The muscles you don’t see have a huge impact on the muscles you see, and the hip flexors fall into this category. Although not seen, the strength and performance of the hip flexors directly affect lower body training, speed, and lower back.
What are hip flexors?
These muscles connect the torso and lower body. They cross the hip joint from the lower spine to the inner thigh and are one of the main stabilizers of the back of your body.
The three muscles that make up the hip flexors are the psoas major, the psoas minor, and the iliac. From a performance standpoint, tight and weak hip flexors can cause mobility issues that will affect squat depth and deadlift. Because of this, your glutes may also be weak, and this spells bad news for your lower back.
Also, when you sit too much, the hip flexors can round like a banana, so that when you stand up, they pull on your back and make you more prone to pain and injury.
Anatomy of the hip flexors
Hip flexor mobility plays a key role in allowing you to squat and deadlift, as they are necessary for full hip extension. Strong, mobile hip flexors allow you to run, jump, and squat deeply. They extend from the anterior pelvis to the femur and play an important role in keeping the pelvis aligned.
They are small but important muscles, and understanding what it is and how it works is important for a stronger, better-looking lower body.
Psoas (major and minor)
It is a long, thick, spindle-shaped muscle that originates from the thoracic / lumbar region T12-L4 lateral to the lumbar vertebrae and medial to the quadratus lumbar muscle. It inserts into the femur through the iliopsoas tendon. Its actions are the flexion of the hip and the trunk and help in the lateral rotation of the thigh .
The psoas major is often paired with the iliac muscle as it fuses with the iliac and inserts into the femur. Together they are called the iliopsoas muscle.
Iliac
The iliac is a triangular-shaped muscle that originates from the iliac fossa, the iliac crest, and the lateral aspect of the sacrum. It inserts into the lesser trochanter of the femur and the muscle fibers of the ilium then fuse with the more lateral fibers of the psoas major to form the iliopsoas muscle. Its main actions are hip flexion.
Benefits of training the hip flexors
These allow us to move and stay upright because its lumbar curve supports and transfers the weight above it. This muscle helps create the lumbar curve as it pulls the vertebrae forward and down and plays an essential role in locomotion and most lower body strength exercises.
Improved hip mobility
A weak hip flexor is usually a tight flexor. By strengthening the hip flexors, you will improve hip mobility and strengthen all parts of your squats and deadlifts, which also leads to better hypertrophy potential.
You will run more efficiently
The length and strength of the hip flexors directly affect hip extension. A stiff or weak hip flexor means that the hip will not fully extend and therefore slow you down. The more explosive and strong your hip flexor muscles are, the greater your ability to get off the ground faster.
Reduction of lumbar problems
The hip flexors are a stabilizer for the back and a connector between the lower and upper body. If they become tight or stiff, the hip flexors can pull the lower back into greater lordosis, causing an anterior pelvic tilt that makes you more prone to lower back pain and problems.
How to warm them up before training?
You can skip the hip flexor warm-up, but your performance may suffer. It’s best to spend a few minutes driving blood flow to this area in combination with some hip activation exercise to get the most out of your lower body workout.
If you train in the morning or spend the day sitting, rolling your hip flexors and quads with foam rollers is a great way to prepare them for action. 10-15 twists, focusing on tight, sore spots.
After rolling, low-intensity movements like passive leg lowering for 10 reps on each leg, mid-kneeling hip flexor stretch for 30 seconds on each side, or dead bugs for 6 reps are great ways to prepare. hip flexors for action.
The best exercises for hip flexors
Mid-knee hip flexor stretch
The half-kneeling position is the ideal stretch to open the hip flexors and is often one of the most difficult exercises out there. That being said, when done correctly by placing your body in the correct position and activating your glutes, you will feel the magic of the hip flexors. This stretch will mobilize your hips, strengthen them, improve posture, and possibly help back pain. Plus, it’s a great position to get up from for more core and hip engagement.
Isometric hip flexion with mini band
If your hip flexors are tight, they are likely weak, and this isometric exercise can help you regain strength in the area. Weak hip flexors can lead to hip joint problems including misalignment of the spinal vertebrae. Weak flexors can also strain the lower back. And if you have a hard time doing this exercise, then working on strength should be a priority.
Press Pallof half kneeling
Proximal stability training (that is, training that involves the core and trunk) leads to distal mobility (hips and shoulders). The stability of the training core affects the distal joints, providing more mobility to those joints. The mid-kneeling Pallof press will improve core stability and hip mobility at the same time. The position increases the demand for the core and hip stabilizers.
Passive leg lowering
Passive leg lowering doesn’t seem like a big deal, but there’s a lot going on with this exercise. While one hip is flexed, meaning the hamstring is stretched, the opposite leg goes into flexion and extension while the core remains stable. This is called hip separation, where one hip flexes while the other is extended. This is the foundation of our locomotion and of most single leg exercises. If you have problems with this, your mobility should improve.
Bulgarian kettlebell squat with front support
Most lifters know that hip mobility, upper back strength, and leg momentum are essentials for pulling heavy, and this exercise covers all of those bases. Because your back leg is elevated, you perform a longer range of motion to help improve hip strength and mobility. Therefore, with the weight loaded on the front, core strength is a huge factor, as your body is struggling to stay upright.
