Have a tight "hip flexor"? Let's Stretch that Psoas!
Psoas muscle tightness is a very common problem. It can be from sitting all day in the flex position to walking to running which causes a lot of hip flexion with each stride. The muscle originates from T12 to L4 bodies and discs of the vertebrae and attaches to the lesser trochanter of the femur. Below is a visual to help visualize this muscle and how its dysfunction can effect numerous parts of the body. The wide fanning looking muscle that the psoas combines into is called the iliacus. It rests in the iliac crest of the pelvis and inserts in the same spot as the psoas. They both have similar functions and insertions, which often results in the combined name iliopsoas.
The psoas helps to flex the hip, externally rotate the hip, and helps with movement in the lower spine, along with posture. There is often hip pain and lower back pain associated with the tight psoas due to the origins and insertions. The pull from a tight psoas can pull the vertebrae to several different directions depending on where and how it is stressed. It can can also torque the pelvis causing even further problems all over the body. The big picture is that this muscle does a lot and it needs to be taken care of!
Let's Stretch it Out!
There are many ways to stretch this muscle. One good way is to kneel down with one leg bent at 90 degrees. The psoas of the leg bent at 90 degrees is opposite from the one you will be stretching. Instead of leaning forward to get that strecth, try to pull your pelvis to neutral (usually a posterior motion). This can be done by pulling your gluteus muscle tight. Then raise your arm on the side of the tight muscle straight up. Next rotate back and laterally flex with that arm raised over towards the side of the leg bent at 90 degrees.
If you are doing this stretch correctly, you WILL feel it. The combination of movements listed above helps to best stretch out this commonly tight muscle. Below is a youtube video showing a stretch, but with a slightly modified version than the one I explain just previous. I will film this stretch at some point and post my own demonstration. It is however still a quality stretch the way it is describe on the youtube video.
Now go off and make sure you stretch those tight puppies out! If stretching doesn't do the trick, try to get someone to do soft tissue release work on your psoas.
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