Mastering The Hinge

This week I’ll be diving into the hip hinge. I’ve spent some time braking down what a hip hinge is anatomically and how we use this movement in rehab and performance.

To summarize, we often think of hip hinging as a deadlift or some deadlift variation, but there is much more we can do that utilizes the hinge. For instance, in sport we are hinging and creating force from a hinged position constantly. Think of a lineman in 3-quarter stance or tennis players reaching low and exploding back out of the position. CrossFit of course uses the hinge in all deadlifting variations but we can also see it in motions like toes to bar and kettlebell swings.

So, if we want to be a capable “hinger”, then we need to understand how to really lengthen the glute muscles and sink into the hip to take advantage of the anatomy we are using. Further, we need to make sure we have access to this range of motion and muscle tissue in the first place (mobility!). Take a look at the instagram posts to come this week to get an idea of how to do this.

What we often find is that most people do not load and lengthen the back side of the hip very well at all, making this sequencing of exercises shown down below fantastic in rehab and injury prevention for my patients.

I’ll be posting progressions to mastering the hip hinge on instagram over this week, so be on the look out and follow along to become a more robust and affective human! Here are some highlights on this weeks topic, “unlocking the secrets of the hip hinge”.

Follow the instagram page @integrated.rehab.performance

Focus 1: Hinging Principles (Monday Post)

In this phase, we want to better understand what it feels like push our sits bone backwards as our pelvis rotates on our hips. It is crucial that we don’t allow our spine to flex or extend when we are trying to get motion purely from a hip hinge. This is especially vital as we use the hinge to create mobility in the hip and truly begin to lengthen the glute. Common exercises like banded monster walks or clam shells work to shorten the glute muscles in order to “activate” or strengthen them, but often times we are taken a chronically shortened glute muscle and simply shortening it more. Back, hip, and knee pain as well as performance will all benefit from turning away from these practices and instead creating space in the back of the hip again with proper hinging.

Focus 2: The Kickstand Hinge (Wednesday Post)

This is a movement we really want to master. The kickstand hinge provides a weight bearing environment for us to practice our new learned hinging principles. The amount of value we can get from practicing this exercise, even unweighted, in performance training and rehab is staggering. Again, this exercise when done correctly will force us to lengthen the glute eccentrically and get the hip to move in its capsule as intended, opening up both mobility and strength gains.

Focus 3: Putting It All Together (Friday Post)

It is important we don’t forget that the body is complex and every single joint works together to produce motion. We need to make sure as athletes or active individuals to be working on restoring or maintaining variability throughout the body to allow us to perform the movements we want. What I mean by this is that we need to maintain “variability” to prevent injury and improve performance. An example is performing the snatch. To achieve a safe and affective catch position in the snatch, we need significant ankle dorsiflexion, knee flexion, hip flexion, thoracic extension, and shoulder flexion. We can dramatically improve our strength and ability to use the glute AND create more access to hip mobility with good hinge work, but we will also need to address the other joints. Even in our ability to perform the hinge, we must make sure we are not compensating due to limitations elsewhere. So, here are a few things we must think about when we want to improve our hinge.

• hip mobility

• ankle mobility

• foot mobility

This list can continue on. Let me briefly explain these areas and the impact on successful hinging. The hip requires flexion and internal and external rotation to perform the hinge, especially internal. Working on the hinge helps create and improve these motions in general, but we can work on them individually as well, working our way up as our mobility improves. Keep an eye out for Fridays post for some options here.

Ankle and foot mobility is crucial to help access the correct positions in the hinge, especially the more complex the movements get. that being said, I also want to mention the importance of the foot and ankle in creating and delivering the force into the ground to move in the hinge. It is vital we have a solid connection with the ground and adequate foot mobility (especially pronation) as we drive the force into the ground. Look out for Friday’s post to see some exercises that will not only work on the mobility of the foot and ankle, but also on your ability to actually drive into the floor to produce power (these are absolute game changers!!).

Closing

Remember to follow the instagram account throughout the week to see the exercises and drills I use to work on the things mentioned in this newsletter. Take things slow and work on each thing one at a time for a few days until the next segment comes out. I want you to master these concepts to take your health and fitness to the next level!

If you have any questions or have pain that is holding you back, reply to this email or call us! We are happy to help.

Phone: (585)478-4379

Website: www.integratedrpc.com