How To Stretch Your Soul (Psoas) Muscle

You never know what you might encounter when you go exploring in nature... I mean crossing the street in Austin, Texas.

Check out what Ender ran across recently...

I’m not sure how I went from growing up with the dad that everyone knew as the neighborhood’s 'Rattle Snake Killer' to having a husband who stops to make sure a snake got home safely?!?!

It was alarming but NOT surprising that Ender decided to jump out of his truck to video the snake. One day I’ll share how we ended up visiting The Snake Whisperer on our Amazon trip in the southern region of Venezuela.

Fun fact snakes have more bones than us but no pelvis and have evolved to have no legs.

We obviously can’t change our shape as smoothly or as much as a snake but we can work on our mobility by targeting our Fascia (connective tissue).

Fascia is the tough connective tissue that spreads throughout your body in a three-dimensional web from head to toe. It holds everything together from the bones, and organs to the nerves, blood vessels, and muscles.

Everything is connected to everything by your Fascia.

How you spend your day effects your play. 

Your fascia takes the shape of what you do most.

If you sit most of the day, your hips are going to be tight in the front (your hip flexors).

Your PSOAS MUSCLE is the most popular or well known of your hip flexors.

It starts at the front of your lumbar spine (lumbar vertebra) goes under the organs and attaches to the front of your hip (i.e. at the lesser trochanter of femur) helping bring your thigh to your chest (bend your hip). ​

When the Psoas Muscle is tight, it can lead to low back, hip, groin or pelvic pain. 

It can also affect your posture and ability to stand up straight. 

It’s even been called the “muscle of the soul” as it can be tense or tight from holding onto emotional stress (fear, anxiety) and trauma due to being activated during fight or flight stress response.

Tight hip flexors can cause your gluteal (buttock) muscles to not fire properly which impacts your power, speed and stability. 

Stretching your hip flexors daily will improve your posture and performance.

️Here are 3 HIP FLEXOR STRETCH MOVES that go from less to more fascia.

​The tighter you are, start with the least amount of fascia and work your way to more full body stretches (i.e. supine > kneeling > standing positions).
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• If you have low back pain or a history of it (most of us do), the safest way to stretch the hip flexors is to lay at the end of your bed and bring your knees to your chest. Lower one leg toward the floor with the knee bent while keeping the other leg bent toward your chest. Breathe and let gravity slowly stretch out the front of your hip. If your thigh doesn’t touch the bed, you’ve got super tight hip flexors and it will impact how big a stride you can take. You can also do this with a yoga bolster or foam roller (more advanced as in pic) under your pelvis. 
• Remember to keep neutral spine (not too much flattening or arching) and engage your core muscles during all the stretch positions. There should be some space between the bed and your low back (enough for a flat hand to fit) as well as contact all the way through your sacrum to your tailbone.
• Start and end on your tightest side to help rebalance your body.
  
• Hold the stretch for a few breaths up to 2 minutes.
  
  

**NOTE: Sharp pain or shooting pain into the back of your bent leg means STOP. You should only feel a stretch sensation in the front of your hip (maybe Ito your quad/thigh also).

OVER TO YOU:

Do you have tight hip flexors?

If so, are you ready to give them some attention each day?

Your low back will appreciate it.

You’ll notice you have better posture and more ease with movement and walking kind of like that floating on air sensation when you get a new pair of running shoes.

Stretching your hip flexors is a great counter to all the sitting we do now.

Make sure to add Hip Flexor Stretches to your Rest Toolbox.

P.S. If you’d like to work on your gluts & get more healthy hips tips, check out this FIT Blog.

If you're ready to improve your mobility, posture & fascia fitness, get on the interest list for our next online Rest Camp here.

We do not provide medical advice.  Always consult your physician before starting a new exercise program.