How to improve hip mobility with 4 simple stretches

Let’s face it, the buttocks have become a huge focus in pop culture. These days, it’s all about the butt. Of course, if you’re an athlete, you know that having a bigger, stronger rear end has advantages and has nothing to do with being physically attractive. And you know what else is crucial to athletic success and avoiding pain and dysfunction? Making sure those big butt muscles stay flexible and functional.

Now. There are tons of videos and images on the internet explaining how to build a stronger/bigger butt, but hardly any on how to make sure your glutes aren’t tight and dysfunctional.

If you do squats, glute bridges, glute bands regularly and you’re not doing the hip mobility work evenly, it’s only a matter of time before you’re sidelined with a life-related injury. poor hip mobility and the buttocks.

Now the list of hip mobility exercisespostures and stretches that can be described is endless, but we will describe some basic and essential stretches for improve hip mobility and what are they:

Effective in a relatively short period of time.
They are easy to make and can be modified according to your flexibility or lack thereof.
and you can do them while you watch your favorite series and talk with your friends on the internet.

If you’ve just finished your workout, that’s a perfect time to stretch and get some mobility gains. If you’re just going into a stretching session, good for you first, then spend 5-10 minutes warming up your muscles by doing light jogging, walking, bodyweight movements like air squats, lunges, or whatever you want to do. so that a little blood circulates through your extremities.

We want to make sure your muscles, tendons, and ligaments are ready to move through the range. And always, bring the mobility of your hips and the stretching gradually. The ligaments and tendons will slowly tighten and lengthen. You can force them to relax, it will just take time. Think of your mobility progress as a long-term investment.

4 stretches that will improve the mobility of your hip

For each of the stretches, work on holding this position for an increasing amount of time, as comfortable and appropriate for your current level of flexibility. Remember, you can’t force this!

pigeon pose

This is a good stretch. It can be scaled to suit just about everyone’s needs, it helps with lower back pain, and can honestly be very relaxing once you’ve loosened your hips enough to really sink into this position.

And yes, technically this is the one legged pigeon pose or also known as Eka Pada Rajakapotasana for all yoga lovers. This pose helps with external rotation of the femur and specifically stretches the psoas, piriformis, TFL (tensor fascia lata), and gluteus maximus.

How to Do Pigeon Pose to Improve Hip Mobility

We’ll start by stretching the right side first.

Start in downward dog
Raise your right leg high, then bring your right knee in toward your chest.
Place your right ankle directly behind your left wrist, your right knee will drop to the right side of your body.
Extend your left leg behind you. Make sure your hips are as square as possible. You want to avoid letting one hip sit in front of or behind the other.
Also, avoid leaning over and rolling on one hip. The tendency is to roll onto the side of the bent leg, which makes the stretch much more comfortable, but also makes it much less effective. If you find that your hips are off the ground on both sides and you have to hold yourself in position with your arms, use pillows, blankets, blocks, or whatever is available to support your hips so you can sit in this position without pain.
You should feel a stretching sensation in your left hip flexor, psoas, and right outer hip/glute.
If you lean forward and allow your chest to fall toward the floor, you may feel a more intense stretch in your right hip.
Switch and repeat on the left hip.

Pigeon Pose Modifications

woman lying on floor reclining pigeon pose yoga

If you find the regular pigeon version too intense or maybe you just want to try something different, try the reclining pigeon.

Lie supine (face up) on the floor with both knees bent.
Cross the right ankle over the left thigh just above the knee.
Bring your right hand between your thighs, your left hand around the outside of your left leg, and grab your left shin or hamstring with both hands.
While keeping your lower back in contact with the floor, pull your shin or the back of your thigh toward your chest. You should feel a stretch on the outside of your right hip/buttock.

lizard stance

This stretch may seem a bit basic, but it’s good for improving hip mobility. Helps loosen up the hip flexor, groin, hamstrings, and hips. It’s really good to start with before moving on to deeper hip stretches.

How to Do Lizard Pose to Improve Hip Mobility

Begin in the downward facing dog position.
Step forward with your right foot to the outside of your right hand.
Lower your left knee so that it rests on the floor. Be sure to keep your hips square and your left leg extended back behind you.
For a more intense stretch you can lower your torso so that your elbows and forearms are resting on the floor. You can also get a more intense groin and adductor stretch by rolling onto the outer edge of your right foot and pressing your right knee to the side.
Hold the position for as long as is comfortable, then repeat on the other side.

Modifications to this lizard pose to make it less intense

Use blocks, pillows, or blankets to place under your back knee or to rest your arms/forearms. Remember, you can’t force flexibility.

Butterfly pose to improve hip mobility

Butterfly pose feels great on your lower back and is great for improve hip mobility. Stretches the adductors and groin muscles.

How to do the butterfly pose

This one is pretty straightforward.

Sit on the floor with your legs stretched out in front of you.
Slide both knees toward your chest, feet flat on the ground.
Then let your knees drop to the side and bring the soles of your feet together.
If it’s easy for you, you can increase the intensity of the stretch by bringing your feet together and gently pulling your chest toward your feet, or simply bending forward at the waist.
You can use pillows or pillows to allow yourself to relax into the pose.

Butterfly Pose Modifications

If your knees are off the ground and the stretch in your groin and adductors feels too intense, place blankets or pillows under your thighs to support them.

Cow face (lower body)

This is an excellent stretch for the ankles and outer hips. The seated version can be difficult if you’re not very flexible, but the modification is great for the less mobile, busy days, or days when sitting upright just doesn’t feel right.

How to Do Cow Face Pose

Begin with both legs stretched out in front of you.
Bend both knees and bring them toward your chest with the soles of your feet on the ground.
Slide your left foot under your right knee to the outside of your right hip.
Then cross your right leg over your left, stacking your right knee over your left, and bring your right foot to the outside of your left hip.
Try to sit with your hips level and both hips on the floor. You can intensify the stretch by bending forward. Repeat in the other side.

Modifications of this pose for less advanced hip mobility

woman doing reclining cow face yoga pose

This can be a really challenging pose. If you find it uncomfortable, try using pillows and blankets to cushion your hips, and you can even slide a block, pillow, or blanket between your thighs if you have trouble stacking your knees or if one leg isn’t resting on the other.

You can also lie down, bend your knees, and bring the soles of your feet to the ground. Cross the right thigh over the left. Reach in and hold your ankles or shins and bring your knees up to your chest. If you can’t reach your shins or ankles, you can use a strap, belt, towel, or shirt to wrap around your legs and pull the towel so your knees are closer to your chest.