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The psoas muscle is a central muscle located deep within the body, part of the hip flexor group. It lies on both sides of the body, and its primary role is to lift the thigh toward the upper body. The psoas muscle helps stabilize the lower back, pelvis, and hips. It can become tight or contracted if you spend long periods sitting, whether at work or driving. To alleviate tightness in the psoas, you need to stretch this muscle along with the surrounding muscles and tendons.
Steps
Stretch the Psoas Muscle
Start in a kneeling position on one leg. To do this, kneel on one leg with both knees bent at a 90-degree angle. Keep your back straight, tuck your tailbone beneath you, engage your glutes, and push your hips forward until you feel a stretching sensation.
- Hold this position for 20–30 seconds, breathing deeply. Then switch legs and repeat.
- For treating tightness in the psoas, aim to stretch 2-3 times a day.
Combine lower back stretches with quadriceps stretches. The glutes and quadriceps work together to support and strengthen the lower back. To stretch these muscles, reach your hands behind you and pull the back foot toward your glutes while in the kneeling position for a lower back stretch.
Rotate inward to stretch the entire lower back. Rotating the back leg inward while performing the kneeling stretch will engage the entire lower back more effectively.
- To do this variation, move the back foot across the body. The back leg should cross behind you rather than remain straight. This movement will cause the leg to rotate inward.
- Hold this position for 30 seconds, then switch sides.
Isolate the lower back with Warrior I pose. Step into an open doorway so that the right side of your body is aligned with the doorframe. Step the left foot across the frame and extend the right leg behind you, lifting the heel off the floor. Stretch your arms overhead, pressing both palms into the wall. Push your hips forward until the front knee bends at about a 90-degree angle.
- Hold this position for 20-30 seconds, breathing deeply, then switch sides.
- Using the doorframe for support makes Warrior I easier for beginners. Even if you're experienced with yoga, this variation isolates the lower back, allowing the stretch to focus more on it.
Stretch the lower back with the Bridge pose. Lie on your back on the floor with your knees bent, feet hip-width apart, and flat on the floor. Pull your heels toward your glutes. Stretch your arms alongside your body, palms facing up. Lift your hips so your body forms a bridge. Engage your core and breathe deeply.
- Hold this position for 5-10 seconds, then lower your body slowly. Over time, increase the hold duration during practice.
- Back-bending poses like the Bridge require full hip extension. This pose also stretches the lower back.
Challenge yourself with a variation of Half Frog pose. Start by lying on your back, hugging your right knee toward your chest while extending your left leg straight. Spend a few seconds settling your breath, then lower your right knee and place it over your left leg. Keep the right knee bent and roll your body to the left until your right knee and hip form a right angle. Then, turn onto your stomach.
- You can continue lying face down with your arms extended overhead or propped up on your forearms with your elbows at right angles.
- Rotate your shoulders backward so that both shoulder blades are perpendicular to your spine. The more you lift your chest, the more you will feel the lower back stretch. Hold for 10-15 seconds, then repeat on the other side.
Incorporate hip stretches into your routine. Exercises like cycling and running put a lot of strain on the hip flexors. Balance these activities with exercises like skateboarding or skiing, which naturally help stretch the hip muscles.
- If you're a gym member, complement your treadmill running or stationary cycling with full-body machine exercises.
Develop the lower back muscles
Warm up with the Frankenstein Walk. Stand tall with your shoulders pulled back. Make sure you have enough space to take several steps forward. Stretch your arms straight in front of you. As you step forward, keep your leg straight and try to raise it as high as possible. Lower that leg and repeat with the other leg.
- Walk about 10 steps, then turn and walk 10 steps back to your starting point.
- Try to maintain a straight back. If your lower back and hamstrings are tight, you may feel your back slightly bend forward.
- This exercise is named after Frankenstein’s monster because of its heavy, forward-moving motion. It helps warm up all the lower body muscles while also activating the lower back.
Activate the lower back with the Boat Pose. To get into this pose, sit with your knees bent on the floor and feet flat. Extend your arms to grasp your shins. Lean back until your elbows are straight, making sure your back stays flat on the floor. As your arms extend, release your shins and stretch your arms out to the sides.
- Hold the pose for 20-30 seconds, breathing deeply.
- For a full version, raise your feet so they form a straight line, with your legs and torso forming a "V" shape, while keeping your arms extended. Hold this variation for 10-15 seconds when starting, gradually increasing by 5 seconds.
- The Boat Pose strengthens the lower back, as well as the back and core muscles, improving balance.
Move into Reverse Plank Pose. From a seated position, place your hands behind you on the floor with fingers pointing toward your feet. Lift your pelvis using your glutes and hamstrings until your arms are straight and your knees are bent at 90 degrees.
- Beginners should hold this position for 20-30 seconds. Once you're comfortable, you can move into a full Reverse Plank by extending your legs forward, leaning your shoulders back, and stabilizing your arms. Hold this position for 30 seconds to a minute.
Develop the lower back with leg raises while hanging. Hang from a pull-up bar using either an overhand or underhand grip, then bend at the hips and raise your legs. Keep your body as still as possible, engaging your core muscles rather than swinging for momentum.
- Start with 5-10 reps. Gradually increase as your lower back and surrounding core strength improves.
- The bar must be high enough so you can hang with your arms fully extended and your feet off the floor.
- If you don't have access to a pull-up bar, you can sit on a chair and raise your thighs off the seat. For an easier version, keep your knees bent, or extend your legs for a more challenging version. Hold this position for 10-15 seconds, then slowly lower your legs and repeat.
Check and protect the lower back
Assess lower back flexibility with the Thomas Test. Lie on your back on a bench or table. Slide to the edge and pull one knee toward your chest. Keep your back flat on the surface, extend one leg upward, and try to lower it toward the edge of the table.
- If you have tight lower back muscles, you may not be able to lower your leg fully. You might need to arch your lower back to compensate for the stiffness of your hip flexors.
- It's common for one side of your lower back to be tighter than the other. If this happens, focus more on stretching the tighter side until both sides are even.
Test the strength of your lower back muscles. Stand with your back against a wall and bend one knee to lift your leg. Use the wall for support and raise your knee higher than your hip. Try to hold this position for 30 seconds.
- This test also checks the strength of supporting muscles, including your glutes. Perform the test on both sides.
- Your lower back is relatively strong, so you don't necessarily need to do strengthening exercises just because of tightness. If you can hold this position for 30 seconds, your lower back is not weak. However, if you can't hold this position for 30 seconds on either side, hip stretches may benefit your lower back.
Take breaks when sitting for long periods. Sitting for hours at a desk or in a car can cause your lower back muscles to stiffen or tighten. If your job requires long periods of sitting, your lower back can weaken over time.
- If you're working at a computer, try standing up and walking around for a bit every hour. Consider investing in a standing desk or a convertible desk to avoid prolonged sitting.
- If you're on a long car journey, make sure to pull over every few hours to stretch your legs and hips.
