Achy and sore knees are an all too common complaint.
And nagging knee pain can become a daily annoyance.
Knee pain can make walking up stairs or getting down on the ground uncomfortable and difficult.
It can make us fear moves like squats and lunges so much that we simply stop doing them all together.
It can hold us back from training intensely.
Knee pain can cause us to simply no longer enjoy the activities we used to love like running or jumping.
And the worst part is often we’ve done a ton of things to TRY to address the problem.
We’ve focused on all of the muscles right around our knee trying to strengthen everything to improve our knee stability.
But all too often this not only doesn’t provide lasting relief, but it actually BACKFIRES.
So if trying to strengthen the muscles right around your knees isn’t necessarily the answer, what is? How can you get rid of nagging knee pain for good?
First, there are two joints you need to be paying attention to instead of just focusing only on your knees…
Your ankles and your hips!
If there is immobility or instability at either one of these two joints, your knees are going to suffer the consequences.
All too often when we lack mobility in one area, we seek out mobility from another.
So if your ankles aren’t mobile? You’re going to search for mobility from your knees! Mobility your knees really aren’t meant to provide!
And instability at your ankles or hips is what can lead to improper alignment up and down your legs, causing muscles around your knees to even become tight and overworked, further perpetuating your aches and pains!
That’s why I want to share 4 essential exercises with you to address both ankle and hip mobility and stability issues.
4 Must-Do Moves To Prevent Knee Pain:
Improving your range of motion and stability at both joints can help you avoid perpetuating your knee issues and even alleviate the overload.
#1: Knee-Friendly Ankle Mobility Stretch
Improving your ankle mobility, specifically your ability to dorsiflex or draw your toes up toward your shin can go a long way in preventing knee pain during squats and lunges, not to mention when you run or ride!
Especially if you are suffering from knee pain currently, many ankle mobility drills can be uncomfortable as your knee will travel even past your toes.
That’s when this Knee-Friendly Ankle Mobility Stretch comes in handy.
Because the ball of your foot is up on a block or weight, you’ve put your ankle into dorsiflexion before you even shift your weight forward.
Most ankle mobility moves require your knee to move past your toe for the full range of motion.
But because of this starting position, your knee doesn’t have to travel forward that much for a full range of motion.
This can help alleviate some pressure on your knees as you work to improve that ankle mobility.
Keeping your heel on the ground with the ball of your foot up, shift your weight forward as much as you can. If your heel starts to lift, you’ve gone too far.
Then shift back and repeat.
#2: Single Leg Toe-Raised Calf Raises
It’s key you activate any weak or underactive muscles if you want to maintain the range of motion you are working hard to build.
If you don’t establish the mind-body connection to those muscles?
You are just going to keep perpetuating the same patterns of overuse, leading to your knee pain.
Having mobile, but also STABLE ankles is key if you want to avoid injury.
That’s why it’s key after you do any mobility work that you do activation moves to strengthen weak muscles and work to maintain that range of motion.
And especially if you’ve ever had issues on just one side, you want to address the imbalance with imbalanced prehab. Which may even mean doing this move on only one side or more reps on one side at least.
I recommend having your hands on a wall or something to help you balance so you can focus not only on driving off the entire ball of your foot for the calf raise, but also so you can focus on dorsiflexing your foot as much as possible as you move to your heel.
Make sure to move slowly lifting your toes toward your shins to sit back on your heel before lowering your foot to the ground to press up onto the ball of your foot. Do not just rock and use momentum.
You can also do this as a bilateral move instead if both sides need equal attention.
#3: TFL Foam Rolling
The TFL or tensor fasciae latae is a hip flexor muscle that is a common culprit of not only hip pain, but also knee and even ankle pain.
This muscle can have a far reaching impact because of it’s connection to the knee through the IT Band.
So if you’re a runner who’s had IT Band or knee issues, you need to include this move as part of your warm up!
When the TFL becomes overactive and tight, it can also try to compensate and work when your glute medius should actually be the prime mover. This perpetuates what has been called gluteal amnesia.
It can inhibit your glute medius from working correctly to support and stabilize your hip, which can also lead to further knee issues.
This simple foam rolling move is key to use even before a glute medius activation exercise as it will help you relax the TFL so it isn’t as likely to try to engage and take over.
Place a ball in the lateral side of your hip and lie slightly propped up on your side with the ball pushing in toward your hip socket.
Relax as you hold. To help the muscle relax and release itself, lift and lower your leg to tense and relax the muscle.
You can prop yourself up more or fully lie over the ball depending on how much pressure you want to create. Make sure you can actually relax as you hold. You don’t want to tense against the pressure.
You may even find standing to hold against the wall is better pressure to start.
#4: Extended ROM Side Lying Leg Raises
Improving your hip stability will help protect your knees. That’s why it is key you include moves to activate your glute medius.
The glute medius is a key hip stabilize, not to mention strengthening it will help prevent your TFL from becoming overworked!
Because a tight and overworked TFL can cause hip internal rotation and external tibial rotation, it can lead to our knees caving in during things like squats.
It can cause tracking issues so that your hips, knees and ankles aren’t all in proper alignment during even exercises like lunges.
Basically, it can lead to movement patterns that end in knee pain.
By strengthening your glute medius, you can prevent this improper movement pattern.
And that’s why moves like side lying raises or abduction exercises are so key.
By lifting this basic move off the ground to perform it on a bench instead, you can allow yourself to work through a bigger range of motion to strengthen the glute medius. This is even a great way to progress that basic move from the floor without adding loads.
Just be conscious you do actually feel your glute medius working and not your TFL taking over.
A great way to help avoid your TFL compensating is to turn your toe down toward the ground as you lift or even kick slightly back.
The internal tibial rotation can help inhibit the TFL while the kick back can slightly engage the glute maximus.
SUMMARY:
Using these four moves you can improve your ankle and hip mobility and stability to help prevent your knee from suffering the consequences of issues at these other two joints!
You can choose to include one or two of these in your warm up routine or combine all four for a quick mobility series. Even just 1-2 rounds through working for 30-45 seconds per move or side can go a long way!
Ready to say “Bye bye” to aches and pains? Check out my Injury Prevention Bundle.
Do the prehab work DAILY to keep those aches and pains away!
If you’ve ever suffered from lower back aches and pains?
You aren’t alone.
Lower back pain is one of the most common injuries, with at least 80% of Americans suffering from lower back pain at some point in their life.
And the worst part? All too often it becomes a continual annoyance.
However, too often in our attempt to prevent future issues, we do exactly the WRONG thing,
So what do you need to STOP doing if you want to truly keep your lower back from continually aching?
And what should you be doing instead?
First let me go over what is often actually occurring leading to nagging lower back aches and pains.
While there can be many different causes, and you always want to get checked out whenever possible to determine what is causing your pain, often our issues stem from our lower back becoming overworked and overloaded.
