HIP FLEXOR STRETCH

Hip flexor stretch

Your hip flexors — which allow you to lift your knees and bend at the waist — are located on your upper thighs, just below your hipbones. To stretch your hip flexors:

• Kneel on your right knee, cushioning your kneecap with a folded towel.
• Place your left foot in front of you, bending your knee and placing your left hand on your left leg for stability.
• Place your right hand on your right hip to avoid bending at the waist. Keep your back straight and abdominal muscles tight.
• Lean forward, shifting more body weight onto your front leg. You'll feel a stretch in your right thigh.
• Hold the stretch for about 30 seconds.
• Switch legs and repeat.

6 Exercise Machines You Should Do Without

Here are some tips from Men's Health....

While machines might seem like the foolproof way to exercise, they aren’t always the safest. In fact, sometimes they actually contribute to the injuries you were trying to avoid in the first place. Here are 6 machines you should lift without.

The Seated Leg Extension

The myth: It’s the safest way to work your quadriceps, or thigh muscles.

The truth: Physiologists at the Mayo Clinic determined that leg extensions place significantly more stress on your knees than squats. Why? Because the resistance is placed near your ankles, which leads to high amounts of torque being applied to your knee joint every time you lower the weight. What’s more, Auburn University scientists found that people who squat long-term have tighter, stronger knee ligaments than those who don’t squat at all.

The alternatives: Free weight squats, split squats, and lunges—performed with perfect form—are all better choices for working your quads and protecting your knees.

The Behind-the-Neck Lat Pull-Down

The myth: The best way to perform the lat pulldown is to pull the bar behind your head, down to your upper back

The truth: Unless you have very flexible shoulders, this exercise is difficult to do correctly, and can increase your risk for shoulder impingement syndrome—a painful condition in which the muscles or tendons of your rotator cuff become entrapped in your shoulder joint.

The alternative: Simple—just pull the bar in front of your head, down to your collarbone. You’ll work your back just as hard, but with less risk for injury.

The Pec Deck

The myth: It’s a super safe and very effective way to work your chest muscles.

The truth: This apparatus, also called the chest fly machine, can overstretch the front of your shoulder and cause the muscles around the rear of your shoulder to stiffen. The result: Doing this movement frequently can lead to shoulder impingement syndrome.

The alternatives: Forget the machine, and stick with exercises such as the pushup, dumbbell bench press and dumbbell incline press; they’re easier on your shoulders and the best way to build your chest overall. In fact, Truman State University researchers found that pectoral muscles are activated for 23 percent less time during the chest fly, compared with the bench press.

The Seated Hip Abductor Machine

The myth: This machine is the best way to work your out thighs, including your glutes.

The truth: Because you’re seated, it trains a movement that has no functional use. And if done with excessive weight and jerky technique, it can put undue pressure on your spine.

The alternative: Work the same muscles, but while standing. Simply loop a resistance band around both legs, and position the band just below your knees. Now take small steps to your left for 20 feet. Then side-step back to your right for 20 feet. That’s one set. This is much harder than it sounds, but you can do it anywhere, and it’s also a great warmup for any sport.

The Seated Rotation Machine

The myth: Twisting on this machine helps melt your love handles.

The truth: It works the muscles under your love handles, but will do little to reduce the fat that covers them. What’s more, because your pelvis doesn't move as you rotate your upper body, this exercise can put excessive twisting forces on the spine.

The alternative: As long as you don’t expect to shrink your love handles, you can use rotational exercises to work your obliques. But here’s the secret to safety: Before you do any rotational exercises, brace your abs forcefully—as if you’re about to be punched in the gut—and hold them that way as you do the movement. This limits your range of motion and helps to keep you from rotating excessively at your lower spine.

The Smith Machine

The myth: This machine—which looks like a squat rack with a built-in bar that runs on guides—gives you all the benefits of squats, but none of the risk that comes from holding a heavy barbell across your back. That’s because the bar can easily be secured at any point during the movement.

The truth: Because the bar runs on guides, you can only move straight up and down as you squat—instead of down and back, as you would in a free-weight squat. The result: An unnatural movement that puts extra stress on your knees and lower back. Need another reason to skip the Smith? Canadian researchers found that traditional squats produced almost 50 percent more muscle activity in the quadriceps than squats done on a Smith machine.

The alternative: If you’re not comfortable with barbell squats, simply do the exercise while holding dumbbells at arm’s length next to your sides. You won’t need a spotter, and your body will be free to move through the natural motion of the squat.

