psoas-stretch

Psoas Stretch:
Why and How

Regularly performing this psoas stretch can open your hips, correct posture, and save you from certain types of lower back pain.

The psoas muscles are the hip flexor muscles that connect the head of the femur to the lower spine along the front of the hip joint. The psoas are responsible for flexing the hip, bringing the thighs toward the torso.

When we sit in a chair, our psoas muscles are in a contracted or shortened position. Driving to and from work and sitting in a chair for most of the day, it’s no surprise that many of us have chronically tight psoas.

Why should you be concerned about tight psoas?

When the hip flexors are too tight, the spine compensates with excessive lumbar curve. Your butt sticks out to the rear, while your stomach juts out in front. This position compresses the discs in the lower back and can lead to their degeneration.
The usual cause of tight psoas (sitting regularly for long periods of time without performing compensating exercises) also causes weak and inactive glutes.
- The psoas and glutes are two of the strongest muscle groups in the body, and when they are not functioning together optimally, other structures in the lower back are more susceptible to injury.
- Inactive glutes put the lower back at risk during heavy lifting.