Title: Relieve Muscle Tension with Simple Hip Flexor Stretches
By: ProblemSolved, USA TODAY
Does working on your computer all day have your muscles feeling tight? Check out these stretches.
If you’ve ever run, jumped or been told you have good posture, you have your hip flexor muscles to thank. Muscle pain and immobility issues are often connected to problems within this group of muscles, which can be avoided through strength and toning exercises and proven stretching techniques.
“Stretching your hip flexors can help prevent and relieve muscle pain,” says Loren Fishman, MD, a professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation at Columbia University. However, it’s essential to use proper form when stretching these muscles to avoid harm.
The hip flexor muscle group consists of five muscles in the front part of your thigh and pelvic area. These muscles help with hip and leg movements and play an important part in both core strength and hip stability. Without these hip flexor muscles, you couldn’t lift your knees towards your chest, bend your body forward at your hips, or get around easily.
Caring for your hip flexor muscles involves avoiding a sedentary lifestyle and performing strength training exercises such as leg raises, squats, lunges, or deadlifts. It’s also important to avoid unrestrained movements or activities that could pull or tear your hip flexors. Hip flexor strain or tightness can cause complications such as poor posture leading to low back pain or neck pain and potential hip issues such as hip impingement, hip flexor tendonitis, or degenerative changes in the hip joint.
Muscle injuries to this area and tight hip flexors can often be avoided through targeted stretches. Stretching your hip flexors can also improve mobility and function, helping to increase length, loosen the joints, and increase range of motion.
Some popular stretches recommended by experts include lying on the floor, kneeling on the floor, and lying on your back at the edge of a bed or other elevated surface as you hang one leg over the edge and bend your other leg towards you while gently grabbing behind that knee to pull that leg towards your chest.
While performing these stretches, it’s important to keep it a comfortable stretch without forcing any motion. If traditional hip flexor stretches don’t suit you, yoga poses such as the bridge pose or camel pose can also be effective at stretching these muscles.
It’s also important to remember that different ages and body types have varying ranges of motion and flexibility, so some hip flexor stretches may need to be customized on a case-by-case basis. Consulting with a physical therapist is recommended for an individualized program to stretch these muscles.