Tight hips!

k8millz · June 2016

Hey there.

Does anyone have some useful tips for loosening up the hip flexors? To put into perspective, I work on my squats twice a week. One day full of heavy leg work and the other light to moderate weight with higher volume. I've started warming up my joints longer than usual and I now have been squatting using a resistance band, which has helped, but I just can't seem to get my hip flexors to where they need to be. They're constantly sore. Should I lay off leg day for a bit or try something else?

arditarose · June 2016

What do you do besides dynamic warmups/leg kicks?

I foam roll my hip flexors out quite a bit and it has helped. I'll do it prior to leg day, during warm up, and some days after as well. If it's really bad I'll lie on a tennis ball and really grind it in there. I also find that loosening up the piriformis muscle and glutes with the tennis ball or foam roller helps with hip stiffness as well.

k8millz · June 2016

I haven't tried a tennis ball yet! Foam rolling gives me temporary relief but I feel like my hips have gotten tighter since I've been able to lift heavier. I'm just afraid I'll injure myself and won't be able to go to the gym for a while.

But I think I'll break out a tennis ball and see how it goes!

arditarose · June 2016

k8millz wrote: »

I haven't tried a tennis ball yet! Foam rolling gives me temporary relief but I feel like my hips have gotten tighter since I've been able to lift heavier. I'm just afraid I'll injure myself and won't be able to go to the gym for a while. But I think I'll break out a tennis ball and see how it goes!

Try it. Make sure to get the glutes too. Take a look at your stance on the squat. Sometimes if it's pretty wide and you have room to bring it in that can help. I also found that the leg press would aggravate my hips and I often skip it because I'd rather get my heavy squats in. What's your program for both leg days?

k8millz · June 2016

Yeah the leg press almost always makes my hips angry, and I prefer getting my heavy squats in as well because I like to get my compound exercises in while I can.

My heavier days are usually at the beginning of the week so I can give myself enough recovery time for round two. I warm up by walking on an incline on the treadmill + some side shuffles. Afterwards (still warm up) I'll do some body weight squats using a resistance band, lunges, leg kicks and if I have time I'll lightly jog in place for a couple of minutes. I always start with barbell squats, I'll warm up with just the bar to check my form then gradually add more weight until my working sets. I'm currently hitting 135 - 140 lbs with ease but I've been having a hard time progressing from that. After squats, I'll take a break doing some accessory type stuff like step ups, lunges, glute/ham raises, sled pushes, etc. It sort of just depends on my mood and the time. My lighter days consist of mainly accessory work and lotssss of mobility exercises + lighter squats with more volume as well as more glute activation exercises (I'm quad dominant as hell!) I don't ever really spend more than an hour in the gym.

Afterwards you can find me with multiple heating pads on my hip flexors. Sorry for the novel by the way! Haha.

runningforthetrain · June 2016

Yoga-- pigeon pose-- awesome for tight hips:

campbell3913 · June 2016

Physical therapist told me ice, not heat after I exercise/stretch. Helps keep the inflammation down I think.
Knee Hug
Butterfly
I can't find a name for the one the PT told me to do. I've seen it done laying on your back or standing. I can do either. Laying on your back bend one knee, foot flat and put the other ankle of on the knee. Kind of like you see some people sit. Pull the leg with the flat foot towards your chest by grabbing the thigh and hold it for about 20-30 seconds. I can grab the thigh and pull it stretching the opposing hip. The PT said to wrap a towel or strap around the thigh and use it. Everyday 2-3 times a day 2-3 sets.
Yoga is good for this... there are some good stretching routines. I need to get my DVD out and start working it a couple times a week.

DreesPerformanceTraining · June 2016

What makes you believe your hip flexors are tight?

arditarose · June 2016

k8millz wrote: »

Yeah the leg press almost always makes my hips angry, and I prefer getting my heavy squats in as well because I like to get my compound exercises in while I can.

My heavier days are usually at the beginning of the week so I can give myself enough recovery time for round two. I warm up by walking on an incline on the treadmill + some side shuffles. Afterwards (still warm up) I'll do some body weight squats using a resistance band, lunges, leg kicks and if I have time I'll lightly jog in place for a couple of minutes. I always start with barbell squats, I'll warm up with just the bar to check my form then gradually add more weight until my working sets. I'm currently hitting 135 - 140 lbs with ease but I've been having a hard time progressing from that. After squats, I'll take a break doing some accessory type stuff like step ups, lunges, glute/ham raises, sled pushes, etc. It sort of just depends on my mood and the time. My lighter days consist of mainly accessory work and lotssss of mobility exercises + lighter squats with more volume as well as more glute activation exercises (I'm quad dominant as hell!) I don't ever really spend more than an hour in the gym.

Afterwards you can find me with multiple heating pads on my hip flexors. Sorry for the novel by the way! Haha.

Interesting. Your warm up sounds great and the workouts don't seem insane.

Tight hips!

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