Anatomy of the hip flexors
The muscles responsible for hip flexion include:
- Psoas: This muscle runs along the inside of the hip and connects your lumbar vertebrae to the top of your femur.
- Iliacus: This muscle runs from the top of the hips along the inside of your pelvis, connecting it to the femur.
- Rectus Femoris is one of the quadriceps muscles—specifically, the only quadriceps muscle involved in hip flexion. It runs from the mid-hip to the knee.
- Tensor Fasciae Latae runs along the outside of your leg, from the top of the hip to the bottom of the knee. It also connects to the ITB. Along with hip flexion, this muscle contributes to single-leg stability.
- Sartorius: runs from the outer hip, across the femur, and to the inner knee. As such, it plays a role in hip flexion and hip and knee stability.
Tightness or weakness in this muscle group may cause pain and instability in the low back, hips, and knees, increasing your risk of injury or potentially worsening an existing one. It may also negatively affect the glutes and hamstrings, as they will be forced to compensate.
How to do inclined hip flexion
- Stand in front of a table, wall, or railing.
- Lean your arms on it and step back so your torso is at a ~45-degree incline.
- While keeping your hands on the railing and one foot firmly on the ground, bend your affected leg and raise your knee until your thigh is parallel to the ground.
- Straighten your leg until it is in a straight line with your torso and touch your toes to the ground.
- Do 10 reps in 3 sets, or as your ability allows.
Support your inclined hip flexion
For your knees:
GenuTrain Knee Support
The medical-grade knit and patella pad in our GenuTrain Knee Support activate the muscles and improve sensorimotor function, protecting the knee and improving your awareness of how you move and position the joint.
For your hips:
CoxaTrain Hip Support
Our CoxaTrain Hip Brace incorporates a thigh sleeve, hip stabiliser, and back brace for maximum support. Whether you have a labrum tear, ligament injury, or arthritis, the CoxaTrain will help you find relief and get active again.
For your lower back:
SacroLoc Back Support
The LumboTrain and SacroLoc back supports are great for pain and weakness in the lumbar, sacrum, and sacroiliac joints. They incorporate medical-grade compression and a specialised pad to relieve tension and instability and improve muscle activation.