This occurs because of postural distortions from our modern lifestyles and even compensations and imbalances caused by previous injuries.
That ankle or knee injury you had years ago?
That can create a sequence of events that finally led to overload and your lower back suffering the effects of the build up.
But instead of addressing these others areas of immobility or weakness?
We instead only focus on the point of pain – our lower back.
And often we assume our lower back hurts because it is weak.
We believe that weakness is why it fatigues during moves and why we often feel it during core work.
So what do we do?
We find moves to strengthen it – like Supermans.
But this is often exactly what we should NOT be doing!
While supermans have their place in a proper core strengthening routine, too often we turn to moves like this when we have lower back aches and pains.
And all these moves do is further overload and overwork our already tired back.
They perpetuate the overuse instead of addressing what is actually weak and the areas that actually lack immobility.
So what moves should you be doing instead?
4 Key Moves To Fix Lower Back Pain:
When you’re suffering from lower back pain there are 4 key things you need to address, thoracic mobility, hip mobility, ab activation and glute activation.
You need to make sure you aren’t seeking out extra mobility from your lumbar spine that should be coming from your thoracic spine or hips.
You also want to make sure that your abs and glutes are strong to protect your lower back and prevent it from becoming overworked.
Here are 4 great moves to help you address these 4 keys and avoid lower back aches and pains in the future!
#1: Kneeling Thoracic Extension Stretch
Ever realize you’re constantly hunching over? Whether it’s over your computer, in a car or even just while sitting watching TV?
This constant flexion can lead to limited thoracic extension and thoracic mobility in general. And when our thoracic spine doesn’t extend properly, we may then seek out mobility from other areas to help us mimic proper movement during an exercise.
So if you’ve ever noticed you arch your lower back to keep your chest up as you squat or you arch your lower back to press better overhead, you may need to work on that thoracic extension!
A perfect move to do just that is the Kneeling Thoracic Extension and lat stretch.
To do the Kneeling Thoracic Extension Stretch, kneel on the ground and place your elbows up on a box or bench in front of you. Set up far enough back that you can drop your chest toward the ground, extending your shoulders, as you sit your butt back toward your heels.
Pull a towel tight between your hands to help you avoid your shoulders rotating open as you lower your chest toward the ground.
Then drop your chest toward the ground, focusing on extending your upper back. Brace your abs and make sure you aren’t just arching your lower back as you press your chest down.
You may feel a stretch down the backs of your arms and the sides of your back. Pause for a second then relax out and repeat.
If you can’t get down on the ground, you can also do this as a half wall hang, placing your hands up on a wall in front of you.
#2: Lying Bench Hip Stretch
Stretch out your hip flexors as you activate your glutes to improve your hip extension with the Lying Bench Hip Stretch.
The psoas, a hip flexor muscle, plays a key role in our posture and pelvic positioning. When this muscle becomes tight it can limit hip mobility, which can lead to underactive glutes and your lower back becoming overworked.
Often to compensate for the lack of proper hip mobility, you’ll arch your back during moves. And because your glutes are weak? You’ll try to compensate by using your lower back to lift.
That’s why this a great hip stretch to include. It can really help you relax the psoas as you activate your glutes to control that hip extension.
To do the Lying Bench Hip Stretch, lie back on a bench with your butt right at the edge of the bench. Let one leg hang down toward the ground with your knee bent around 90 degrees as you hug the other knee in toward your chest. Wrap your hands around your shin, right below your knee to hug it in.
As you hug that knee in, squeeze the glute of the leg hanging down to really drive your hip into extension almost as if you’re pressing the heel of that foot through the ground.
Pause then tuck that knee up toward your chest before extending the foot back down toward the ground.
As you extend your hip, squeeze your glute and pause before repeating.
#3: Lying Jacks
If your glutes are underactive and weak, your lower back and hamstrings will try to pick up the slack and work when they shouldn’t.
And either of those muscle groups becoming overworked can perpetuate your lower back aches and pains.
That’s why it is key you activate your glutes so they engage correctly during compound lifts and when you run.
With the Lying, you’ll target not only your glute max, but also your glute medius. This will be key to improving your hip stability.
And you learn how to engage those glutes to even control hip hyperextension. Too often we allow our lower back to become the prime mover in this movement, when really our glutes should be in control.
To do this move, place a mini band around your legs above your knees. Lie on the bench and press your hips down into the bench.
Engage your glutes to lift your legs to about parallel to the ground. Make sure you’re pressing down into the bench and using your glutes over arching your back.
Holding at the top press your legs out and open against the band. Control the press open then bring your legs back together and repeat.
To modify you can do this off the ground. Just make sure you are truly lifting using those glutes and not arching your lower back just to get up higher!
#4: Anti-Rotational Dead Bugs
Being able to avoid unwanted rotation and correctly brace your abs is also key to protecting your lower back. If our abs are weak, our lower back may engage to help us perform the movement.
Anti-Rotational Dead Bugs is a key move to include to help you activate not only your abs but also your obliques to fight rotation and protect your lower back.
To do Anti-Rotational Dead Bugs, anchor a band down low and hold one handle in both hands so your side is to the anchor point. Lie flat on your back with your hands gripping the handle extended straight up toward the ceiling.
Make sure not to shrug.
Engage your abs with a posterior pelvic tilt, tucking your hips slightly up toward your ribs as you lift your feet up off the ground.
Fighting the urge to rotate toward the anchor point, keep your hands pressed out directly above the center of your chest. As you hold, extend one leg out as you keep the other knee tucked in. Slowly bicycle your legs, extending the other out as you tuck your other knee in.
Move slowly. This move is best done for time on each side!
SUMMARY:
If you’re sick of lower back aches and pains, STOP allowing it to become overworked. Improve your thoracic and hip mobility while learning how to correctly engage and recruit your abs and glutes to protect your lower back!
You may be thinking, “Awaken my glutes?!” But if they weren’t awake, how could I stand up!?
While our glutes are working, otherwise we wouldn’t be able to stand up, that doesn’t mean they’re functioning well let alone optimally.
And the fact that you aren’t able to utilize that oh so powerful muscle group efficiently or effectively may be why you have lower back, hip, knee, groin, hamstring…even ankle aches and pains.
It’s also why terms like “dead butt,” “sleepy butt” and “gluteal amnesia” have become more and more popular.
So then why may we be struggling to awaken our glutes?
Unfortunately, our daily desk job, or work posture, may be partly to blame.
We often spend far too much time seated, which keeps our hips in constant flexion. This consistent hip flexion leads to overactive and tight hip flexors and underactive glutes.
You may be thinking, “Well I squat and deadlift if my workouts so shouldn’t that then activate my glutes?”
The simple answer is…
No.
And the whole “squat for a better butt thing” may actually be why you AREN’T seeing the glute results you want!
