Joint Mobilization- Hip
In this post I’m going to show you a joint mobilization for the front of the hip/psoas area. To do it you’re going to need some elastic tubing/resistance band or a strap that someone else can hold for you.
The whole goal of this mob (mobilization) is to use the strap to glide the femur forward and then push your hips forward with it opening up that space at the front of the joint.
Key Points:
1) keep your back straight and abs tight. The first goal is to keep your hips level and back straight. If you can’t, work towards that before lunging forward. Squat down and then come back into the start position for reps.
2) the back leg should be completely relaxed. let the strap do the work for you.
3) This is not a traditional stretch. No hold time is required. Go for reps instead. 10-20 will do the trick. If you hit a pain point/strong stretch, stop there, hold for 1 second, and then repeat for the remainder of the reps. You don’t need to be a tough guy. You want this stuff to be repeatable. 
4) Follow up with ice if you are hitting any sore/painful points. 10-15 minutes right on the front of the hip.
Progression (ways to increase stretch):
1) Start with the lunge position. 10 reps.
2) Start with the lunge position, move forward like you normally do, and then bring your arm up overhead and lean/side bend to the opposite side. This will increase the stretch on the upper psoas/hip flexor where it attaches to your lumbar spine. 10 reps.
3) Start with the lunge position, but before you move forward, bend the back knee up. You can either prop it on something or hold your ankle. If you do prop your foot up on something like a table or the wall, be sure to come up straight with your back BEFORE you move forward. This will greatly increase the pull in your thigh as the quads will be on maximal stretch up in to the hip. Start off easy and work your way up. 10 reps.
Ian Johnsen MSPT
19 March 2011 at 12:11 pm
A good effort Leigh, but the described and actual result of the task you are performing does not match.
A Joint mobilization is a term used for actually increasing the length/flexibility of the joint capsule. This may be a secondary effect of the dynamic stretch you describe, but a true joint mobilization requires placing the joint into what is referred to as a loose packed position and providing appropriate amounts of force graded at a level of 1-4. (The 1-4 represents the distance of travel/joint glide provided. The mobs are held for 10 seconds as noted in your link, but the joint needs to be totally relaxed.
The loose packed is the most open/decompressed position of the joint. The literature describes the position as an angle of abduction of about 30 degrees and slight flexion of about 10-20 degrees. This must be done at rest. There can’t be any effort on the part of the person being mobilized (ie: no muscular contraction and no loading of the joint with gravity)
You can achieve this at home, but it would be extremely difficult and not really safe without the proper information. A Therapist may be able to show you how to do this anterior mobilization, but this is rarely a necessity.
As a stretch this exercise is good, I like the focus on keeping the hips forward with the abs tight (even better if you can tilt the pelvis under/posteriorly with lower abdominal control), if you are really trying to increase range of motion for running/sport hold this for 30-60 seconds.
The main message here is that if you bounce or hold for 10 seconds and you’ve got the weight of gravity compressing the joint it’s more of a dynamic stretch and not a true passive joint mobilization, still a good exercise for flexibility!
Always check with your PT before doing advanced techniques, there are more effective ways to accomplish your goals, I’d hate for you to put in all this time and effort and not get the results you want/need.
Nice work overall!
Ian Johnsen MSPT
http://www.human-function.com
One Response to “Joint Mobilization- Hip”
Leigh! This is genius! I really needed this one. Thanks! -b