For the past few weeks, we have discussed in detail on how the mobile ankle is crucial for the perfect squat technique. Today, we’re going to skip the knees for now and move onto the hips. This is another area of the body that tends to develop stiffness. A sedentary lifestyle and excessive sitting are a couple reasons for why we develop stiff hips. Limited range-of-motion at the hips can limit our ability to squat to full depth. Most of us could benefit from working on our hip mobility issues.
When the hips lack adequate mobility a few things can happen. First the knees will lose stability and start to bow inward. Second, the lower back will fail to remain stable and collapse into a rounded position. Each of these movement problems wreaks havoc on our power and increases our risk for injury.
Adequate hip flexion and hip internal rotation is needed to reach a full depth squat (hips below parallel). You can measure flexion of the hip by drawing a line with the torso and another line with the outside of the upper leg. The smaller or more closed the angle is, the more hip flexion the athlete has. Internal rotation is a little harder to judge on your own and will be a topic of a later lecture.
If you are unable to squat to full depth with toes relatively straightforward, hip mobility is likely a limiting factor. Today I want to introduce one of my favorite tools for assessing hip mobility. It is called the Thomas test (1).
This test is performed while lying on your back. The Thomas test’s main purpose is to look for either Iliopsoas (hip flexor muscle), Rectus Femoris (quad muscle) or Iliotibial band tightness. All of these soft tissue structure can contribute to hip mobility issues.
Start by standing next to a bed or a bench. Your hips should be in contact with the edge. Grab one of your knees and pull it towards your chest as you gently fall backwards. The knee you grab should be pulled as close to your chest as possible. As you lie on your back while holding onto your knee, allow your other leg to relax completely.
What position does your body end up? Having a friend help you with this screen is extremely beneficial. Once you screen one leg, perform the same movement on the opposite leg and see what you find.
Did you have checks in every box of the ‘pass’ column? If so you show adequate hip flexion mobility. However if you had any checks in the ‘fail’ column for this screen, you have a hip mobility restriction.
If you were unable to pull your knee fully to your chest, we are dealing with a possible hip flexion mobility issue. This could be caused by a number of factors including tight or restricted soft tissues, or even hip capsule restrictions.
If you were unable to pull one of your legs as far towards your chest as the other, you have a possible asymmetry in hip mobility. This is a red flag. Asymmetries are very important to take care of as they can negatively influence barbell squats. Often these small side-to-side differences go undiagnosed. Left untreated, asymmetries can lead to over-use injuries.
The Thomas test also allows us to screen for mobility restrictions in the opposite hip. An inability to keep your opposite leg flat on the bed and in a straight line can also point towards hip stiffness. These types of restrictions can often be due to soft tissue tightness and will be a part of the discussion in next weeks lecture.
Next week we will learn how to decipher between soft tissue issues and joint mobility issues of our hips. In addition, we will talk about a few ways to improve hip mobility with the goal of improving our squats.
Always assess movement first. If you found a problem in your single or double leg squat, we can then use different tools (like the Thomas test) to find out the cause of the breakdown the movement.
Until next time,
Dr. Aaron Horschig
With
Dr. Kevin Sonthana
References
I tried the Thomas test after reading this and wow, my hips are way tighter than I thought. It’s crazy how sitting all day makes your legs forget how to move right. Thanks for showing a simple way to check without fancy stuff. Play Potus 2024
I tried the Thomas test after reading this and wow, my hips are way tighter than I thought. That knee pulling thing really shows how stiff you are. Time to start stretching more! Use GptDetect
I tried the Thomas test after reading this and wow, my hips are way tighter than I thought. It’s like my body forgot how to move after sitting all day. Gonna start doing this before my warm-ups. Use Reveedo Generate images and videos
I tried this test after sitting all day and wow, my hips were way tighter than I thought. The part about the lower back rounding really clicked for me—that’s exactly what happens when I squat. Play Brush Jjaemu
I tried this test after sitting all day and wow, my hips were way tighter than I thought. The part about the lower back rounding really clicked for me—that’s exactly what happens when I squat. Play Castle Busters
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Solid breakdown. Clear and to the point.