While squats and deadlifts are AMAZING and ESSENTIAL compound moves, we can often use improper recruitment patterns to try and mimic proper movement patterns when performing these moves.
Say whaaat?!
Basically, we’re using the wrong muscles to try and make the move look correct.
It’s why you may feel your lower back during deadlifts over your glutes. Or feel only your quads during squats. Or maybe even your hamstrings during glute bridges.
All of these muscles are becoming overworked trying to take on extra because your glutes aren’t pulling their weight.
And this compensation is what leads to overload of muscles that shouldn’t be made to carry the load of work they’re being asked to perform.
And that overload is what leads to injury.
That’s why I wanted to share 3 key tips to help you awaken your glutes BEFORE you lift, run or ride!
How To AWAKEN YOUR GLUTES – 3 Keys:
These 3 key tips will help you establish a more efficient mind-body connection to engage those glutes properly during exercises.
They focus on a key, but often missing component. of our warm up and prehab process – ACTIVATION EXERCISES.
Whether due to our modern desk job posture or even previous injury, all too often we have imbalances and compensations we need to correct.
These tips will help you do that to get those glutes firing!
1. Isolate To Activate
So you may be thinking, “What even are activation exercises?”
Activation exercises are very isolated movements that help you focus on only the muscle you actually want to work working.
These very isolated movements are the perfect way to make sure you’re actually engaging, or activating, the muscle you want to work.
In this case, your GLUTES!
Activation moves are isolation exercises done with bodyweight or very light loads. They aren’t the moves you focus on adding heavy loads to.
They generally have smaller ranges of motion and create peak tension on the glutes when the muscles are shortened.
These activation moves are often the “silly-looking” moves we dismiss because we think only women wearing leg warmers do them to get a bigger butt.
But these very targeted moves help us focus on what we feel working.
You want to think about these moves as a chance to use your MIND to engage the muscles harder not on trying to progress the weight you can lift.
You want to be thinking, “What do I actually feel working?” And actually KNOW what you feel working.
When you use these moves in your warm up, you’ll perform higher reps for fewer sets.
You want to create a “burn” or “pump” with these moves. This pump makes it easier for you to then know your glutes are working when you go into compound lifts or hit the trails.
But you don’t want to go to fatigue with these moves. You just want to feel your glutes working, feel that burn build, then stop and move into your training!
You also need to remember, you are NEVER above these basics. And the better your mind-body connection?
The easier it should be to feel those glutes working even with a very basic, simple moves such as the bodyweight glute bridge!
2. Activate And Stretch
Often when our hips feel tight, or we know we’ve spent far too much time seated, we turn to stretching.
But so often when we stretch, we’re only focused on relaxing the overactive muscle. We aren’t focused on then getting the correct muscles working.
It’s why it can feel like we spend all of this time stretching to just constantly end up tight again!
So while stretching is an important component of your mobility routine, it’s key we realize that by focusing on activation exercises we are also stretching out those tight and shortened hip flexors.
Through a process called reciprocal inhibition you are stretching out your hips by activating your glutes.
Reciprocal inhibition is a neurologic process where muscles on one side of a joint relax to accommodate the contraction of muscles on the other side of that joint.
Your glutes contract, which means your hip flexors then have to relax to allow the extension.
It’s why it’s so key we include those isolation activation exercises.
They allow us to focus on actually engaging our glutes to correctly perform hip extension and therefore relax and stretch those tight hip flexors.
Too often when we ask our body to perform hip extension if we haven’t first “awakened” our glutes, we end up arching our lower back to compensate or even end up creating other pelvic alignment issues in an attempt to mimic the movement pattern we can’t correctly control.
That’s why we want to include these activation moves to not only stretch but also engage those underactive muscles!
These activation moves allow us to improve our hip mobility AND our hip stability to prevent aches and pains so we can run faster, cycle further and lift more.
3. Use Different Postures And MultiPlanar Movements
When we think about our glutes, we have to consider all of the joint actions this muscle group performs – hip extension, hyperextension, abduction, external rotation.
That’s why it is key we address all 3 glute muscles and include activation moves that move our hips through multiple planes of motion.
You want to include things like lateral raises but also bridges and reverse hypers. You want to think about moves that are straight lateral raises to the side but that also include rotation.
And then you also want to consider different POSTURES.
While it may seem like a small tweak to a move, slightly different body positions can impact how easily we are able to establish that mind-body connection to engage those glutes. And different postures can even impact what aspect of each glute muscle we activate.
Based on our builds, and even previous injuries and mobility restrictions, we may find some positions harder than others to properly activate our glutes in.
This doesn’t mean we avoid these movements. It just means we need to build up to them or even include other moves FIRST to help establish that mind-body connection BEFORE we implement those moves we struggle with.
It’s why doing a seated clam type movement may be easier for you than a side lying variation.
While both are needed, as you want to be able to engage your glute medius through different degrees of hip flexion and hip extension, you also want to make sure to start with the move you can control and build up to the movement you struggle with.
If you just implement the other movement while NOT feeling the correct muscles working? You may end up making your aches and pains worse by PERPETUATING those improper recruitment patterns.
Basically, you’ll keep overloading the muscles that are overworked even while doing the supposedly “right” moves.
Being able to engage the correct muscles is key if we want to avoid injury and truly build functional strength.
It’s why we want to include a diversity of activation moves that work our glutes in multiple planes of motion using different postures!
READY TO AWAKEN YOUR GLUTES?
If you want results, you can’t just randomly string moves together “hoping” they’ll work.
You need to create a clear plan and progression.
And it’s not just enough to find the supposedly “best” activation moves and then just use those.
You need to actually be conscious of what you FEEL working during those exercise.
The “right” moves don’t get results if the correct muscles aren’t working.
Sometimes slight tweaks to form make all the difference…like turning down your toe and internally rotating that lower leg on lateral raises so your TFL doesn’t compensate for your glute medius!
Or like driving your knees toward your toes when you bridge up so you don’t feel your hamstrings or lower back taking over for your glutes.
That’s why I created my Booty Burner program.
I wanted to help clients activate their glutes with quick series they could even ultimately use as part of their warm up routine before their lifting sessions, runs or rides.
I wanted to help them establish that mind-body connection to improve their hip stability and mobility to avoid lower back, hip and even knee pain.
I wanted to show them how they could isolate to activate, activation and stretch and use different postures and multiplanar movements to get the amazing results they wanted.
I wanted to take all of the guesswork out of awakening those glutes to create those more efficient and effective recruitment patterns.
So if you’re ready to have a clear plan laid out for you with FOLLOW ALONG WORKOUT VIDEOS so I can coach you through the moves and help you modify as you need to actually get your glutes working?
These series, ranging from 3 minutes to 15 minutes are a great way to establish that mind-body connection and truly build strong glutes with a clear plan laid out for you!
The psoas has become the sexy hip flexor muscle to talk about and work on.
