Australian Yoga Journal - May June 2017

Body of knowledge

How can I best strengthen

and stretch my psoas?

By Dr. Ray Long

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THE HUMAN BODY IS somewhat of a mad scientist. Case in point:
the way our muscles work. Some muscles are easy to consciously
access, meaning they take direction from us. For example,
you can intentionally spread your toes in Tadasana (Mountain
Pose). But other muscles work more autonomously, with
no apparent direction from the conscious mind — like the
muscles working in the background to maintain your
posture. These muscles are more difficult to access
intentionally because their function involves tasks we
have long since relegated to the unconscious mind.
One such muscle that works mostly in the
background (or unconsciously) is the psoas, a core
muscle that’s part of the all-important hip flexors
and that helps to stabilise the spine. Why does
such a big, important muscle have such minor
representation in the motor cortex of the brain?
It’s all about energy efficiency: We use our psoas
to sit down, stand up, and move from lying
down to seated; we use it to walk, run, climb,
and twist our torso. From a very early age,
we use the psoas so much that the brain
reassigns it to the level of “background
function” where movement occurs without
conscious thought.
From my experience, few people are
able to engage their psoas voluntarily (like
when you contract your biceps to “make
a muscle”). This may be because its
actions become habitual during
infancy. Yet here’s the good news:
You can learn to consciously utilise
muscles that tend to do their own
thing, and when you do, it can
transform your yoga practice.
Take Utthita Trikonasana
(Extended Triangle Pose)
to the right side, for
example. When flexing to
the right, you could simply
use gravity to move your
torso over your leg.
However, learning to “turn
on” your psoas to consciously
flex your trunk provides
muscular stabilisation for your
PHOTO: RICK CUMMINGS; ILLUSTRATION: MICHELE GRAHAMspine, pelvis, and hip that

ILIUM

RECTUS

ABDOMINIS

ILIACUS

PSOAS

EXTERNAL

OBLIQUE

FEMUR LESSER

TROCHANTER

OF FEMUR

77

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