Hip Exercises

By Jeff Bayer Fitness Specialist

As you design your workout program, you’re likely putting a lot of focus on your quads, hamstrings, chest, back, and arms. These are the most noticeable body parts that men work since they are the most visible to the naked eye. Despite this fact, it’s important to think about some of your smaller muscle groups that may not look all that impressive, but will improve your ability to lift heavier during other exercises, and will also help you better perform many of the activities or sports you do on a daily basis.

Hip exercises are the perfect example of this type of less-visible but highly functional focus. The hip flexors in particular are a small muscle group that play a big role in the body. They help to keep the hips in the correct position, and they’re working hard every time you step up a stair, do squats or just get out of a chair. Having strong hip muscles will also help prevent back problems: When the hips are in alignment, the spine is in alignment as well.

an introduction to hip exercises

Here are some of the main hip exercises that will target the hip flexors and all the surrounding hip muscles.

Decline sit-up

While you may have always thought of decline sit-ups as stimulating the abdominal muscles, they also call the hip flexors into play. As you lean back past a 180-degree angle, your hip flexors are automatically going to start tensing, preventing the body from falling back completely.

Keep in mind that the hip flexors are generally a much weaker body muscle, so it’s not going to take all that much weight to get them stimulated and progressing. Aim to complete two to three sets of 10-15 reps.

Hanging leg raise

Another classic abdominal exercise is hanging leg raises, which make for another good hip exercise. To increase the intensity of this movement, wrap weights around your ankles or attach a cable to your ankles as you raise them through the air.

Maintaining the straight-leg position throughout the movement will be challenging enough at first, however, so be sure you’ve got that covered before adding any additional resistance. Perform one to two sets of 8-10 reps.

Cable single-leg raise

Cable machines offer a nice variety of resistance training options and are perfect for hip exercises. After attaching the cable to your ankle, select between 20-40 pounds, which is usually plenty to work your hip flexors.

From there, stand facing away from the weight stack with both legs straight and shoulder width apart. Begin to lift one knee up toward the chest, pausing for a second at the top before lowering again. Complete 10-12 reps on one leg and then switch sides for two sets total.

You can also do this movement with your leg going out to the side or back. The only difference is that you should maintain a straight-leg position rather than bending at the knee.

Lying leg raise

If you don’t have a cable available to you, another hip exercise option is a lying leg raise. To do this one, you will again attach an ankle weight, and lying on your back or side, lift your leg straight up into the air until it’s at a 60-degree angle with your body. Lower to complete the rep and switch sides to work both legs equally. Complete 15-20 reps on each side for two to three sets.

Stationary lunge stretch

After performing any hip exercises, you will want to ensure that you’re stretching thoroughly afterward because this muscle is prone to becoming tense.

One of the best stretches to perform for the hip flexors is a stationary lunge where you move into a lunge position, but allow your back knee to touch the ground. Once in that position, place your hands either on the floor in front of you or on your knee and slowly allow the body to rock forward gently until you feel a pull in the hip area. Hold that position for at least 10 seconds, and then switch legs and repeat two stretches for each side.

Stretch it out

The classic quad stretch will also stretch the hip if you think of pushing the hips forward slightly while pulling back on the knee that’s bent.

Doing these stretches regularly will keep the area lose and limber. Often hip flexors can also become tight from sitting all day at work, contributing to lower back pain. By stretching your hips every day you will help overcome hip and back pain.

hip flexor power

It’s a great idea to think of your hip flexors in your regular workout. They won’t be a muscle that you’ll build to a significant degree, but by strengthening them you can reduce your risk of injury and enable yourself to lift heavier on the weights that do make a difference in your appearance, such as the squat and dead-lift.

Back-Strengthening Exercises

By Tracy Teare

The Workout

These exercises were developed by Roberta Lenard, owner of Lenard Fitness, a personal-training company in Somerville, Massachusetts, and Anthony Carey, owner of Function First, an exercise studio in San Diego.

Hip Bridge

How to do it: Lie on your back, feet flat and hip-width apart, arms relaxed, and knees bent. Squeeze your buttocks as you lift your hips, creating a straight line from the knees to the shoulders. Hold for a slow count of two, then lower slowly. Build up to 10 to 12 repetitions.

What it does: This move counteracts the effects of too much chair time, which puts excessive pressure on the spine. It stretches the hip flexors and strengthens the muscles that stabilize the spine, including those of the lower back, the gluteals, and the large, stabilizing abdominal muscles.

Make it harder: Lift one foot off the floor and hold it straight up toward the ceiling, foot flexed, keeping the hips even. This is much more challenging, so start by holding this pose for just a few seconds. Repeat five to eight times, then switch legs.

