Runners often concentrate on building strength in their calves, glutes, hamstrings and quads, but one crucial muscle group that’s often neglected is the hip flexor muscles.
These muscles, positioned across the hip and spine, are crucial in terms of aiding leg lift as a runner. Pat Gillham, director and specialist physiotherapist at Driving Performance in Surrey, says that the main muscles – iliopsoas and rectus femoris – are large propulsive and decelerating force-producers that are particularly important for running, and doing regular hip flexor exercises to build strength can make a big difference to your running performance.
‘They work through a large range of motion of the hip specifically in a straight line, but they also contribute to external rotation of the hip, which helps in both the swing phase and contact phase of running,’ he says.
They work collectively with other trunk and hip muscles, so Gillham stresses it’s important not to train them in isolation. ‘By incorporating them into your resistance training, you will directly contribute to improving your running performance.’
In this much-cited study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, researchers set out to determine whether implementing an eight-week hip flexion resistance training programme could improve sprint, shuttle run and isometric (when a muscle contracts without changing length and the joint doesn’t move) in physically active but untrained individuals.
Compared with the control group, the training group’s hip flexion strength improved by 12.2%, their 40-yard sprint times decreased by 3.8% and their shuttle run times decreased by 9%. And that’s just eight weeks after introducing hip flexor exercises – think what you could do when you make hip flexor exercises a staple feature of your training blocks.
And not only can you improve your running performance, but by strengthening your hip flexors via hip flexor exercises like the ones shown here, you will help avoid injury and improve your running form.
This study, which examined the relationship between hip muscles and running economy in recreationally trained endurance runners, found that hip muscular strength balance was indeed linked to running economy. Researchers advised coaches and athletes to consider implementing a specific strengthening program for hip flexor muscles.
It’s particularly important to strengthen your hip muscles if you sit at a desk for most of the day, as that causes your all-important hip flexor muscles to shorten over time. A 2021 study published in the Journal of Musculoskeletal Science and Practice found that prolonged sitting and low physical activity levels were associated with limited hip extension. When researchers compared a high-activity and minimal sitting group with a low-activity and prolonged sitting group, they found that passive hip extension was significantly better in the former. For the runners out there who spend most of their days sitting at a desk, it’s all the more reason to add these hip flexor exercises into your training.
As well as strengthening them regularly as part of your strength and conditioning routine, you should also pay attention to stretching them regularly.
Here are three exercises you can easily build into your routine – aim to perform them two to three times a week to see the benefits.
1.Hamstring bridge with banded hip flexion
How:
- Have both heels elevated on a bench. Keep the pelvis in line with your knee, and use your hands to stabilise on the floor if needed [Fig 1].
- With a looped resistance band around your feet, pull your knee to your chest and lower again [Fig 2].
- Repeat, then do the same for the other leg.
Sets & reps:
2. Front plank with banded hip flexion
How:
- Start in a plank position with your pelvis in line with your chest [Fig 3].
- With a resistance band around your feet, pull your knee to your chest and lower [Fig 4].
- Maintain the same starting position throughout. Repeat.
Sets & reps:
3. Standing knee lift
How:
- Standing on a high enough surface to clear the foot, hold a kettlebell with the front of your foot [Fig 5].
- Lift the knee towards your chest and keep the opposite heel raised throughout [Fig 6].
- Lower the hip and repeat.
Sets & reps:
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