Your Hip Flexors

This is my keen, observed opinion on a potential cause of the condition of struggling to walk, based on experience. This is not offered as medical advice.

INTRODUCING THE BODY'S MOST POWERFUL, primal muscle ...your hip flexors.  Did you ever consider that the problem might be your Hip Flexors???

Hip flexors play many important functions in the movement of your body:

•  Your hip is a bridge between your upper body and lower body. Hip flexors are at the center of your body's movement.
•  Sitting within the well of your hip and lower spine is the psoas major muscle, one of the two muscles that make up the iliopsoas. These two muscles are often called the mighty “psoas” (pronounced so-az) for the many important functions they play in the movement of your body. 
• The psoas is the only muscle in the human body connecting the upper body to the lower body.
•  The psoas muscle attaches to the vertebrae of the lower spine, moves through the pelvis and connects to a tendon at the top of the femur. It also attaches to the diaphragm, so it’s connected to your breathing, and upon it sits all the major organs. 

Are you with me so far?

•  A functioning psoas muscle creates a neutral pelvic alignment, stabilizing the hips, and supporting the lower spine and abdomen. It also supports the organs in the pelvic and abdominal cavity and gives you greater mobility and core strength.
•  Does your work involve a lot of sitting?

 Sitting impacts hip mobility in two major ways: it weakens the glutes and it shortens the hip flexors. Both your glutes and your hip flexors figure prominently in the activation of your hips. So, when they are weak and/or inactive, the lower back takes over. Now, the lower back or lumber spine isn’t designed for a ton of activity. It’s mainly there to provide support and stability. It’s the core, after all. But, with poor hip mobility brought on by excessive sitting and a weak posterior chain, your hip extension is no longer sufficient, and in comes low back pain.

 It’s a shame because our hips are obviously designed to generate a ton of power. The ligaments, the tendons, the musculature, and the bones in the region are all dense, hardy, and robust – they are made for activity and mobility.

 Do you see how it all fits together?

 Diagnosing tight hip flexors is tricky.

HERE ARE 3 WAYS THAT SITTING IS KILLING YOUR PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL HEALTH:

BULGING BELLY SYNDROME

Wonder why your stomach still sticks out even though you’re hammering core exercises every day? It's a common myth that bulging belly is due to weak abdominal muscles. The real cause is likely to be tight psoas muscles, which cause the lower back to curve pushing out the stomach. When the psoas works properly, it pulls the abdomen back tucking the tummy in, giving you a strong, flat stomach.

FAT LOSS INHIBITOR

As the body's "fight or flight" muscle, your psoas is deeply connected to your natural survival instinct. It instantly tightens in moments of danger to either protect you (in a fetal position) or help you run, fueled by the release of adrenaline. However, if your psoas is constantly tight, it signals to the body you are in constant danger, leading to overworking of the adrenal glands. When this happens, your immune system suffers and your body automatically switches into fat storing mode in anticipation of danger. Can’t shift that weight? Blame your hips, also known as your "survival muscle."

LACK OF SEXUAL PERFORMANCE 

Sitting all day causes your hips to become stuck in a forward thrust position. This leads to pulling on the lower back and decreased blood flow and circulation through the hips to where it matters. Buried so deep within your abdomen, it's no wonder identifying it as the root cause of any of your symptoms is difficult to do. It's why tight hip flexors, when left undiagnosed and untreated for far too long, physicians look for a simpler explanation.    

THE PROBLEM WITH SITTING 

First and foremost, if the muscles of the hamstrings are tight, they are more susceptible to tearing. No matter if you're an elite athlete, stay-at-home-mom or an average Joe, a muscle tear in the back of your legs can take months to heal and recover from, making life very challenging.

In today's world, most people make a living from a seated position along with sitting in their car and while at home. All of that sitting over time increases tightness in the hamstrings. Having tight hamstrings causes the hips and pelvis to rotate back which flattens the lower back causing lower back pain and poor posture.

In a more perfect world, everyone would get regular sports massage to help improve the muscle tissue quality of the hamstrings by increasing blood flow. Unfortunately for most of us, that isn't always possible. However, there is something all people can do by themselves which takes only minutes per day to help improve muscle condition and loosen up those tight hamstrings instantly. In a matter of minutes, you can begin to reverse the damage to the hamstrings and greatly impact how you feel. WALK!

 If you have a desk job or drive a car for long periods, you need to act NOW. For example, desk jobs can keep people from getting enough physical activity, and interfere with their ability to eat healthy, doctors say. Long and irregular work hours, loud noise, poor air quality, temperature extremes, work-related stress, job insecurity and exposure to harmful substances also can play a role.

Your intense core workouts could be doing more harm than good if you haven't loosened your hips first (and crunches and sit-ups won’t do a thing to help).

The "cure" isn't simply to stop sitting (you need to be more pro-active in targeting the muscles affected to undo the damage from sitting all day).

"Comfort" and "support" are the enemies of our natural physiology and we should start to move back towards our natural posture (forget pillows, support cushions and belts).

Tight hips affect your sexual performance through decreased blood flow and circulation and you can change it right now to achieve peak sexual health again.

Bones are actually very porous and soft, and as you get older, your bones can easily become less dense and hence, more brittle, especially if you are inactive.

Let's be honest, testosterone and growth hormones build bone strength and burn fat, while estrogen and cortisol tear bones and build fat. In other words, getting fat is one way of protecting weak bones not vice versa. Most of the time, you cannot see someone having weak bones, but if someone is fat, you can tell that they are estrogen and cortisol dominant and have weaker bones.

You need to keep your muscles in shape as you age because long periods of muscle atrophy are more challenging to overcome. Older muscles do not respond well to sudden bouts of exercise, so the key is also keep in mind that if you are older, and have been either sedentary or immobile for some time, suddenly exercising vigorously can cause scarring and inflammation of your muscles, so start off slowly and gently to work out your muscles on a regular basis throughout your life.

Buried so deep within your abdomen, it's no wonder identifying flexors  as the root cause of any of your symptoms is difficult to do. It's tricky.

 FOODS TO HELP STRENGTHEN THE FLEXORS 

Copper deficiency is tied to the improper formation of elastin and collagen increasing the risk of connective tissue presentations like allergies. It is only worth adding that copper can reduce blood pressure, rather drastically, so it should be introduced, in measure and gradually.

Copper. Its metabolic thrust is in the building of collagen, the main component of structural integrity in the tissues. Awesome sources are oysters and organic calf liver. Also try cashews for Copper, Manganese,  Zinc and Magnesium.

• Did you know bone/cartilage soups, (lots of Vitamin C, E and sulfur containing foods)?
• Did you know that dried figs are just as good as fresh ones for strengthening your bones?
• Did you know that canned salmon is especially high in calcium?

  I hope you recover your mobility.  Here is an extra tip. Click here to try this exercise at home. Always best to speak with your fitness trainer, kinestheologist or your doctor:  Hep2Go

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I would appreciate your feedback in the comments section and your words on how you are improving.

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