How To Release Your Psoas

Hands down, one of my favorite muscles in the body is the psoas major.  Mostly because I have had personal experience in "rehabing" my own psoas strain (took me 2 years for it to get back to "normal"),  and chronic back and SI pain.  As you can see from the picture, this muscle covers some real estate:  Attaching superiorly at the spine (to the transverse processes and lateral surface of thoracic vertebra 12 to the last lumbar vertebra and corresponding discs) and traversing down and forward through the pelvis to attach to the inside of the upper leg (lesser trochanter).  Understanding and visualizing the position of this muscle should help you appreciate the relationship of the psoas to the function of the trunk/spine, pelvis, and extremities.  It is involved in everything!  As soon as I began to respect the stress and excessive loads that I was placing on my psoas (there are two, one on each side), my groin strain went away and so did my back and SI pain.  As I work with clients with back, pelvic, hip and SI pain, a psoas release is one of the first steps toward decreasing tension and moving toward healthy tissues!
Below is a video demonstration of how to get into my most favorite psoas release position.  I have shared this release in other posts, and received feedback that it would be helpful to do a "how to" video.  So, here it is!  Enjoy!
I have written about the psoas before in other posts, please take a look:
A Song To My Psoas: Please Release Me Let Me Go....
Ten Exercises For A Healthy Psoas
Pain In The Hip And What To Do About It
Top 10 Exercises For Hip And Spine Health

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PSOAS RELEASE

Susan McLaughlin is a physical therapist who specializes in the management of pelvic floor and orthopedic dysfunctions. She is the owner of ALIGN integration|movement in Salt Lake City, UT.  Helpful tips and other self care strategies can be found at www.alignintegrationandmovement.com.