pelvic tilt issue

zildjian_4 · 09-21-2009, 04:48 PM

hey guys,
i was just at the gym about an hour ago, started with leg press(leg day)

once my thighs are 90 with my calves i get a pain/discomfort where my leg bends at the hip, almost like my shorts are bunching up there and pinching. but ive figured out that its not my shorts and i asked a PT about it.. he asked me what my routine was like and what i do for stretches.. and concluded that its probably tight hip flexors.. so, he felt them, got out some litle tool and said the angle is 20 degrees whereas its supposed to be 8-10 for most males. he gave me a few stretches but they were more of a pain to get into position than it was really worth it.

anyone struggle with this also? anyone have any ideas to fix it?

Leg day is currently

Leg press
Front squats
RDL

and i dont do any sort of leg raises, mostly everything i do for abs is situps, etc, nothing that puts a lot of focus on the hip flexors..thanks guys

zildjian_4 · 09-21-2009, 07:24 PM

bumpppp

Jbonito · 09-21-2009, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zildjian_4

bumpppp

Well for tight hip flexors you should stretch your hip flexor complex and your piriformis muscle. As for a exercise to help strengthen your under active muscles is ball squats. What exactly did the trainer you talk to tell you to do?

djartek · 09-21-2009, 07:56 PM

1)Foam Roller
2)Hip Flexor Mobility and Stretching Drills
3)Glute Mobility and Stretching Drills

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showpo...1&postcount=24

Get rid of the leg press but keep the front squats and switch to some unilateral leg movements, lunges, single legged deadlifts, step-ups etc!

zildjian_4 · 09-21-2009, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by djartek

1)Foam Roller
2)Hip Flexor Mobility and Stretching Drills
3)Glute Mobility and Stretching Drills

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showpo...1&postcount=24

Get rid of the leg press but keep the front squats and switch to some unilateral leg movements, lunges, single legged deadlifts, step-ups etc!

just curious as to why i should get rid of the leg press?

Jbonito · 09-21-2009, 08:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zildjian_4

just curious as to why i should get rid of the leg press?

Because you need to focus more on strengthening your glutes and anterior tibialis. Leg presses don't really help with that.

djartek · 09-22-2009, 01:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jbonito

Because you need to focus more on strengthening your glutes and anterior tibialis. Leg presses don't really help with that.

reps for agreement...

Dr Clay · 09-22-2009, 02:17 PM

Your situation does sound a lot like tight hip flexors. Assuming that's the case, the only way to fix the problem is to lengthen your hip flexors via stretching and mobility work. Unfortunately, there's simply no way around this... and I wish there was because, in my opinion, stretching is really boring.

If you want to loosen your hips sooner rather than later, stretch them OFTEN! I typically recommend stretching a hypertonic/tight muscle once per waking hour.

This may seem like a lot, but when you consider the amount of time each day that we put our hips in a shortened position, you will see that this does really not amount to a whole lot of time that they are being stretched.

Another advantage to doing squats over leg press is... at least your hips get to be fully extended position and are not flexed/shortened throughout the exercise (as they are with leg presses).

All the best,

zildjian_4 · 09-22-2009, 02:43 PM

thanks for the tips guys so far

my leg routine hasnt always been headed up by leg press.. only a month ago i switched from...
squats(a touch past parallel-lower back rounds if i go any lower)
thhheenn leg press
and RDL
so, my glutes are strong, because for the past 2 years squats have been at the front of my routine
so...today was shoulder day, and after that i spent about 15 minutes stretching my hip flexors and hamstrings...feels pretty good, theyre not as hard, ill do this lots and see what happens when i do leg press next week!thanks guys

Gzus · 09-22-2009, 08:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zildjian_4

my leg routine hasnt always been headed up by leg press.. only a month ago i switched from...
squats(a touch past parallel-lower back rounds if i go any lower)
thhheenn leg press
and RDL
so, my glutes are strong, because for the past 2 years squats have been at the front of my routine

You can squat and RDL decent weight and still have a problem with glute inactivation.
And pelvic tilting/muscular tightness to stabilize the tilt is related to spinal curve and thoracic mobility. Address root to resolve a problem.