Observe the location and its attachments and shape , span.
Thus, stiffness , hardness and any physical compression of the psoas muscle fibers will pull on the surrounding fascia and have the ability to affect the kidneys and adrenal glands. Mechanical stimuli around the kidneys creates a change in the biochemistry of the local environment and can change the release patterns of adrenaline into the body. This changes in biochemistry can lead to adrenal fatigue and feelings of exhaustion and additional over activity in the adrenal glands, which results in the sensation of anxiety.
Everything to know about “Psoas muscles”
Psoas muscle is one of the most fascinating and important muscles in the human body – physically, emotionally, and energetically – as well as spiritually – The Psoas Muscle, to as The Muscle of the Soul.
Muscle holds onto traumatic experiences on a cellular level. Releasing it can help the body process through and release trauma responses that have been locked within for years.The area that it lies in is also related to emotion – gut instincts – butterflies in our stomach.
No matter what we do, we can bet that our psoas is involved in almost every action and movement of the body throughout the day and night. Even our emotions, feelings, and thoughts can be linked to it where it gets contracted and tense.
What are the signs of stiff Psoas muscle?
There are vast signs and symptoms, and some of them are listed below.
Postural defects: Psoas has important role in structural integrity. We should learn how to both identify and correct deep structural imbalances and compression in our body that may be preventing us from being truly centred.
Psoas is an extraordinary unifying structure for the entire body. When these deep core muscles become unbalanced as well as stiff, the position of the pelvis and spine is thrown off-center.
* Do you have a hunch back or Dropping Shoulders?
*Do you stand with an excess curve in your low back or stiff back?
*Do you stand with your knees slightly bent or hyperextended?
*Do you tuck your pelvis under to look slimmer?
*Do you suck your stomach in and tuck your tailbone in?
*Do you tighten your hips?
* Does your shoulders are rotated forward and fixed tight on the ribcage?
*Do you push your chest forward (rib thrust) and compress your lower back while sitting, standing, and walking?
*Do you shrink on the stomach?
*Does your hip pop, or snap as you get up from sitting and start to walking?
*Does your back lifting your hips upward or tilting pelvic downward?
*Do you have pain or stiffness in your hips or your groin, in the front or side of thighs or hamstrings, calf, knees?
How to expand the Span of Psoas to get its full range of motion?
*Do you have back pain? Pain in the lumbosacral region (the border between the lower part of the spine and the buttocks that can radiate up to lumbar vertebrae or down to the sacrum and leg) when sitting or particularly when changing positions arising for sitting to standing. Difficulty or pain when trying to stand in a fully upright posture.
* Do you have pain in the neck or shoulder, upper, mid or lower back, hips, buttocks, pelvis, or groin knee, ankle , foot?
*Do you walk with leg/ foot rotating outward? Or do you get frequent foot or ankle stains?
*Spasms/ loss of curvatures/ lordosis? Hyper lordosis?
*Dehydration of disc? Or Osteophytes?
*Snapping hip syndrome?
*Radiating pain down the leg ,foot?
*Disc problems, herniated or dehydrated?
*Limping? Limping or shuffling stride when you walk.
*Functional leg length difference?
*Scoliosis?
*Instability in the core of the body or giddiness?
Do you suffer with –
Tension headache, migraine, vertigo, sinus, acidic reflex, etc.
Gastrointestinal: Mechanism of Digestive trac is related to the movement of Psoas with the Paraspinal group of muscles.
Do you suffer with ;
bloating, burping, gases or flatulence, indigestion, food poisoning, nausea, vomiting, constipation, piles, fissures, blood in stool, change in bowel habits, diarrhea and cramping etc.
Stomach or chest uneasiness , discomfort or pain, etc.
Do you have menstrual pain and related problems?
Do you suffer with stress , anxiety, or depression?
Do you have diabetes?
If you answered yes to any of the above questions, you have short , stiff, hard psoas muscles.
Hardness of Psoas further leads to many more serious conditions. Hip, knee ,spine arthritis, diabetes , gallbladder or kidney stones , fatty liver, cardiovascular, and reparatory. Hernias, femoral bursitis, prostatitis, inflammation of fallopian tube or uterus or infertility, cancer, etc.
Which organs are affected by Psoas major muscles?
