Balance Out Your Hips

Categories: Blog, blog Sep 06, 2020

There are many things that just go great together like peanut butter and jelly, sausage and eggs, shrimp and grits, and Batman and Robin. Ok, that last one is certainly debatable. Batman may be better solo. Anyway, there are things in life that just run well together, like flexors and extensors. Yes, they don’t only run well together, they are a set. If you buy one, you’re getting both. 

 

Your body is full of flexors and extensors. They are the dynamic duo of your joints. They move your body and give it balance. At least they should. Sometimes the dynamic duos of your body get imbalanced. An example of this would be your hip flexors and your glutes. 

 

Your hip flexors flex your hip and your glutes extend your hip. But as a sedentary life would have it, oftentimes the hip flexors become short and tight and the glutes fall asleep or forget their job. When the hip flexors are too short and tight, the hip really can’t go into extension. So the balance of the hips becomes lost and the entire posture of the body is thrown out of whack a bit. That and the walking stride gets impeded and less efficient. 

 

A lifestyle of sitting is no friend to the balance of the hip flexors and glutes. You might be thinking, “But, Tim, I’m a sitter.” Yes, we all are. Sitting is a part of life, and that’s okay. It’s when sitting becomes a way of life that we need to be concerned. But even if you sit way more than you should, your body can restore the balance in your hips. All you have to do is intentionally move your body in ways that loosen the hip flexors and wake the glutes. 

 

Here are three easy, feel-good ways to restore the balance in your hips. Or, here is a cool way to get woke glutes. 

 

1. Breathe this way:

1. Lie on your belly and rest your head on your hands.

2. Bend your knees so that your feet are pointing to the ceiling.

3. Place your tongue on the roof of your mouth.

4. Breathe in through your nose and try to pull air down into you pelvis. 

5. Do this for 3 minutes.

6. Enjoy the feeling of your hips relaxing.

 

2. Reach for the sky:

1. From this same position, take turns trying to “touch the ceiling” with your feet. 

2. As you lift your foot, your knee and thigh will leave the ground. That’s your glute cramping that you feel. You’re welcome.

3. You may also be highly aware of your hip flexor stretching/lengthening. You’re welcome, again. 

4. Do this for 2 minutes.

5. Enjoy stopping after 2 minutes.

 https://youtu.be/wog0aS688iI

3. Skate Away:

1. Get on your hands and knees and perform Speed Skaters.

2. Keep your head on the horizon and raise opposite limbs back in the same direction. 

3. At the top of each movement, pause for a count of 1-1000, 2-1000. 

4. Do this for 2 minutes. 

5. Enjoy the invigorating feeling of a woke backside. 

 https://youtu.be/E7t6lierLhI

 

Do this simple routine every day and you will discover free moving hips and better posture. You’ll also probably discover that it’s a wonderful stress reduction routine as well. It only takes 7 minutes but it counters the hours of sitting. Then like the Wonder Twins they are, your hip flexors and glutes will regain balance, strength and power, together. 

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