The first book to comprehensively discuss the function of the psoas in posture, movement, and exercise, The Psoas Solution identifies the functional anatomy, biomechanics, and motor control of the psoas and its role in core and hip stabilization. Integrating research with clinical experience, Evan Osar identifies the psoas's role on the hip, pelvis, and low back and demonstrates how to incorporate the psoas into functional movement patterns including squatting, lunging, and bending. The Psoas Solution includes corrective and functional exercise progressions for improving and integrating the psoas into daily activities. Health and fitness professionals will find this a valuable resource full of applicable strategies and exercises to incorporate into current rehabilitation or training programs. Abundantly illustrated with full-color images throughout, this book also provides most complete review on the relevant research on the psoas available. For years the psoas has been a muscle mired in controversy. It has been linked to common postural and movement dysfunction including anterior pelvic tilt, hyperlordosis of the lumbar spine, and low back pain. Strategies to improve posture and reduce pain have primarily involved stretching the psoas and strengthening its antagonist, the glutes. However, recent clinical research has revealed that the psoas is much more than a simple hip flexor and plays an integral role in both posture and movement. This professional treatment manual for health care practitioners and students gives an overview of the ways that non-optimal use of the psoas can affect breathing, posture, and movement. It outlines specific treatment strategies that enable patients to develop awareness and utilization of the psoas muscle to achieve three-dimensional breathing and improve balance and body mechanics.

Located deep within the anterior hip joint and lower spine, the psoas major (usually just referred to as the psoas) is critical for optimal postural alignment, movement, and overall well being. The psoas is the only muscle in the human organism that connects the upper body to the lower body, and its importance extends to the nerve complex and energy systems. As modern-day populations grow more sedentary, psoas-related lower back and hip pain, and the ailment of "sitting too much," are on the rise. Even the most active of athletes can suffer from psoas imbalance and pain. The Vital Psoas Muscle demonstrates how to keep the muscle in balance through specific exercises designed to strengthen and utilize this amazing muscle, and discusses its vital role in the emotional and spiritual state of the human being. The interconnection between the psoas and the root chakra is explored, along with yoga poses and postures that stimulate the psoas. Eighty full-color illustrations depict anatomical details, and show the key stretching and strengthening exercises in this practical and comprehensive treatment of the most important skeletal muscle in the human body.

A COMPLETE GUIDE TO PREVENTING BACK AND HIP INJURIES BY STRENGTHENING THE MUSCLE GROUP CONNECTING YOUR UPPER AND LOWER BODY Connecting the lower spine to the hips and legs, a strong and flexible psoas muscle is vital for everyday movements like walking, bending and reaching, as well as athletic endeavors like jumping for a ball, holding a yoga pose and swinging a golf club. With targeted information and exercises, this book’s step-by-step program guarantees you’ll transforms this vulnerable muscle, including: •Develop a powerful core •End back pain •Increase range of motion •Improve posture •Prevent strains and injuries Packed with 100s of step-by-step photos and clear, concise instructions, Psoas Strength and Flexibility features workouts for toning the muscle as well as rehabbing from injury. And each program is based on simple matwork exercises that require minimal or no equipment.

The New York Times–bestselling guide to at-home exercises you can do to live a life free of pain, stress and tension. In this enhanced digital edition of The MELT Method, Sue Hitzmann shows you how to live without pain, illustrating her MELT techniques with 20 instructional videos plus 10 audio clips, so you can listen hands-free while you start your journey toward a pain-free body. In The MELT Method, therapist Sue Hitzmann offers a breakthrough self-treatment system to combat chronic pain and erase the effects of aging and active living—in as little as ten minutes a day. With a focus on the body’s connective tissues and the role they play in pain, stress, weight gain, and overall health, Hitzmann’s life-changing program features techniques that can be done in your own home. A nationally known manual therapist and educator, Hitzmann helps her clients find relief from pain and suffering by taking advantage of the body’s natural restorative properties. The MELT Method shows you how to eliminate pain, no matter what the cause, and embrace a happier, healthier lifestyle.

In Tight Hip, Twisted Core you will: Discover how this muscle impacts your body from head to toe Determine if you are one of the millions of people with a tight iliacus muscle and why Release the tension in the muscle for good Get your body aligned for pain-free performance Prevent this muscle from getting tight ever again

Weaving together biology, living systems thinking, and somatic movement, these nine short essays will inspire somatic therapists, bodyworkers, and movement educators Liz Koch, author of Core Awareness and The Psoas Book, seeks to dissolve the objectification of "body" in order to reconceptualize human beings as biologically intelligent, self-organizing, and self-healing. Specifically addressing educators and therapists, she delves into the conceptual framework of core by decolonizing the popular mechanistic thinking of psoas as muscle, inviting the reader on a journey toward reengaging with life's creative processes. The book illuminates the limitations of the predominant paradigm of body and actively explores psoas as a vital, intelligent messenger that links us to an expansive network of profound possibilities. Employing biomorphic and embryonic paradigms, Koch redefines psoas as smart, expressive tissue that is both elemental and universal. Named after her popular exploratory workshops of the same name, Stalking Wild Psoas encourages all readers to nourish integrity and claim self-efficacy as creative and expressive individuals.