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Well done! The step-by-step breakdown was really helpful.remove text from image
I tried the Thomas test after reading this and wow, my hips are way tighter than I thought.Thanks!
Using the Thomas test to check my hip flexion while waiting for coffee made me realize just how stiff I have become. (and branded content.) Improving this mobility is as vital as high quality assets for marketing and branded content. so I am definitely starting my stretches now.
Great breakdown of hip mobility issues—so many people neglect this part and end up suffering. This test is a game changer, helps you spot problems early. Check out this Gameilo – Free Online Browser Games for some fun ways to level up your mobility.
Reading about the Thomas test and Iliopsoas issues while on the bus makes me wonder if I can learn the form and animate scenes effortlessly with AI to show my progress. I actually felt a bit called out by that mention of excessive sitting causing stiff hips today!
Reading about the Thomas test and Iliopsoas issues while on the bus makes me wonder if I can learn the form and animate scenes effortlessly with AI to show my progress. I actually felt a bit called out by that mention of excessive sitting causing stiff hips today!
Never realized that sitting all day could affect my squat so much. Time to start working on hip mobility!
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Great explanation of hip mobility and how it affects squat technique. Clear step-by-step guides like this make training much easier to understand.
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Helpful breakdown of hip mobility for improving the squat. It’s useful to see movement issues explained step by step instead of just being told to “stretch more.”
Hey, this sounds super useful! I appreciate you moving onto the hips, especially since you mentioned they’re another area prone to stiffness. It’s so true how limited hip mobility can impact so many movements. Looking forward to learning how to screen for that stiffness!
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Great article on hip mobility and its impact on squats! I appreciate the emphasis on the Thomas test. Addressing mobility issues is key, and for visually appealing content, consider exploring how an AI Image & Video Generator can enhance your fitness visuals.
Pulling the knee to the chest in the Thomas test sounds straightforward, but I wonder how tightness in the quad alters the results? Also, do you think it’s possible for hip internal rotation issues to sometimes be masked during this test? By the way, I stumbled on a tool like an image to svg converter that’s useful for turning diagrams into editable images, making analysis easier.
The Thomas test for hip tightness makes sense, but how accurate is it if someone has lower back pain too? Just wondering if that might skew the results. I’ve been using image to svg converter for some workout graphics and it’s pretty handy.
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Interesting perspective. I’ve tried a few TTS tools recently, and AnySpeech stands out for its voice quality.
This breakdown of hip mobility screening is a great reminder that better movement often starts with better awareness. I’m working on Social Interaction Trainer, an interactive project that helps people practice realistic conversations.
Great article. Thanks for sharing a practical perspective on it.
Great read on hip anatomy! Great article.
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Wow, this breakdown of hip mobility screening is a game changer! 🏋️♂️ It’s amazing how understanding our hips can transform not just squats but overall movement quality! Thank you for sharing this valuable insight; it really empowers us to move better and prevent injuries! Keep up the fantastic work!
Hey, this sounds like a super useful post! It’s great to see a focus on hip mobility, especially since you mentioned how stiff this area can get. I’m really looking forward to learning how to screen my own range-of-motion. Thanks for sharing these insights!
The Thomas test is such a useful way to check hip mobility
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The Thomas test is such a useful way to check hip mobility
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Great post on hip mobility! I appreciate you shifting focus to the hips, especially since it’s an area prone to stiffness. I’m definitely interested in learning how limited range-of-motion there can impact daily activities. Can’t wait for the full screening tips!
Totally agree with this! I used to have a terrible forward lean in my squats until I started focusing on hip mobility. Adding things like the couch stretch and pigeon pose made a massive difference. For anyone struggling, this is a must-read. Keep up the great work! If you are looking for something specifically tailored to poster creation, you might want to check out AI Poster Generator. Unlike general AI art generators, it handles layouts for movie posters and retro-style announcements really well. I’ve used it for a few social media promos and the output quality is impressive. Might be a nice addition to your next roundup!
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