The psoas (pronounced so-as) is the all-star in a group of muscles called the hip flexors. Together, they contract to lift the thigh towards the torso. The hip flexors become short, tight and just generally unhappy if you spend most of your life sitting, or if you repeatedly work them in the abs class from hell or the spin class from heaven.

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A tight psoas can cause posture problems and affect your ability to take a deep breath. If the psoas is tight when you stand up, it pulls the lumbar spine forward and down toward the femur, overarching the low back, which can cause compression in the vertebra. Or, a weak and overstretched psoas can contribute to the pelvis pushing forward of the torso and when accompanied by tight hamstrings that pull down on the sitting bones, what results is an upright sacrum (instead of its usual gentle forward tilt), and a flat lumbar spine.

 

How we approach the psoas in our yoga practice can help keep it healthy, strong, and flexible, or, conversely, can perpetuate harmful imbalances. 

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This workshop is open to all levels of practitioner. Come experience this important muscle, how to release it and how to strengthen it in balance.