flexor muscles cause your pelvis and torso to deviate.
  • Keep the rest of your body relaxed!
Hip flexor stretch, tight weak psoas muscle golfers, (Scroll right>>>>...)
The Hip Flexor Stretch:-
Start Position:-
Hip Flexor Stretch 		Action:-
Pilates Stretches- The Hip Flexor Stretch:-
Picture: The Hip Flexor Muscles Top right - Iliacus and Psoas, bottomn left - Rectus femoris, bottomn right - Tensor Fascia lata and Sartorius View of Psoas and Iliacus Muscles & Ligaments
prectusfemoris
 psartoriustfl


Hip Flexor Muscle Stretch © Bruce Thomson, EasyVigour Project scroll up^^^^.....
What the Hip Flexor Stretch does-
  • Teaches you to move your hip joints into extension while not moving your lumbar spine. Your abdominal muscles are working hard to achieve the desired lumbo-pelvic stability!
  • This is a multiple hip flexor stretch (it stretches the Psoas, Iliacus, Rectus femoris, Sartorius and Tensor fascia lata). It is ideal in that it will tend to stretch the hip flexor muscle that is tightest and most in need of stretching.
  • The positioning of the legs in the "Hip Flexor Stretch" is similar to that of a runner in the "toe off" phase of his stride, so it is good practice for rotational stability of the pelvis while running.
  • Very important for golfers! - read on!
Comment: Very important for golfers!
Golf puts extra strain upon the right Psoas muscle. If you play golf in the weekend & sit at a desk the remainder of the week (Hip flexors held in a shortened position), you will be prone to trigger points & "tight weak" psoas muscle. If you play golf & have "tight weak" hip flexors & especially "tight weak" psoas muscle, check the references below.

Reference
  1. Bruce Thomson Pain upon hip extension
  2. Bruce Thomson Hip Flexor Stretch for Iliopsoas
  3. Hip Flexor Stretch routines, pga golf:- http://www.shark.com/ - Hip Flexor Stretches
  4. Web Resource for Psoas muscle:- http://www.coreawareness.com/
  5. Clair Davies: Triggerpoint Therapy Workbook - ) Publ. New Harbinger Publications 2001