Swiss Ball Hip Roll

Exercise Instructions:

Setup for the exercise ball hip roll by placing a mat on the floor and placing the exercise ball at one end. Lay down on your back on the mat and put your legs over the top of the exercise ball. Your calves should be on top of the ball. For stability, put your arms out flat on the floor with your palms facing down. This is the start position for the exercise. Using your core muscles, roll the exercise ball over to the left as far as possible. Repeat this movement for the right side. This is one rep, repeat for desired reps.

Tips & Advice:

The further you move the ball the harder you core has to work. Move the ball as far as possible for the best results.

Snapping Hip Exercises

Snapping Hip Syndrome Rehabilitation Exercises

You may do all of these exercises right away.

• Quadriceps stretch: Stand an arm's length away from the wall, facing straight ahead. Brace yourself by keeping the hand on the uninjured side against the wall. With your other hand, grasp the ankle of the injured leg and pull your heel toward your buttocks. Don't arch or twist your back and keep your knees together. Hold this stretch for 15 to 30 seconds. Repeat 3 times.
• Hamstring stretch on wall: Lie on your back with your buttocks close to a doorway, and extend your legs straight out in front of you along the floor. Raise the injured leg and rest it against the wall next to the door frame. Your other leg should extend through the doorway. You should feel a stretch in the back of your thigh. Hold this position for 15 to 30 seconds. Repeat 3 times.
• Piriformis stretch: Lying on your back with both knees bent, rest the ankle of your injured leg over the knee of your uninjured leg. Grasp the thigh of your uninjured leg and pull that knee toward your chest. You will feel a stretch along the buttocks and possibly along the outside of your hip on the injured side. Hold this for 15 to 30 seconds. Repeat 3 times.
• Iliotibial band stretch (standing): Cross your uninjured leg in front of your injured leg and bend down and touch your toes. You can move your hands across the floor toward the uninjured side and you will feel more stretch on the outside of your thigh on the injured side. Hold this position for 15 to 30 seconds. Return to the starting position. Repeat 3 times.
• Iliotibial band stretch (side-leaning): Stand sideways near a wall, your injured leg toward the inside. Place the hand of your injured side on the wall for support. Cross your uninjured leg over the injured leg, keeping the foot of the injured leg stable. Lean into the wall. Hold the stretch for 15 seconds and repeat 3 times.
• Prone hip extension: Lie on your stomach with your legs straight out behind you. Tighten up your buttocks muscles and lift one leg off the floor about 8 inches. Keep your knee straight. Hold for 5 seconds. Then lower your leg and relax. Do 3 sets of 10.
• Side-lying leg lift: Lying on your uninjured side, tighten the front thigh muscles on your injured leg and lift that leg 8 to 10 inches away from the other leg. Keep the leg straight. Do 3 sets of 10.

Written by Tammy White, M.S., P.T., for McKesson Provider Technologies.

Published by McKesson Provider Technologies.
Last modified: 2001-11-19
Last reviewed: 2004-02-03

This content is reviewed periodically and is subject to change as new health information becomes available. The information is intended to inform and educate and is not a replacement for medical evaluation, advice, diagnosis or treatment by a healthcare professional.
Snapping Hip Exercises

Hip Flexor Strain Exercises

Hip Flexor Strain Rehabilitation Exercises

You can begin stretching your hip muscles right away by doing the first 2 exercises. Make sure you only feel a mild discomfort when stretching and not a sharp pain. You may do the last 3 exercises when the pain is gone.

• Hip flexor stretch: Kneel on both knees and place your uninjured leg forward, with the foot resting flat on the floor. From this position, lean forward at the hip and attempt to press your pelvis down toward the floor until you feel a stretch at the front of your hip. Hold this position for 15 to 30 seconds. Repeat 3 times.
• Quadriceps stretch: Stand an arm's length away from the wall, facing straight ahead. Brace yourself by keeping the hand on the uninjured side against the wall. With your other hand, grasp the ankle of the injured leg and pull your heel toward your buttocks. Don't arch or twist your back and keep your knees together. Hold this stretch for 15 to 30 seconds. Repeat 3 times.
• Heel slide: Sit on a firm surface with your legs straight in front of you. Slowly slide the heel of your injured leg toward your buttock by pulling your knee to your chest as you slide. Return to the starting position. Do 3 sets of 10.
• Straight leg raise: Lie on your back with your legs straight out in front of you. Tighten up the top of your thigh muscle on the injured leg and lift that leg about 8 inches off the floor, keeping the thigh muscle tight throughout. Slowly lower your leg back down to the floor. Do 3 sets of 10.
• Hip flexion: Stand facing away from a door. Tie a loop in one end of a piece of elastic tubing and put it around your injured ankle. Tie a knot in the other end of the tubing and shut the knot in the door near the bottom. Tighten up the front of your thigh muscle and bring your leg forward, keeping your knee straight. Do 3 sets of 10.

