Beyond. Health and Wellness Magazine BEYOND_OCTOBER 2016 | Page 9

Here are some other significant benefits:
• Increases blood circulation
• Stress reduction
• Improves performance of muscle
• Strengthens posture
• Promotes healing of injuries
Even though it is a fundamental aspect of
musculoskeletal wellbeing to incorporate
stretching. There are even more benefits
to integrating psoas, and deep hip flexor
stretches into your daily regimen. The hip
flexor muscles are often the most used muscles
in the human body while being largely
overlooked when it comes to stretching.
First, it is important to understand what makes
up the deep hip flexor muscles. They are made
up of two muscles the iliacus and the psoas.
Together we call these muscles the iliopsoas
muscle.

of stretches for you to incorporate into your
daily activities. There are two key things to
remember when stretching the psoas and hip
flexors:
1. Only incorporate the ones that will allow
you to stretch without overdoing it. Feel
free to modify any of the movements.
2. After working out your hip flexors or
contracting them for long periods of
time, make sure to start slowly with the
stretching so as to not shock the structure
and posture. For example, after a long
run or walk, go slowly with the stretching.
More important, if you have been sitting
or standing for an extended period of time
then it is crucial to stretch gradually.
Here are some pictures of various stretches.

The hip flexors are important for both posture
and power. They are the major hip flexor
muscles and contract every time we walk,
run, march, climb stairs, or do any activity that
flexes our hips. They also play a major role in
stabilizing the hips and low back. It is often the
forgotten component of low back and pelvic
pain. Often we also keep these muscles in a
shortened and contracted state by sitting for
longer each day. Therefore, it is crucial that
we stretch these muscles both on a regular
basis and thoroughly in a broad manner.
Yoga focuses on the iliopsoas many times
through various hip opening exercises such
as warrior pose. This is not only because
of its importance in posture and power but
also because stretching it helps to awaken
awareness. There are also various referral
points in the hip flexor muscles to internal
organs. Therefore, deep stretches have a
positive effect on both the musculoskeletal
system and also organs and function.
There are various stretches for the psoas.
In this article, we have included pictures

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