How to stretch the Iliopsoas muscle

[SearingForces]

i do karate as a living and i've done it for 8 years, the result of me training has caused the tendons in my hips to grow sorta thick so everytime i lift my right leg up about waist height and then lower it, the tendons in my hip rub against my hip causing a low pitched click. this is not painful to the front but to the side it can hurt so i'm just wondering will these stretches help ease my symptoms to my side?

[AcuWellbeing]

Is this stretch safe for me - I have a long standing prolapsed disc L5/S1 to the Left side with pain down the back of my leg and in my calf? Someone told me the Psoas muscle might be involved in the back pain I get.

[mmtondato]

Will this work for strained illiopsoas? Thanks

[JulieWebster1]

@mmtondato I would suggest you allow it to rest first and go through some very easy range of motion. As it heals then this stretch would most likely be beneficial... let your intuition and pain be your guide.  If it hurts, just don't do it yet!

[davbay100]

Fantastic video and stretch - thank you.

[dodgersnty]

Julie you rock, this is the first stretch I have found that actually works. Thanks much.

[JulieWebster1]

@dodgersnty Thanks! Glad it is working for you!!

[JulieWebster1]

@dodgersnty Great to hear!!

[BarbedWireHalo]

I have snapping hip syndrome where the iliopsaos muscle snaps over my hip bones causing hip and groin main. Would this stretch be suitable for me? Thanks

[JulieWebster1]

@BarbedWireHalo Hello- I believe it may help. Have you tried it yet? Providing it doesn't cause pain, I would suggest trying it twice a day for a week or so as it will take a while to see if it is helping. If you find it does, continue once a week. 

[Daynish4782]

That is also a great way to test and see if the iliopsoas and rectus femoris is tight.

[lonsjieponsjie]

thanks for the information!



[19grand]

great video.

[JulieWebster1]

@19grand Thanks!  Hope it is helping.

[wiam333]

Thank you very much, I've been climbing alot and whenever i have to downturn my knee i get a shooting pain in this muscle. also when I'm really frogged legged. this will help alot

[TragiicMagiic]

hi julie. ive just started kick boxing and its very hard for me to kick high because i get shooting pains in that muscle. is it because it is not stretched properly? i physicaly struggle to gain height in my kicks and am allways complaining.. it hurts!. how long would it take to stop myself from getting those pains

[JulieWebster1]

@TragiicMagiic Hi - It may be that the iliopsoas is weak and/or you are compensating with other muscles.  You might look for someone trained in Applied Kinesiology to test the various muscles and assist in balancing out their use / strength. Just google Applied Kinesiology.

[nolliedruid]

@JulieWebster1 Hey Julie you seem like the perfect to to ask. I'm 17 and involved in martial arts. When I move my legs and hips in certain directions hey make a popping noise, but there is no pain. Yesterday I was rolling around and stretching and injured my left flexor or possibly stretched it incorrectly. Now, when i sit in a chair and bring my knee towards my chest I feel a little pain. Thanks

[JulieWebster1]

@nolliedruid Hi - It sounds like you might have overstretched a muscle. It most likely will just take time to heal. The best thing would be to do range of motion so it can heal properly but not really 'stretch' it until it feels better. As for the popping... I have found, with some people, that is a tendon popping over an attachment site on the bone. In most cases, it doesn't really hurt anything. Hope this help!

[CamdensYard]

@TragiicMagiic: I used to have the same shooting hip pain in high school in extreme hip flexion. It took 4 years before I was properly diagnosed with femero-acetabular impingement. Essentially the head and neck of my femur were elongated and combined, rather than a spherical head and a thinner neck... over time, this malformation, along with soccer and other sports, caused constant bone on bone interaction (the shooting pain), a bone spur made this worse. Get to a good sports orthopedist!

[TragiicMagiic]

@CamdensYard tru that? idk if mines that bad bro it just hurts if i try to kick other then its perfectly fine i can everything its just a certain movement i cant do

[patnwat]

im 15, and i got a realy important football (soccer) tournament in 5 days, do you think thats more than enough time to "recover" ?

[JulieWebster1]

@patnwat No worries. You can do this stretch even the day before your tournament - Just give it 24 hours before the game and do it when you are warmed up. Also would be great to do after the game. Good luck!

[patnwat]

@JulieWebster1 ok thank you, and thank you for the quick response! this video helped me alot.