Written by Tammy White, M.S., P.T., for McKesson Provider Technologies.

Published by McKesson Provider Technologies.
Last modified: 2001-09-04
Last reviewed: 2004-02-03

This content is reviewed periodically and is subject to change as new health information becomes available. The information is intended to inform and educate and is not a replacement for medical evaluation, advice, diagnosis or treatment by a healthcare professional.
Hip Exercises Link

Four-Way Hip Extensions

Another surprise in this study was the multi-hip (or four-way) extension. This exercise (which involves that weird looking machine on a platform at the gym) targets the hamstrings as well as the gluteus maximus and medius. This machine can be a little strange to use, so get a trainer or helpful gym-goer to help you with the adjustments if you need to. How to do it:

1. Stand on the platform, sideways to the roller pad and make sure the pad is up high.
2. Swing the inside leg over the roller pad so that it's resting on the back of the thigh.
3. Hold onto the handles to help keep your balance, and keep the abs in and the torso straight.
4. Press the roller pad down with your thigh until the heel is out behind you (knee slightly bent)
5. Don't arch the back!
6. Slowly bring the leg back and repeat all reps before switching sides.
7. Perform 1 to 3 sets of 10 to 16 reps according to your fitness level and goals.

Quadruped Hip Extensions

Surprisingly, quadruped hip extensions (or a bent-leg raise while on all-fours) came out on top for targeting the gluteus maximus. This exercise really allows you to contract the muscles of the glutes. How to do it:

1. On hands and knees, keep the abs tight as you lift one leg up, knee at a 90-degree angle throughout the movement.
2. Keep lifting the leg until the bottom of the foot faces the ceiling and the hip, thigh and knee are all in alignment and parallel to the floor.
3. Don't arch the back and keep the neck straight.
4. Lower back down and repeat for all reps before switching sides.
5. Add ankle weights for more intensity or, as in this example, hold a light dumbbell behind the knee.
6. Perform 1 to 3 sets of 10 to 16 reps according to your fitness level and goals.

Hip Strengthening Exercises

Where I train in Tae Kwon Do (Hwa Rang Kwan - http://hrksf.com/), there have been a lot of hip injuries lately.   It's normal wear and tear on overused muscles from kicking.  This prompted me to look up methods of prevention.

I found a great article on how to strengthen the hip.  You can do this as prevention, but if you have been experiencing hip problems, you should probably clear additional exercises with your medical practitioner.

Here's the article I found:

Hip Strengthening Exercises

By Laura Inverarity, D.O., About.com

Updated: January 7, 2008

About.com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by the Medical Review Board

The hip joint is known as a large "ball and socket" joint because the round head of the thigh bone fits into the cup of the pelvis bone. The hip is held in place by strong ligaments as well as muscles that surround the joint.

The hip is a common site of osteoarthritis. To help protect the hip joint from "wear and tear," it is important to strengthen the muscles that support it.

Review three quick and easy exercises that will target and strengthen the muscles of the hip.

Leg Lift:

• Lie on your right side.
• Bend your right leg, and rest your left foot on the ground.
• Slowly lift your top leg 2 feet off the ground.
• Hold for five seconds, then slowly lower the leg.
• Repeat 5 times, then change legs.

Hip Flexion:

• Stand up straight.
• Lift your right leg off the floor; bend it so that you create a 90-degree angle at the hip.
• Hold for five seconds, then slowly lower the leg.
• Repeat 5 times, then change legs.

Wall Slide:

• Stand upright with your back against a wall and feet shoulder width apart.
• Slowly bend your knees, sliding your back down the wall for a count of 5 until your knees are bent at a 45-degree angle (do not bend too much further than this as it will cause increased strain on your knees).
• Hold this position for 5 seconds.
• Begin straightening your knees for a count of five, sliding up the wall until you are fully upright with knees straight.
• Repeat 5 times.

The above exercises can be advanced by placing an ankle weight on the legs. Discontinue if any significant discomfort is experienced, and remember to discuss starting any new exercise program with your physician first.

http://physicaltherapy.about.com/od/strengtheningexercises/p/HipEx.htm