Lower Extremity: Level 2 Exercises
Hip Adductor Stretch
Purpose
- To obtain optimal mobility in your hip adductors andincrease the range of motion your hips can move and reduce your risk of straining these muscles.
Steps
- Sit with your back up against a wall while maintaining a neutral spine.
- Place the soles of your feet together with your knees facing outward.
- Feel your hips rotate as your knees fall toward the floor.
- Place your hands on the floor behind the hips to assist in lifting and rotating the pelvis while gently pushing your knees further toward the floor.
- Hold for 3-5 seconds. Repeat 5 times.
Tips
- You can add pressure to the knees for a more intense stretch.
Goals
- If you cross your legs when you sit, the action of crossing the top leg over the bottom works your adductors. Tightness in the adductors can lead to problems, including lack of knee stability, hamstring injury and pelvic imbalances. Hip Adductor stretches can help alleviate this tightness.
Kneeling Hip Flexor Stretch
Purpose
- To stretch the hip flexors.
Steps
- Kneel with the right knee on the floor with the left hip and knee flexed to 90 degrees.
- Hold on to a chair with the left hand. Position the right leg so the right foot is turned out and the hip is rotated inward.
- Pull in the stomach and posteriorly tilt the pelvis by contracting the right buttocks hard. Keep the right hand on the buttocks to feel the buttocks contract.
- Keep the shoulders positioned over the hips and use the left leg to pull the body forward. Lead the forward movement with the right hip, feeling a stretch in the front of the right hip and thigh.
- Stretch for a total of 5-10 seconds.
- Repeat 2-3 times.
- Switch sides and repeat on the left side.
Tips
- Push hips straight forward.
Goals
- Unlike other passive stretches, this hip stretch engages the core and allows for a more focused stretch. Great for preventing injuries in sports that involve a lot of running. It is also a helpful stretch for people who drive a lot or sit for hours at work.
Standing Quad Stretch
Purpose
- To stretch quadricep (front of thigh).
Steps
- Place the right foot behind you on a bench or chair with the knee flexed.
- Keep the right buttocks tight and tucked under by tightening stomach muscles.
- Bend the left knee and allow the right knee to flex or bend further until you feel a stretch in the front of the right thigh.
- Hold for 3-5 seconds. Repeat 5 times.
- Repeat on the opposite side to stretch the left quad muscle.
Tips
- Do not allow your back to arch!
Goals
- Stretch to the point of “mild discomfort,” not to the point of pain. Never bounce. Straighten but do not lock the knee of your standing leg. If you are too inflexible to keep your knees next to each other, allow the bent leg to come forward slightly and gradually progress to a position where the thigh of the bent leg is perpendicular to the floor.
Tensor Fascia Latae Stretch
Purpose
- To stretch the Tensor Fascia Latae (TFL).
Steps
- Start with your right knee on the ground and your left foot on the floor with knee bent. Rest your left arm on a chair for support. Your right arm should rest at your side.
- Pull in the stomach and posteriorly tilt the pelvis forward by using the left leg, particularly the hamstrings. The patient is then asked to translate the hips from left to right, maintaining a strong posterior pelvic tilt and gluteal contraction.
- Stretch for a total of 5-10 seconds.
- Repeat 3-5 times.
- Switch sides and repeat on the left side.
Tips
- A stretch should be felt on the outside of the right hip.
Goals
- The tensor fasciae latae muscle, located on the side of your pelvis, helps to stabilize your hip through its connection into a strip of tough connective tissue on your outer thigh called the iliotibial band. Stretching a chronically contracted tensor fasciae latae can help improve the range of motion of your hips.