Shout out to all my runners and cyclists who love what they do and dedicate the time and energy to the activities. We all have our own reasons for grinding through these rigorous activities. Training for a marathon, fat loss, keeping friends company, or because it’s therapeutic.
As a cycling instructor myself, I love the sweat, the adrenaline rush, and the feeling of accomplishment after an intense training session. It’s been part of my exercise regime for over a decade.
As we cycle, run, walk, and sit, our psoas major and iliacus (together known as the iliopsoas) and quads (rectus femorus to be exact) are predominantly engaged. The iliopsoas crosses over more than one joint
and moves the bones of the lower back, pelvis and hip. The rectus fermorus, a quad muscle, is also a hip flexor because it attaches to the pelvis, which also helps with hip flexion. These are some of our hip flexor muscles which, when overly active and tight, can lead to lower back and hip pain.
Exercises is a double edge sword. If we exercise too much, it can cause pain and injury. If we remain sedentary, the same can happen. The goal is to find balance, and Yoga is a solution!
It’s never too late or too early to incorporate a little R&R into your life. It will help with recovery, after an intense run or a long day sitting at your desk, increase coordination and range of motion, keep your muscles and tendons supple, improve blood flow, and prevent the aches and pains.
Try these 4 stretches with just a few minutes a day. Use these progressions to increase the intensity of the stretch if needed, or back off slightly if your body is really screaming. Hold the stretches for 30-60 seconds, or 8-10 deep belly breaths.
Check out my instructional video and note the key points below.
Lunge
- bring the right leg forward and square the hips
- make sure the right knee cap is facing the front just like the right toes
- activate your right hamstring to draw left hip flexor towards the floor
- relax the neck and shoulders and breathe. Think about breathing into the stretch
Quad stretch
- keeping the hips squared to maintain your balance, bend the back knee and bring the back heel towards your bum
- engage the glutes to open the hip flexors some more
- use the wall for more intensity
Figure 4/Pigeon
- open the right knee to the right of the mat and avoid crushing your foot – you’re not kneeling
- flex the right foot to protect the knee
- ensure the left leg is straight back with knee caps and thighs facing the floor
- square your hips so the hip bones line up with the 2 front corners of the mat
Stay tuned for part 2 where we will focus on the hamstrings, the muscles that help you flex, or bend the knee and directly related to lower back stiffness and poor posture.
Check out my e-book for some more info on these stretches and more!
What else would you like to see? Let me know and I’ll put together more videos and posts!