But what if I told you that all too often the TRUE culprit of our back, hip, IT BAND, knee pain and even ANKLE pain had to do with ANOTHER hip flexor muscle?!
What if I told you that you should actually be paying attention to your TFL or your Tensor Fasciae Latae.
The TFL can be a nasty little sucker, compensating for a week glute medius, perpetuating IT Band tightness and impacting everything down to our feet and ankles.
It contributes to internal hip rotation AND external tibial rotation.
Because of its far reaching impact it is a muscle we can’t ignore.
However, the hard part about addressing TFL tightness and overactivity is that many of the moves we need to do to CORRECT the issue, can often PERPETUATE IT!
For instance, to help prevent the TFL from continuing to compensate, we need to include glute medius strengthening.
But ever notice how you’ll do Monster Walks and feel the front side of your hip working?
Ever push through thinking “Oh yea! Feel that burn!?”
Or maybe you don’t even think about what is working. You’re doing the “right moves” so you just believe you SHOULD get results, right?
WRONG!
If you’re doing the right moves but still allowing muscles to compensate, not only are you NOT correcting the problem, but you may be making it worse.
So when you feel that front outside of your hip working during those mini band walks? Guess what is not working as it should and what is also COMPENSATING for that underactive muscle!?
Well your glute medius is not getting the benefit of the exercise it should be getting and instead you’re perpetuating the overuse of your TFL!
So all of that rehab? It isn’t going to pay off.
While you need to strengthen your glute medius, you need to realize that all too often our TFL can compensate for a weak glute medius.
Because this muscle then becomes even further overworked and even shortened, it can lead to lower back hip and knee pain, not to mention even IT Band issues and foot and ankle problems!
Yup! Through our IT Band the TFL can create movement compensations down our entire leg!
And when we then see changes to our ANKLE mobility guess what happens? Those changes only further perpetuate those compensations back UP our kinetic chain.
It’s why you can’t just IGNORE aches and pains. The longer you ignore them and keep pushing through, the more you then just allow compensations and imbalances to build up so there is more to have to sort through later.
If you don’t address TFL issues, you’ll end up having to address issues from your feet up!
So how can we prevent our TFL from leading to all of these aches and pains when it wants to work during the exercises we NEED to be doing to correct it?
Here are three tips to help you quiet down that TFL and get your glutes activated! And to then implement these tips, check out the quick series I’ve included at the end of this post!
As you go through implementing these tips, be CONSCIOUS of what you feel working. Don’t just rush through the moves! Be intentional with your prehab moves!
3 Tips To Strengthen Your Glutes And Prevent Your TFL From Compensating!
#1: Treat the TFL like a toddler. Keep it distracted so you can get work done!
Basically, you want to adjust movements to help make it EASIER to establish that mind-body connection.
One way to do that is to “keep the TFL busy” by internally rotate your foot during lateral raise, or abduction, movements.
Because the TFL performs hip internal rotation, you can almost “distract” it with that movement AS you use the glute medius to perform the lateral raise.
So if during lateral raises you notice you often feel the front of your hip, turn your toe down toward the ground.
You may even notice often that your toe is turned out toward the ceiling.
The TFL contributes to tibial external rotation.
So internally rotate your foot is the OPPOSITE action, which can help “shut off” the TFL. Not to mention when you internally rotate your tibia, you often then even internally rotate our hip by extension.
Maintaining this internal rotation, you can then perform your lateral raise movement.
If you still are struggling to feel your glute medius, you can even kick slightly back as you raise up OR put your hip into extension, driving back into a slider or wall AS you perform that lateral raise movement.
This hip extension and slight kick back will engage your glute max, which will also hinder the TFL from taking over and allow you to potentially better activate your glute medius. This works because the TFL is a hip flexor so by putting your hip into extension, you can inhibit it from working!
#2: Change the hip flexion during those abduction moves.
When you’re first starting to “rehab” an issue, you need to use the moves you feel the most and build off of those.
Basically you want to take the path of least resistance to establish that mind-body connection.
If you feel a move working those glutes, use that first THEN even dive into other moves because you’ve already established that mind-body connection.
To find that move that helps you establish that mind-body connection, you may need to adjust the exact POSTURE you use during basic abduction moves.
By adjusting the amount of hip flexion or extension you perform the move in, you can find a way to maximize your glute medius engagement and minimize your TFL compensation.
It isn’t a clear cut and dry rule of what posture is best so you may want to play around to see what matches your personal recruitment patterns.
For some more flexion may “distract” the TFL because it is a hip flexor.
However, for some, more hip flexion may perpetuate it being overactive during those abduction moves.
In this case, putting the hip into more extension may be key to inhibit the muscle.
While you of course want the glute medius to be strong in both a slightly more hip-flexed or hip-extended state, you do want to start with the move you feel working correctly to make sure you establish that mind-body connection.
The fact that hip flexion can play a role in how much you’re able to engage the TFL is why that oh so “basic” clam exercise can so often backfire too!
The clam is a traditional glute activation movement. But this seemingly simple move is so often butchered. First off, you may find you need to use that internal rotation of the tibia I mentioned in the first tip to help.
Secondly, you may adjust how much you pull your knees forward or straighten your legs out.
The key is being conscious of what you feel working to then ADJUST your exact amount of hip flexion.
A great way to play around with different amount of hip flexion during even a bilateral abduction move is even seated on a bench.
You can lean back, sit up tall or even lean forward to different degrees to not only strengthen your glute medius in a variety of postures BUT also find the exact position that works best for you.
We have to remember to focus on what we feel working so we can work around our own biomechanics.
#3: Foam roll and stretch BEFORE you activate.
If you struggle to activate a muscle, you may find that foam rolling and stretching the muscle prior to doing activation moves is oh so key!
While people debate the benefit of both techniques, with one of the main arguments against them being that the benefits are short-lived, that doesn’t mean you can’t use these “short-lived” benefits to your advantage.
By rolling your TFL and then stretching to improve your hip mobility, you can inhibit this overactive muscle, even if just temporarily.
If you interrupt that mind-body connection between your TFL and brain, and restore muscles to their proper length-tension relationships, you can then help yourself better establish the mind-body connection to the muscle you DO want to work – your glute medius!
So if you find your TFL is being a pesky little sucker and compensating for your glute medius no matter what posture or tweaks you do, try relaxing and inhibiting it IMMEDIATELY PRIOR to doing the glute activation moves.
Interrupt that communication so you can establish a new connection to those glutes!
A lacrosse ball is a great way to relax that TFL and even a simple half kneeling hip stretch with reach can improve your hip extension.
BONUS: If you have an imbalance do imbalanced prehab!
The one other key thing to note is if you have an imbalance, you need to do imbalanced rehab.
So if one side is constantly tight, you need to address that one side specifically.
You also want to assess if it is glute weakness on that SAME side or if there is even weakness on the OTHER side perpetuating the issues and leading to the TFL becomign overworked!
