This week we are working on our hip abduction. Hip abduction is when one leg moves towards the side, or away from the center line. The most obvious and common ways we use this movement in our daily lives is when getting in and out of bed, in and out of the car, or side-stepping out of the way.
Weakness in this area can cause the hip to “cave” to the outside which causes the knee to dip inward when walking or going up steps. These 2 motions can lead to hip and knee pain.
We are bringing things back to center this week. A lot of us have a tendency to roll towards our pinky toes as we walk or push off the ball of the foot. The first video shows you how to release the outside (lateral side) of the hip and shin that can get tight from the foot rolling out and the second video uses a ball to help track the foot back into a more neutral position during push off.
For the month of March we are working on our feet and ankles. Making sure we have the mobility and strength to keep our joints from toe to head working well.
This is our last week of balance challenges. We are opening up the hips this week with our standing figure 4 stretch and by progressing our single leg balance to challenge all the motions of the hip.
This week we are adding all the rotation, in the upper and lower body. If standing on one leg is hard for you, go back to week one and work on your single-leg balance first.
This week we are adding movement to our balance and progressing our single leg balance.
This month we are focusing on our balance. While we will get added benefits to our balance (such as stretching our quad below), all of the movements this month will challenge and improve your balance.
This week, we will focus on the lower leg below the knee. By increasing the range of motion in the ankle, we can help take pressure off of the knees.
I know it is January, but we just had a few more moves to add to our shoulder health program. Enjoy these bonus videos.
Brenna Backe 