After I turned 50 years old ,I started to experience left hip pain and low back stiffness. Oh no I said …this aging thing is not going to go well. Well after a few weeks of this lack of mobility and performance ,the doctor in me started to research this. As a Chiropractor of 28 years, I knew there was something physically wrong,I just couldn’t put my finger on it. After reviewing the anatomy ,history and my clinical presentation,I concluded that it was my Psoas muscle. Pronounced as “SO-AS.”
As a result of bending over helping my patients for 28years ,the one muscle was out of balance and was a big part of my problem. This one significant muscle connects the upper body to our lower body. It originates from the upper lumbar[lower spinal bones] vertebrae and inserts into the inside of your hip joint. Its one major action is to bend your hip when your walking ,running, climbing stairs and a allowing you to flex forward to tie your shoes. This tightness will also happen to many millions of people who tend to sit for a living! A tight Psoas sets you up for chronic pain, stiffness and overall poor body performance.
As my research continued I realized that this power muscle ,because of its placement inside the pelvis could impact :
- Knee and low back pain.
- Postural problems.
- Difficulty moving your bowels.
- Menstrual cramps. An imbalance in your psoas muscles can be partly responsible for menstrual cramps, as it puts added pressure on your reproductive organs.
- Chest breathing. A tight psoas muscle can create a tilt of the ribcage. This causes shallow, chest breathing, which reduces the amount of oxygen taken in and stimulates strain of your neck muscles.
- Feeling exhausted. Your psoas muscles create a muscular stability that your kidneys and adrenals rest on. As you breathe in, your diaphragm lowers, and your psoas muscles massages these organs, increasing blood circulation. But when the psoas muscles become imbalanced, so do your kidneys and adrenal glands, causing physical and emotional exhaustion.
I stumbled over this powerful ebook ” Unlock Your Hip Flexors-The Key to Strength and Vitality”, it really help me take my hips and health to another level. Check it out here, Unlock Your Hips
Some self help tips you can do:
1-Reduce time sitting,get up every 30 min to stretch. See my video above.
2-Add a thick rolled up towel to your lower back when working or sitting.
3-You may need to take a break from running for 4-6wks,walk for now
4-Add Glut bridging exercises to strengthen the buttocks. Adding strength to the opposite muscle group can allow reciprocal[opposite] relaxation. Ly on back ,both knees bent up. Push both heels into the ground driving your hips up toward the ceiling. Perform 10x,repeat 2x/day
5-Have a Structural based Chiropractor check the joint functions of your hips and sacro-iliac joints.
I hope you find this helpful. Try these self-help tips and let me know.
In Health
Dr. Kahlid Mankal B.Sc., D.C.
https://www.barrhavenwellnesscentre.com/