Of course seeing someone to asses you is key but KNOWLEDGE IS POWER. So now you can be aware of what you’re doing in your workouts and therefore why you are, or aren’t, seeing the results you want to seek out the help you need.
Using these tweaks you can help yourself strengthen your glutes and prevent your TFL from constantly compensating!
Now try implementing them in this amazing series below!
Quick Hip Mobility Series To Prevent IT Band Issues, Back, Hip And Knee Pain!
This Avoid IT Band Issues Series uses foam rolling and stretching to address your TFL tightness and overactivity. It even works to relax your peroneal (the outside of your lower leg) to make sure you’re working on any issues from the ground up.
It then uses two great abduction moves to activate your glute medius!
The Avoid IT Band Issues Series
Complete 1 round through the circuit below, spending a minute per move on each side.
CIRCUIT:
1 minute per side Peroneal Foam Rolling
1 minute per side TFL Foam Rolling
1 minute Standing TFL Stretch
1 minute per side Lying QL Stretch
1 minute Bridge Abductions
1 minute per side Lying Side Raises
Need more amazing series to improve your hip mobility and prevent lower back, hip and knee pain?
Want strong, toned glutes and legs? Then you’ll love this Booty Builder workout from my Macro Hacks program!
When our workouts and diet work together, we can get better results faster. That’s why if you want to lose body fat AND build muscle, you want to make sure you’re creating progressive overload in your workouts and challenging your body with not only heavier weights, but also different tempos.
We often turn to cardio when we want to lose weight or body fat, but actually focusing on BUILDING MUSCLE is oh so key to help us look leaner and keep our metabolism healthy and strong.
And you also want to make sure you’re including movements in multiple planes to also help you develop functional strength and avoid injury.
It’s key too, as we increase our weights and workout intensity, that we do NOT forget the prehab work. Get the correct muscles working and your body warmed up so you can work hard from that first rep of your workout.
Try this Booty Builder and feel those glutes, and legs, working!
The Booty Builder Workout
QUICK WARM UP OPTION: Complete 1 round through the quick stretching flow below as well as 1-2 rounds of the activation. Complete all 5 moves of the activation on one side before switching sides. STRETCHING: 5-10 reps per side Runner’s Lunge Flow ACTIVATION: The Side Lying Series 15-20 reps per side Lying Leg Raises 15-20 reps per side Lying Front Kicks 15-20 reps per side Lying Back Kicks 15-20 reps per side Lying Front to Back Kicks 15-20 reps per side Lying Bicycles
WORKOUT: Complete 1-4 rounds through the first circuit. Do not rest between moves but rest 90 seconds-3 minutes between rounds so you can try and increase weight while feeling your glutes work. Then rest 2-3 minutes and move into the Triset. Complete 2-3 rounds through the triset resting 45-60 seconds between rounds. Then rest 1-2 minutes and complete 1-2 of the exercise, resting 45 seconds in between rounds. If you’re looking for added calf and core work to target those two stubborn areas (and have time!), include the Calf and Core Burner. Complete 2-3 rounds through, resting only as needed between rounds.
CIRCUIT: 6 reps Dead Stop Pause Barbell Band Hip Thrusters 6 reps Fast Reps Barbell Band Hip Thrusters 6 reps Top Pulses Barbell Band Hip Thrusters 20 reps Top Hold Band Hip Thruster Abductions
TRISET: 8-15 reps per side Step Up to Reverse Lunge 8-15 reps per side Band Hip Rotations 8-15 reps Glute Bridge and Curl
EXERCISE: 20 reps per way 3-Way Seated Band Abductions
CALF AND CORE BURNER: 15-20 reps per side Single Leg Calf Raises 15-20 reps per side Single Leg Seated Calf Raises 15-20 reps Bench Two-Way Leg Lowers
What if I told you the solution was NOT to stretch them more…?
What if stretching them, while it may provide TEMPORARY relief is only making the problem WORSE!?
The best way to think about your hamstrings is like a rubber band.
When a rubber band is just hanging there it isn’t tight. But when you pull it out long, it becomes super tight and taut.
That rubber band becomes tight feeling because it is stretched out.
This is exactly the same reason your hamstrings feel tight. And it is exactly why more stretching is NOT the answer!
Your hamstrings feels tight because they are already pulled long.
So instead of stretching them out further, we need to address the postural distortions and muscular imbalances that cause our hamstrings to be overstretched, such as Anterior Pelvic Tilt and tight hip flexors.
We need to focus on returning our hamstring to their optimal length through addressing muscular imbalances and stability issues.
This often means we need to address hip flexor tightness and glute underactivity. It may even mean addressing lat tightness as well because of the impact our lats can have on our lumbo-pelvic-hip complex functioning through our thoracolumbar fascia.
This means that instead of spending a ton of time stretching our hamstrings we actually need to be doing the following things…
Foam Rolling Hip Flexors And Lats
Stretching Hip Flexors And Lats
Activating Our Glutes And Abs
But First…What Is Anterior Pelvic Tilt?
Anterior pelvic tilt is the “Donald Duck” posture – an overarched back and butt sticking out.
(Or in maybe little Miss RS Badass Duck…who’s going to be working on her APT hehe?
This anterior tilting of our pelvis is what over stretches the hamstrings and can make them feel tight.
The muscles that are ACTUALLY being shortened by this posture are our hip flexors. Which means our hip flexors, and not our hamstrings, need the flexibility work.
It also means that our glutes and abs need to be strengthened and activated to improve the stability of our hip complex to also help our hamstrings feel less tight and even prevent them from becoming synergistically dominant and overused (overuse of a muscle can lead to injury!).
While it’s key we recognize that each of us WILL have slightly different natural postures, and we shouldn’t “freak out” over fitting one ideal, we want to watch for overarching of the lower back, or excessive lordosis, ESPECIALLY if we struggle with lower back, SI Joint, hip, or knee pain or hamstring tightness and strains.
This posture changes our natural proper recruitment patterns during moves EVEN if we perform the exercises with technically “correct” form.
What does this mean?
It means that while the moves may LOOK correct, if we actually THINK about what muscles we FEEL working, it wouldn’t be the muscles that SHOULD be working.
Our body will take the path of least resistance to do the exercise we ask it to do. This means that it will recruit whatever muscles it can to replicate a movement pattern – even if it means using muscles that really shouldn’t be working that much.
And this is what leads to compensations, overuse and INJURY.
So we need to address our overall posture over focusing on just the single muscle that “feels” tight.
And we need to do this by:
Foam rolling overactive muscles.
Stretching shortened tight muscles (using dynamic stretching to even help restore proper joint range of motion).
Activating underactive muscles that may not be firing and working as efficiently or effectively as they should be.
