If there was an equivalent of the “Dead Hang” but for your hips instead of shoulders, what would it be?

[balabob]

I’m a 35m standing at 5-9” and 170 lbs. I work at a desk job and also have two kids who love to be carried. All in, my posture (hips shoulders and all through my thoracic and lumbar spine) was jacked up.

My posture is still not great, but I’m experiencing some great improvements in shoulder / t-spine mobility and posture from dead hangs and I’d love to do something for my hips as well.

Do you guys do anything that is sort of like a “do this and it’ll solve multiple issues at once” like the dead hang, but specific to hips / lumbar spine? Doing my current routine (stretch hamstrings, pigeon stretch, hip flexor stretch, cat cows etc) is pretty time consuming!

 

[mudmixer]

@balabob Sitting in a full squat comfortably for as long as you want is great. Being able to get up and down from the floor without using your hands is good too.

 

[dawn16]

@mudmixer Adding to this that moving around in the squat and duck walking is really good for hip mobility.

 

[amthatis]

@dawn16 Agree - Came to say duck walk, if you want one way to fix so many issues of tight and poorly controlled hips from sitting

Will add that the bottom portion of a squat, and the position in which one takes a duck walk, involves internal rotation of the femur which is the opposite of what's trained in chair sitting

If duck walk too challenging, a wall sit works wonders with good form

 

[aglenn6]

@dawn16 My knees don’t like it though. Any tips for that?

 

[dawn16]

@aglenn6 If you can't duck walk you can still sit at the bottom of the squat and move your knees in and out while keeping your feet planted on the ground. Just try shifting weight to one leg or the other or bringing your knees closer together or further apart. This should be a lot easier on your knees and is really good for loosening up tight hips.

edit -

Also, use your elbows to push your knees apart, or put your hands on your knee and pull it closer in, depending on where the tightness is. Just move and get comfortable in that position. You don't have to lift your feet up.

 

[humanperson]

@aglenn6 Hold on to something in front of you

 

[chrisreeves12]

@humanperson I do this at the bathroom sink, so I can hold onto it. If I’m too tight, I can grab the toe kick underneath

 

[depressednobody]

@mudmixer Would add hip flexor stretch to this too!

 

[718]

@balabob I think Horse Stance for extended time comes close to what is a 'deadhang for your hips'. Its just activating and strengthening allll the muscles in a isometric hold

 

[elcamino]

@718 I am very surprised you are the only one to mention this, to me it was the first thing that came to mind and the most obvious.

 

[kjvbeliever87]

@718 Horse stance humbles me every time

 

[wajidshah]

@718 100% if you want a single static exercise as he asked, this is it. Wish I had thought of it.

 

[heavbeautiful]

@718 im thirty years old and ive never heard the term "horse stance"

do you mean standing bow-legged?

 

[exceptions]

@heavbeautiful Yup that ‘s correct

 

[heavbeautiful]

@exceptions thanks.

 

[arielrose]

@heavbeautiful Martial arts term. Very common to do it for karate, kung fu, taekwondo etc.

 

[rosaliana]

@heavbeautiful Its a term in martial arts, qi gong and tai qi, if you wanna look into it more!

 

[amthatis]

@718 I thought horse stance, but if OP has hip impingement from sitting he might experience even greater tightness or pain in the front of the hip, unless horse stance is combined with something to stretch the hip flexor, like bow stances, or the "couch stretch"

 

[pablotorres]

@718 Never had heard of this before. Plan on incorporating it into my program to give it a shot!