[roxyrolls65]

I pulled that muscle when I was on my boat and now everytime I take a step or 2 it starts to hurt, I almost feel like its bending me over. What can I do to make it feel better?

[JulieWebster1]

@roxyrolls65 Sounds like your muscle might be in spasm. I would suggest you ice the area 3 or 4 times a day for about 15 minutes per time. You may try doing the iliopsoas stretch but it might just be too much at this time. Try just lying on the floor to do it rather than off a landing. See if this gives you any stretch and if it does, continue with this until it starts to calm down. Good luck!

[ffferol]

Is that a MacIntosh chair, by gosh? Where did you get that gorgeous piece of furniture? Wow.

[JulieWebster1]

Those of you that have purchased my book, I'd love to hear how the other stretches are working for you too! Thanks.

[chrisfi3d]

just tryed it. Didnt realise once I isolated the muscle, how tight they were. Thanks!

[JulieWebster1]

@chrisfi3d You're welcome! :-)

[zwartrijder91]

THankyou a lot!

[killua1331]

Hi Julie, if you ever see this message. The same goes for LordShandor, why does my hip flexor hurt on the side that is being pulled to the chest? am i doing the stretch wrong?

[JulieWebster1]

@killua1331 My apoologies for the delay on response. Sometimes if the Iliopsoas, along with other hip flexors, are really tight they can cause discomfort when bringing the leg into the chest as the muscles are in a very shortened state. My suggestion is to lie on your back, knees bent and bottom of feet together. Allow the knees to drop out towards the floor and relax in this position first. After resting for a few minutes, try doing the iliopsoas stretch again. See if that works!

[LordShandor]

So what does it mean if the hip flexor hurts on the side that is being pulled to your chest?

[stacylive2dance]

omg i tried that stretch and it felt so good to stretch out that muscle mine are always tight from ballet ...and they keep me from doing a high arabesque or a grand battements,,, thanks Julie

[Incendia08]

Excellent explanation!  Thank you!

[ClintsFitness]

great video and awesome explanation

[JulieWebster1]

@ClintsFitness Thanks! :-)

[woodzapper]

Thanks Julie, this muscle is problematic for the majority of the population and often gets ignored with people presenting with low back pain. I work as a LMT and do work on the psoas with a lot of my clients. The stretch that you showed is even more effective if you have a partner available to pump the extended leg down towards the floor while the client maintains the hold on the flexed leg up towards the chest. Push and hold for two seconds for a set of ten reps. Blessings to all!

[kidskills]

Excellent explanation and demo to a chronic tightness problem for me. Will 'practice' the gravity enhanced stretch. Thank you.

[BackInsight]

The psoas is a unique muscle. It connects the backbone and the femur without attaching the pelvis. If we have shortened the psoas, and most likely we have through these depressing years, it will miss align the pelvis, possibly creating an anterior tilt to the pelvis. The key to repair is stretching, stretching, stretching.

[doodelay]

You are an excellent speaker

I dont think you said um, uh, or so...or stuttered at all in the entire vid

excellent

[JulieWebster1]

@doodelay Thanks! I actually miss public speaking... used to do it more. :-)

[wkriski]

Thanks for this, I've had chronic left butt pain for years from sitting all day for work. I haven't been able to figure out what is causing it but I got 6 months of relief during some massage and ART which had involved some psoas stretching/release amongst others things so I can't be sure. Since my curve is flat Not sure about anterior pelvic tilt as my lower back curve is flat.

[joshualancekemp]

Thank you for this video. I'm learning as much as I can about posture (structural alignment) as I look toward a new career.

Peace and Harmony

[UndeadSkittle]

This really helped me...I have been stiff and soar in my hips since I started working at home. I realize that I am sitting most of the day, and need to strectch these hip muscles more. Thank you!

[melodyinma]

is it possible this is why I find myself standing like a flamingo? I unconsciously do this lately....I knew it had something to do with my back/hip/leg pain & weakness...makes perfect sense!!

[TheReturnOfStephan1]

Thanks for posting such a helpful video! This past weekend, I'd experienced some pain in my upper left ab region. While researching possible causes, I read about the Iliopsoas muscles & the costs of sitting too long in front of a computer, with bad posture, to boot. I began researching different stretches &, as soon as I began to perform them, I felt a lot better. Thank you for sharing your knowledge & helping so many people. it's greatly appreciated. I'll buy your book, too!:)

[JulieWebster1]

Thanks for the feedback! So glad to hear it helped. I think you will find lots of great stretches in the book... :-)