Loosen Up Tight Hip Flexors – Foam Rolling And Stretching Moves
The first step in addressing excessive anterior pelvic tilt is to loosen up short and overactive hip flexors.
If your hip flexors are tight and shortened, they tilt your pelvis forward which then pulls the hamstrings longer. This is why your hamstrings “feel” tight even if they aren’t in need of stretching.
The first step in addressing tight hip flexors is foam rolling.
Foam rolling helps inhibit the communication between the muscle you’re rolling and your brain. It helps “relax” the muscle so you aren’t necessarily as quick to recruit it during other moves. And it then allows you to better stretch and improve your flexibility and mobility.
Basically, foam rolling can help you improve your ROM or range of motion.
There has been some “debate” about the benefits of foam rolling. And as a standalone exercise, the effects are short lived.
You NEED to then stretch the tight muscles and activate underactive muscles if you want the benefits to last. This is just the first step in improving your posture and mind-body connection!
Then after you foam roll your hip flexors, you need to stretch them. Depending on when you are doing the mobility work, you may use dynamic or static stretching.
Dynamic stretches are stretches where you move through a range of motion whereas static stretches are stretches you hold in one position.
Especially prior to your workouts, focus on dynamic stretches. They put the joint through a range of motion and also get your blood pumping.
Static stretches are better kept to cool downs as some studies have shown them to negatively impact your strength and power during workouts.
Below are 5 moves to help you get started addressing hip flexor tightness.
5 Hip Flexor Foam Rolling And Stretching Moves:
1. Psoas Foam Rolling:
The psoas has become a very “popular” muscle in the fitness world.
And the one most often blamed for our hips being locked up. This muscle can become short and tight due to the fact many of us spend far too much time with our hips in flexion – seated in the car or at a desk. So it is key we start our mobility work by addressing it.
To roll out your Psoas, a big foam ball/posture ball works best. Place the ball in your abs above your hip to one side of your belly button.
Relax over the ball and lie face down on the ground. Breathe.
Then move the ball, working your way around the side of your lower abs between your belly button and hip. After you move the ball, relax completely back over it.
If you don’t have a larger ball, you can use a tennis ball; however, the tennis ball will dig in more. To use the tennis ball, you will also need some books or a yoga block. Place the ball up on the books or block and lie over it just like you would with the posture ball. Relax and breathe.
2. TFL Foam Rolling:
The TFL or Tensor Fasciae Latae is an all too often IGNORED hip muscle that can contribute to not only hip pain but even knee pain and IT Band Issues! It can also hinder our glute medius from activating and working as it should. It’s key we start by foam rolling and then stretching this muscle. It’s also important that during our activation moves, we do not let it compensate and try to take over!
To roll out your Hips/TFL, place a ball on the side of your hip just to the front of the fleshy part of your butt. Roll the ball around and hold on any tight spots.
If you find a tight spot, hold on that spot and lift and lower your leg up and down. By lifting and lower the leg, you are flexing and relaxing the muscle, which will help loosen everything up as you hold.
As you seek out tight spots in your hip, bring the ball around front and right to the side under your hip bone into your TFL (right in front of your IT Band).
Again hold on any tight spots and even flex and relax your leg to help dig in.
Move the ball under your hip bone and again hold on any tight spots.
You can work your way back out to the side of your hip as well if you found any sore or tight spots.
3. Rectus Femoris Foam Rolling:
There is one quad muscle that crosses both the hip and the knee – the Rectus Femoris.
And because of this muscles impact on both locations, it’s key we address that it may be tight and shortened, which means it may need to be rolled and stretched!
To roll out your rectus femoris a ball works best although you can use a roller. Place the tennis ball on the ground and lie on your belly supported on your forearms with the ball right in the middle of your thigh. You can start down toward the knee or higher up toward the hip, but you really want to focus right on that middle portion of your thigh.
Rock the leg gentle slightly side-to-side as you hold on the ball. You can even flex and relax your quad as you hold. Then move the ball up higher on your quad and again gentle rock and hold. Do not just roll quickly but really breathe and relax as you hold on any tight spots.
4. Half Kneeling Hip And Quad Stretch:
Stretch your hip flexors and your quads with this stretch.
You can add movement by releasing your foot and rocking back out of the stretch before squeezing your glute to drive your hips forward OR you can simply hold as you squeeze your glute for a static option!
To do the Half Kneeling Hip and Quad Stretch, set up half-kneeling with your right leg back. It is best to do this with a wall or bench in front of you to help you balance.
Then reach back and grab your right foot/ankle with your right hand and pull it in toward your butt. In the half-kneeling position with your heel pulled in and the wall to balance you, rock forward and backward, pressing the hip forward to increase the stretch down your quad. Then relax back out of it and repeat. Complete all reps then switch sides.
Make sure to squeeze your glute as you press your hips forward to stretch your right hip and quad. Do not simply hyperextend your low back as you rock forward.
You can also simply hold and press the hip forward without doing the slightly rock, especially if using this stretch post workout.
Beginners can also use a towel to grab their back foot if they can’t reach it.
5. Standing TFL Stretch:
After you roll your TFL, you also want to stretch it as this muscle can be short and tight and compensate for your glute medius during abduction or lateral raise movements.
And when it engages and works for your glute medius, that can prevent you from getting the results you want and even perpetuate your pain despite doing the “correct” rehab moves!
To do the Standing TFL Stretch, start standing with your feet together. Then cross your left leg over your right leg. Bring the left foot over and back across until the big toe is even with the big toe of the right foot. You want your feet even so that your front leg (the left leg) is pressing the back leg (right leg) straight during the stretch.
If you struggle to balance or it is too much pressure on your knees to have your legs so tightly crossed, place the front foot a bit out in front, but make sure that you don’t bend that back knee as you hinge over to stretch.
Then reach your arms up overhead for a nice big stretch. After reaching up, hang over, reaching your arms down toward the instep of the back foot (right foot). Push your hips out to the right as you reach toward your right foot so you feel a stretch down the outside of that right hip and side. You may even feel it down your right hamstring and calf.
Hold for a breath or two. Then reach back up overhead and cross your legs the other way so your left foot is back. Again reach up overhead then reach down toward your left instep, pushing your hips out to the left. Keep alternating sides with a reach up overhead in between every time.
Try to touch the ground as you reach down while making sure to keep your legs straight.
If you really struggle to balance, you may need to stand with your feet together and not crossed over as you reach toward the outside of each foot while pushing your hips away.
How Can Your Lats Can Affect Your Hamstrings!?
When we have aches, pains or “issues” in a specific area, we often get very focused ONLY on that point of “pain.”
But all too often there are even mobility restrictions or imbalances elsewhere that contribute to the dysfunction. For instance, if you’re doing all of the things in this article and NOT seeing results, it may be time you start to look at your ANKLE MOBILITY!
So while the most common “culprit” of anterior pelvic tilt is tight hip flexors and underactive glutes, we can’t ignore our lats.
