Hip Flexors Get Tight From Sitting
You’ve heard it before….sitting is the new smoking.
People sit a lot. A lot! And, that leads to all kinds of issues with one being tight hip flexors. The iliopsoas muscles, your main hip flexors, play an important role in helping you maintain good posture and core stability. They each connect to the lumbar spine, travel through the pelvis, and attach to the inside of the femur (leg bone) near the hip joint. As a result, the iliopsoas are the only muscles that connect your upper and lower halves of the body. Whether you are sitting, standing, walking, running, or moving around some other way, the iliopsoas is responsible for providing stability for your lower back, pelvis, and hips — all of which make up the “core” of your body. It’s clearly very important for these areas to be strong and supported.
How do you know if your hip flexors are weak or tight?
If you know what it feels like to have tight hip flexors, then you know what it feels like to have weak hip flexors, as these often go hand-in-hand. Common symptoms of weak hip flexors include (but are not limited to):
Tightness at the front of the hip and/or the lower back
Reduced range of motion in the hips
Stride length when walking or running feels “off”
Clicking, popping, or clunking sensation felt in the hips when moving in certain ranges of motion
Difficulty activating glutes and hamstrings, which may also feel tight
Experiencing lower back and/or hip pain and discomfort after standing, sitting, or walking for longer periods of time
Or if your tight hip flexor always holds tension even when at rest. This happens when a portion of the muscle remains contracted (like having a muscle knot or trigger point). This impacts the ability of the muscle to perform its full function, causing it to tighten up as a form of protection to create stability around the hip joint. Perhaps the best and most effective way to test for this form of tightness is to press on these muscles. If your psoas and iliacus muscles are tender or painful to the touch, then it may be an indication that these muscles are constantly holding tension and are, in fact, truly tight.
This is a simple test you can do lying on your bed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mnjUi-41fI
When the hip flexors are weak, muscle imbalances can begin to develop in the surrounding areas of the body. This affects the alignment of the pelvis, restricts movement of the hips, and reduces stability around the lumbar spine. Ultimately, there is a chain reaction seen throughout the entire body. The mechanics of your body change and compensatory movement patterns develop. The pre-existing muscle imbalances become “stronger” and continue to hold your bones out of their natural alignment. Over time, this creates wear and tear on the structures of your body and leads to pain.
Strengthen your hip flexors to improve performance in your daily life
Having strong muscles around your hips (like your hip flexors, glutes, etc.) allows the hip joints to work in each of their ranges of motion — flexion, extension, abduction, adduction, internal rotation, and external rotation — and do so efficiently. Some Pilates exercises we do frequently for hip flexors include lunges on the reformer (front, side and facing back), feet in straps, footwork, hip bridges, isometric holds with legs in table top….the list goes on! But, remember, whenever stretching, only go about 80 percent of your availability so you can stay in the muscle and aren’t just hanging out in the joint….safety first.
Creating a balanced routine that involves a combination of releasing, stretching, and mobility alongside hip flexor strengthening exercises can keep your hips feeling strong and relaxed while helping your body feel at its best.