4 yoga exercises to relax and open your hips

The pelvis, lower back, and hip joints have a paramount importance in our upright positionThey support the entire weight of the upper body, stabilize the relationship between the torso and legs, and provide the essential structure for walking, running, twisting, and bending in any direction.

But also, from an energetic and emotional point of view, house and protect the organs where life is conceivedin the words of Juan José Plasencia.

It is important, then, take care of the joint flexibility of the hipwhich decreases with age and gives rise to problems of stiffness, pain or shortening of the muscles.

To prevent its stagnation, it is necessary to watch overweight (do not load the hips excessively) and gain mobility.

The current lifestyle leads to sitting for a long time, which immobilizes the hip muscles and can cause pain. Many women also habitually cross their legs, which creates an imbalance in the spine that leads to a contraction of the lumbar muscle.

On the other hand, as in the joints of the hips the union of the trunk with the legs occurs, to maintain body balance we tend to unconsciously tense the hipsespecially when changing posture.

If this tension is not released, accumulates in the buttocks, thighs, belly, groin, and lower back.

If you lead a sedentary life, it is convenient to resort to some of the exercises of stretches designed to unblock this area.

In yoga, for example, they serve the butterfly pose or forward stretch sitting, but they are not the only exercises that can be practiced.

If you want to know more about how to correctly perform yoga postures, you may be interested in the online Initiation to Yoga course from the Cuerpominta School.

Why release tension in the pelvis and tone the hips

With a structure similar to that of the flying buttresses of Gothic cathedrals –in the words of Juan José Plasencia–, the hips distribute the loads of the body and constitute a pillar of stability.

For this reason, in order to maintain balance, one tends to tense them unconsciously, especially when changing posture. In many cases this tension is necessary to control movement.

The problem arises when it is not released and accumulates in the buttocks, thighs, belly, groin, and lumbar region.

The more tension builds up, the more movement is restricted. Spending many hours sitting, with an immobile hip, does not help. If you lead a sedentary life, then, it is convenient to incorporate some type of exercise or activity that mobilizes the hip during the day.

For all these reasons, it is highly advisable to get used to stretch the internal ligaments of the hips through some simple exercisealthough always taking special care if you suffer a lower back injury.

Sometimes it’s even convenient a deep therapeutic massage that helps relieve muscle stiffness. When the stiff joint problem is accompanied by tight biceps hamstrings and stiff lower backIt is advisable to work on these areas as well.

Often stiff muscles compensate for weak ones: a well-designed program includes strengthening exerciseswhich extend hip movement more than specific isolated exercises.

To prevent possible blockages and stiffening of the hip, in addition to avoiding being overweight, which puts pressure on the hip and makes movement difficult, some simple exercises can be practiced regularly. In a more passive way, Thai massage also offers these benefits.

The yoga practicewith its stretches, flexions, extensions and twists, is an excellent way to maintain the toned, flexible and unlocked hips.

In fact, this discipline was developed in order to be able to spend hours and hours in the lotus position while meditating, for which some agile, unlocked and very healthy hips. Here are some examples of exercises to open and release the hips so that you can meditate more comfortably.

Twists, like this seated twist, help prevent shortening of the rotator muscles of the hips. And postures like “the bow” or “the pigeon” provide a stretch of the iliopsoas.

1. Yoga stretch to open the hips

The position that this article illustrates acts as a authentic massage for the pelvis It helps to relax the hips and surrounding muscles. In yoga it is known as Supta Baddha Konasana or Reclining Goddess Pose, although it is also sometimes called Soaring Butterfly Pose:

Prepare a couple of folded blankets to rest your back and head. Sit with your hips open and your feet together, and lean back little by little. You can place some support (a book, for example) under each knee if you feel more comfortable: the pelvis opens more if there is no tension. Relax the whole body and stay like this for at least 3 minutes. This pose is excellent for relieve menstrual pain.

2. Stretch to release hip tension

This simple exercise can help you release accumulated tension in the hip area:

Lying comfortably on your back, bend your legs in toward your abdomen and grasp them just below the knees. Take a deep breath, and as you exhale, draw your knees in toward your chest as far as possible. Keep your back and neck relaxed. It is important that the shoulder blades stay in contact with the floor and are not stiff. Take about ten deep breaths, and on each exhalation, draw the knees a little more towards the chest. If you want to intensify the exercise, as you bring your knees up toward your chest, also raise your head.

3. The pigeon pose

Drop onto hands and knees. Bring your right knee forward, between your hands, and place your right foot under your body, pointing to your left. Extend your left leg back and let your pelvis drop to the floor. Interlock your fingers behind behind your back as in the photo or slide your hands forward and lower your elbows to the floor. Breathe deeply for about three minutes. Undo the pose and return to the opposite side.

4. Yoga pose to stretch and strengthen the hip: the small bridge

The “little bridge” pose increases the flexibility of the hips by tense your front end.

Besides, stretches and strengthens the abdominal muscleswhich tones the organs in this area, increases and renews the blood supply of the thyroid glandand keeps the elastic spine.

The pose is also known as the “bridge preparation” because it is your previous step before raising the head and shoulders with the help of the arms.

On the floor face up, with the knees bent and apart and the soles of the feet on the ground, bring the heels closer to the buttocks and keep your arms stretched out beside your body. Breathing in, press your feet down, keep your abdomen firm and raise your hips. Raise the spine from the ground vertebra by vertebra, until the weight of the body is distributed between the feet and the shoulders. Keep your legs parallel.breathing out, Go back to the starting position vertebra to vertebra.Repeat it between three and six timesand then, after inhaling, stay in the position for three to six breaths.