Our lats can play a huge role in our overall posture, affecting not only our upper body, but also our lower body.
Because lat tightness can not only perpetuate rounded shoulders, it can also contribute to anterior pelvic tilt.
And if we have excessive anterior pelvic tilt, our hamstrings really are the losers that suffer no matter whether it’s tight hip flexors or lats or both creating the posture.
So we can’t ignore our lats!
Below are 3 moves to help you start addressing lat tightness.
3 Foam Rolling And Stretching Moves For Tight Lats:
1. Lat Foam Rolling:
Rolling out your lats is a key first step to relaxing this overactive muscle. And even though we are focused on our lumbo-pelvic-hip complex, we want to focus on rolling this muscle closer to our shoulders to start!
To roll out your lats a roller is best although you can use a foam ball or even a tennis ball.
Start by lying on your side with a roller under one armpit. Extend the arm on the side with the roller up above the roller. Then rock forward and backward on the roller, rotating your chest toward the ground and then up toward the ceiling as you roll on the roller so it hits toward your ribs and then toward your back.
Hold on any tight spots you find then move it lower down the side of your back. Hold on any tight spots as you go and make sure to rock forward and backward as you make your way down your side.
As you work down your side, you may want to rotate slightly more toward your back. Work all the way from your armpit to about the end of your rib cage.
Be careful when rolling lower down your back into your low back. You do not want to arch over the roller and hyperextend your low back.
2. Child’s Pose With Shoulder External Rotation:
The Child’s Pose is a great way to stretch out the entire lat as well as the erector spinae (the muscles along your spine) and the quadratus lumborum (which is a muscle that can contribute to a hip hike…sort of like our back’s side bendy muscle or the muscle you feel when you reach to the side).
All of these muscles can become tight and overactive if our glutes are underactive so this stretch is an oh so important one! And the external rotation of the shoulders gives the lats just that little bit extra stretch!
To do the Child’s Pose with External Rotation, kneel on the ground and sit back on your heels reaching your arms out overhead on the ground. Rotate your palms open toward the ceiling rotating your thumbs out to the sides. Really reach out as far as you can as you rotate your palms open.
You can then walk your hands to one side, keeping your palms open. Pause then walk your hands to the other side. Again keep your palms open for an extra stretch.
3. Kneeling Thoracic Extension And Lat Stretch:
Working on our spinal mobility, especially our thoracic mobility can also help prevent extra overuse of our lumbar spine. If one area of our spine isn’t mobile, we’ll seek out mobility from other segments.
So if your thoracic spine isn’t mobile, it will cause you to seek out mobility or extension from your lumbar spine. This will only perpetuate or add to the overload that may already be occurring due to anterior pelvic tilt!
To do the Kneeling Thoracic and Lat Stretch, place your elbows up on a bench about shoulder-width apart and kneel on the ground in front of the bench. Make sure you are back far enough that you have room to lean forward and over and drop your head between your elbows.
Then with your elbows on the bench, relax your chest and head over, sitting your butt back just slightly. Press your chest toward the ground and feel a nice stretch down your triceps and lats as well as through your thoracic spine. Try to extend your back as much as possible as you press your chest toward the ground.
You can either hold here and breathe to stretch deeper or you can come out of the stretch and then relax back into it and try to get further with each rep.
Glute Activation Moves: Always Feel Your Hamstrings Taking Over During Glute Exercises?
Ever do a glute bridge or quadruped kickback move and only feel your hamstrings working?
Yes? Well you aren’t alone!
It’s because your hamstrings have become synergistically dominant. They try to do more than their fair share of the work to assist your glutes in moves that require hip extension or hyperextension.
Synergistically what?!?
Basically your hamstrings are doing more work than they should be to assist with a movement because you’re glutes aren’t working as they should.
For a glute bridge, your glutes should be the main muscle group working with your hamstrings assisting. But too often, it is the other way around.
It’s why you may do a glute bridge and only feel your hamstrings.
So while we are doing the right move, this only perpetuates the overuse of our hamstrings and can lead to injuries.
It’s why it’s so important we include glute activation moves in our routine. (Learn more about dialing in your glute bridge form to prevent yourself from bridging wrong.)
But isn’t as simple as doing the “right” moves. You must also really focus on what you FEEL working.
If you’re doing that glute bridge and NOT feeling your glutes, but instead feeling your hamstrings, you need to TWEAK the exercise.
Below are 5 moves to activate your glutes that help prevent your hamstrings from engaging as easily when they always seem to want to take over!
I did also mention that with anterior pelvic tilt you may want to do ab activation as well.
One way to do this DURING glute activation moves is by using the posterior pelvic tilt, especially during bridging exercises (and even some plank moves).
The posterior pelvic tilt is where you tilt your hips under, drawing your hip bones toward your ribs. This move not only works your abs but can also work your glutes more.
You would then bridge up as you hold the posterior pelvic tilt. To set up the posterior pelvic tilt before you bridge, here are some tips.
To do the basic variation of the Pelvic Tilt, lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the ground. Relax your arms down by your side.
Then feel the space between your low back and the ground. Press that space away by drawing your belly button toward your spine and “tilting” your pelvic.
You want to feel your low back press against the ground. Hold there with your abs braced and making sure to breathe as you hold.
Then if you are adding this to a bridge, you would lift up while maintaining this position. It is basically the exact OPPOSITE of anterior pelvic tilt. We are rounding the lower back.
SIDE NOTE But ESSENTIAL NOTE:
If you DO feel your hamstrings during a glute activation move, while you don’t want to stretch them between rounds, you may ROLL them!
Foam rolling your hamstrings may temporarily inhibit the muscle group, which means you won’t “feel” it as much. This can then even help you more easily FEEL your glutes working and focus on using them to drive the movement.
5 Must-Do Glute Activation Moves:
1. Mini Band Glute Bridge:
Adding a mini band to the basic glute bridge can be a way to progress the movement. It can also be a way to engage your glute medius and help PREVENT your hamstrings from taking over.
By activating our glute medius, we can actually better help ourselves engage our glute maximus. This then helps us avoid our hamstrings compensating! So if you really struggle with the basic glute bridge, try this variation!
To do the Mini Band Glute Bridge, you will perform a two-leg bridge with the band around your knees. To set up, place the band right above, below or at your knees. Below will be a bit more challenging than above. Make sure though that wherever you place the band, you feel your glutes working. Above the knee can help if you struggle to feel your glutes activating and instead feel your quads taking over.
With the band around your knees, lie flat on your back with your feet flat on the ground about hip-width to shoulder-width apart. Make sure your feet are just beyond your fingertips when your arms are down by your sides. You can move your feet slightly further away if your hips are tight. Make sure that your feet are at least about hip-width apart so that you are forced to press your knees out and open against the band to keep them in line with your ankles and hips.
