ENDURE: June 26, 2015 "Yeah, They Must Workout" - The Enduring Power Center

Let's say you want to sit into or stand up from a chair....or climb stairs....or jump...or run....or even walk for that matter.....if so, you'd better have hips that can do the job....they're the body's workhorse - and sometimes they take a beating.  

            

The hip used to be a joint that didn't get much attention.  It's highly stable, supports us well during movement and in the last 20-30 years has become an easy target for replacement if it wears out. Seems simple enough.  Recently however, it's becoming a hot topic not only because it provides a window into the health of the entire system (e.g. hip fractures are often considered a sign of frailty and poor health) -- but also because when they're not moving well, they can be a source of other problems up and down the "chain".

For example, if the hip isn't providing the proper movement, force is transferred to the knee and it tends to get painful or more quickly worn.  The same is true for the back.  If the hip doesn't move like it should, the lower back will take up the slack.  Force which should have been distributed across the hip translates to the knee and a greater degree of twisting at the back is noticed.  This is very apparent with certain golfers and baseball hitters who swing with their front foot "toed in" more than usual. Toeing the foot in essentially locks the hip and prevents further rotation at the "ball in socket" style joint.  When it runs out of room, the segment above (lower back) and the segment below (knee) take extra force.

In the workplace this same risk exists.  If you ever see someone loading or unloading materials from one surface to another (like a pallet to the back of a truck for example), the same series of motions are also present.  As the person rotates across their hip (i.e. twist R with R foot toed in or visa versa) significantly more stress is placed on the knee and back.  It's not uncommon for us to suggest a person "toe out" slightly as a tactic to lower their risk of pain and injury. 

This of course is not all.  There are many other things we do that can place stress on the moving parts including:

• Sitting for long periods - compresses the hips and increases stiffness
• Sitting too low (knees higher than hips) - puts us in a more extreme range of motion.
• Allowing our "glute" muscles to get weak - this is our forward-movement power center, even those who exercise diligently tend to avoid squats and lunges when they can.
• Stretching with improper technique. Although it is more and more common to see people warming up in the workplace, it's not uncommon for their technique to slip a little....although any movement is a step in the right direction - it's important to get the most from the time invested by using proper form.
• Working in a deep squat without adequate range of motion -- this can stress the joint surface.
• Forgetting that balance and stability is a "hip thing" - similar to the rotator cuff of the shoulder, the hip has a series of "stabilizer" muscles designed to keep us upright and functioning well.

Whether it's a pinch in the hip or groin, discomfort that runs from the "cheek" to the leg or stiffness when you change positions or stand and move....almost always the hip is involved.  Here's the simple "at-home" test:

Sitting in a chair place an ankle on the opposite knee (as if to "cross your legs in a figure 4 position").  Now look at the position of your knee in relationship to your hip.  Are they in line with each other?  Are they close?  If not and the knee is quite a bit higher than the hip, and cannot comfortably achieve the "inline" position, your hip is not moving as well as it should. Not everyone's will....but most should....especially if there is a significant difference between sides.

Not sure?  Let us know how we can help.

Have a great weekend,

Mike E.