I stumbled across this document describing a number of mobility exercises, many of which could be helpful in ‘untwisting’ a twisted sacrum.

http://leonchaitow.com/wp-content/uploads/body%20balance/CH05.pdf

It’s important to remember that if you have a diagnosis of hip OA the chances are your imbalance is very deeply ingrained.  Think of your spine and pelvis providing structure, with multiple ‘layers’ of muscle responsible for both stabilization and movement of that structure. It is likely that most muscles in your body are out of balance and pulling your spine and pelvis out of position.  In a healthy body a mechanism called ‘reciprocal inhibition’ ensures that when one muscle contracts, it’s antagonists (the muscles that work to pull the bones in a different direction) relax. This allows smooth, fluid movement. When you have a complex muscle imbalance this mechanism does not work correctly. When one muscle tries to contract to move your body a certain way some of the antagonists stay locked down tight. This results in pain and restricted movement. You can’t stretch the tight muscles because other muscles are staying clamped down tight to prevent it. Mobility exercise simply don’t work.

My treatment plan (which you’ll find in the book) are designed to slowly but surely re-balance the muscles layer by layer. At the first couple of iterations of the treatment plan you won’t be able to do much. As the outer muscles start to re-balance you’ll slowly but surely find that you’re able to benefit from a wider range of corrective exercise.

Have a try at these exercises and see if any of them help get your spine, pelvis and hips moving a little better. Don’t force it – if something seems to help incorporate it into your training. When it stops helping stop doing it! Remember, your body is a moving target whilst you’re working on correcting your imbalances. An exercise that doesn’t help today might produce awesome results in a few months time, so retry the exercises periodically.

I can’t stress enough the importance of working on the entire body – not just the painful hip. Although it’s counter-intuitive, tremendous improvement in hip function can be achieved by getting the thoracic (upper) spine moving more freely. If your hips and pelvis are too tight and sore to try these exercises focus on the upper body – you might be pleasantly surprised by the results!

Post below to let others know what exercises you found most helpful (if any).

In the next post…

I’m working hard on a little series of articles that will hopefully speed up your progress a little. I’ll aim to get those posted up within the week.