Bend your elbows to 90 degrees and press your knees out against the band. Then, driving through your heels and upper back and arms, bridge up. Keep pressing out against the band as you bridge up. Do not let your knees cave in. Fully extend your hips and squeeze your glutes at the top. Do not hyperextend your low back at the top. Keep your abs engaged.
Hold for a second or two at the top then lower back down and repeat. Do not let your knees cave in as you lower back down. Keep pressing out against the band the entire time!
Adjust the band placement or even use a heavier band to make the move harder. You can also vary the move up by doing a Single Leg Mini Band Glute Bridge.
2. Band Y Reverse Hypers:
Being able to use your glutes to extend your hips, and even hyperextend your hips, is key. Too often during Reverse Hypers we allow our backs to do all of the work instead of actually extending at our hip.
By adding in the mini band, we can help engage our glutes better to prevent our lower back from taking over.
Because if we are using our lower backs to power this move, we are often going to simply perpetuate our anterior pelvic tilt by perpetuating overuse of our lower back muscles instead of activating our underactive glutes!
To do Band Y Reverse Hypers, place a mini band right below or above your knees or a booty band right above your knees and lie face down on a bench with your hips right on the edge of the bench. Grab onto the bench as you legs hang straight down. Push out against the band as your feet are on the ground so that your feet are wider than shoulder width apart. You want your legs to create a Y with your body.
Keeping tension on the band, press your hips down into the bench as you squeeze your butt to lift your legs up to parallel to the ground. Keep your legs pressed out against the band and make sure you are using your glutes to lift and not feeling your lower back take over.
Pause at the top and really even brace your abs by pushing into the bench. Then lower back down without letting your legs come together and repeat the lift.
3. Band Squat Pulses:
While often during activation moves we want to isolate our glutes as much as possible to focus on really establishing that mind-body connection, it is also key we learn how to do this in a variety of hip flexion positions and postures.
That’s why the Band Squat Pulses are key to include. The constant tension and smaller range of motion, really help you create that burn in your glutes!
To do Band Squat Pulses, place the booty band around your legs above your knees and stand with your feet about hip-width apart.
Sit back and down, pressing your knees out against the band so your ankles, knees and hips stay in line. You do not want your knees to cave in.
Sink to about parallel to the ground and then pulse a few inches up and down from here. You do not want to start below parallel and you don’t want to stand fully up as you pulse. You want the range of motion to be about 6 inches around that parallel position.
Once all pulses are complete, stand up.
Make sure your knees don’t cave in as you pulse and that your heels stay down and feet are flat on the ground. Do not round over. Make sure to keep your back flat and chest up.
Beginners may pulse over a bench or even hold on to help them balance. You can also stay up higher in the pulse squat instead of sinking as low.
4. 3-Way Seated Abductions:
As you begin to work on activating your glutes, you may find you aren’t as easily able to FEEL the correct muscles working during certain postures.
This may mean you need to first start with the variations you feel in the correct muscles before then moving on to those other positions. But you want to work to improve that mind-body connection from as many positions and postures as possible to help you avoid injury.
That’s why these 3-Way Seated Abductions are so amazing to include.
While you may start with just one based on what you can feel working during the move, especially if your TFL tends to take over (and you feel it in the front of your hip NOT the side of your butt), you can also use all 3 in a row. If you find you struggle most in one position, use that in the middle after you already feel the correct muscles working BUT before you’re at all fatigued!
To do 3-Way Seated Mini Band Abductions, place the mini band right below your knees and sit on a bench. Start by sitting toward the front of the bench so you can lean back and put your hands on the bench behind you. Place your feet about hip-width apart.
Then press your knees open against the band as you lean back. Your feet may rock open but focus on using your glutes to press the band open with your knees. Do not let your knees cave in as you come back to the starting position. Complete all reps then move to sit up nice and tall.
Sitting nice and tall repeat, pressing out with your knees so you feel your glutes working. After completing all reps, lean forward and repeat the movement. You can hold on the bench outside your legs to lean forward or just lean over even lightly resting your arms on your legs.
Complete all reps in each of the 3 positions. Make sure you’re really focused on pressing your knees out to feel your glutes while controlling the band back in. To reduce tension, you can start with a lighter band or put your feet slightly closer together, but make sure there is tension on the band even in that starting position.
5. Side Lying Extended ROM Lateral Raises:
Lateral raise movements are essential to include to activate your glute medius.
You DO need to be very conscious though that you don’t feel your TFL taking over! So you may find that you foam roll it between rounds or slightly kick back as you raise to the side. You may also slightly internally rotate your foot or turn your toe to the ground as you lift!
The added bonus of these extended range of motion is that stretch you put on the muscle at the bottom. This can really help you build strong glutes through the full range of motion your hip is capable of and even PROGRESS that basic side lying lateral raise without you even needing to add weight!
To do the Extended ROM Side Lying Leg Raise, lie on your side on a bench so that your bottom knee is bent and your bottom leg is close to the end. Prop yourself up on your elbow and position yourself so that your top leg can hang down over the edge and your foot is just a few inches off the ground. You can hold a plate weight on the outside of your top thigh, or wear ankle weights.
Then lift that top leg up and kick slightly back, feeling your glute medius, or the side of your butt, working to lift your leg. Keep that foot parallel to the ground or even turn your toe to slightly face the ground. This can help if you tend to feel your TFL or hips engage with lateral raises.
Do not rotate open as you lift. Lower that leg back down so that your toe touches the ground or hovers just an inch or so off the ground. You want to make sure you can lower that leg past parallel to the ground.
The bench allows you to have an extended range of motion from what you would have when side lying on the ground.
To modify, start with just your own bodyweight.
So…Should I Never Stretch My Hamstrings?
But what about those hamstring stretches you still see in warm up routines and recovery sessions?
Should you not be stretching at all?
While your focus should NOT be on stretching your hamstrings if you do have excessive anterior pelvic tilt, tight hip flexors and underactive glutes, this doesn’t mean you have to avoid hamstring stretches like the plague.
Especially in your warm up, you may find that dynamic stretches to put your hip through a full range of motion DO include a hamstring stretch component.
You do NOT need to avoid these. But spending a ton of time in your warm ups or cool downs focused on stretching your hamstrings IS going to be a waste and potentially even HINDER your results.
And this is of course talking about hamstring tightness due to anterior pelvic tilt.
With certain postural distortions you MAY still need to stretch your hamstrings. For instance, if you actually have POSTERIOR pelvic tilt, your hamstrings MAY actually be shortened.
However, the best place to start if you have a desk job, anterior pelvic tilt, tight hip flexors and/or stretching hasn’t really helped in the past, is to FOAM ROLL your hamstrings and NOT stretch them.
Foam rolling can help relax that overactive muscle so you can get your glutes activated and strong no matter WHY your hamstrings feel tight!
If you’re ready to improve your hip mobility and activate your glutes?