Psoas muscles run over or near lots of organs in our digestive system. Health conditions of these muscles that affect these organs and affected organs may also irritate the psoas muscles
Essentially, all the organs are in contact, either directly or indirectly, with the respiratory and pelvic diaphragm and psoas. The heart and lungs sit on top of the respiratory diaphragm, while the stomach, spleen, liver, gallbladder, and colon lie underneath it. The kidneys lay next to the outer edge of each psoas muscle, and the ureters run parallel to it.
The kidneys usually sit located over the medial aspect of the psoas muscle and the lateral aspect of the quadratus lumborum. The proximal ureters will typically pass over the psoas muscle on their way to the bony pelvis.
The ureters run parallel to it. The bladder and reproductive organs lie in front of the psoas. The abdominal the ureters run parallel to it. The abdominal aorta, which provides blood flow to the pelvis and legs, runs through the abdominal cavity on the inner edge of each psoas.
Kidneys , adrenal glands, pancreas, parts of intestines, and major blood vesselsare located in Retroperitoneal space,one on each side of spine and behind peritoneum, in front of the spine T12-L3 vertebrae and abdominal wall .
The kidneys are closely related to the following muscles:
Psoas major muscle : The kidneys sit on the psoas major muscle, which runs along the lumbar spine.
Quadratus lumborum muscle : The kidneys are also adjacent to the quadratus lumborum muscle, located in the lower back.
Emotional or mental Effects of a stiff Psoas Muscle:
Chronic contraction of the Psoas muscle can lead to many emotional problems within the body.
The Psoas muscle connects directly to our fight or flight response. Both automatic (reflex action) responses accelerate or trigger contraction in the Psoas muscle. So, while this muscle is stiff and hard can’t cope with the situation and bring havoc within the body’s cavities. Because of this consistent process of contraction and increase work load on our sympathetic system, our function of the parasympathetic nervous system slows, and we can not cope up . This is one of the reasons Body can’t relax. Muscles remain stiffer state and sleep get disturbed.
Since stress accumulates on an unconscious level, healing our bodies is a process that must happen consciously.
Therefore, to bring back their elastic property is an active process and not passive. Expansion needs a lot of strength where as Contraction happens automatically. Shortening and strengthening are always easy and enjoyable, but this type of hardening of musculature can’t hold our structure stable. Instead, it brings obstruction to inner organ movements, too .
About Psoas muscle:
The Psoas is the only muscle that connects our spine to our legs
It span is from the upper inner thigh that is appendicular to the axial skeleton ( to our central axis) and the front to the back of the lower vertebral column.
Attachment of Psoas:
Vertebral bodies and intervertebral disc in between of 12 th thoracic vertebrae (T12) to 4 th lumbar vertebrae ( L1,L2,L3 and L4) and transverse processes of L1 c to L5 vertebrae then It travels down and forward over the brim of the pelvis, inserting into the top part of the inner thigh.
The psoas muscle performs several important actions :
Psoas are deep and very strong flexor muscles.
The Psoas connect the upper body to the lower body,the outside to the inside, appendicular to the axial skeleton, and from front to back.
Our flexor muscles are very strong before our birth, that is, knee – elbow position.
These flexor muscles action is defensive and reflex, and this is one of the reason behind their stiffness and hardness.
It is very essential to learn the technique of their natural behaviour pattern to keep them elastic is the key factor.
The psoas flexes the hip : so when it contracts, it brings the knee toward the stomach, abdomen , towards chest, and pull chest towards stomach or abdomen and torso towards thighs . This action compresses vertebral / spinal columns from the front side as well as front body cavities ( chest and abdominopelvic) . Hence, this brings obstruction for natural movement of organs, glands, vessels, and nerves that slow down the function of organ systems.
The psoas adducts the hip that is bringing the leg towards the centre of the body. If we squeeze our thighs together, we are contracting and engaging our adductors and strong flexors. This process makes hips with pelvic floors stiffer that obstruct adjusting pressure within these cavities ( i.e., pressure difference).
If we spend a lot of time sitting, our psoas get stiffer as a result of spending so much time in a shortened state for prolonged time. We have to prepare our body how to sit with extended spinal column and avoid shrinking where flexor muscles dominance takes over.
Even if we stand for longer time, the psoas laterally rotates the hip and thigh, allowing us to stand with our feet pointed outward. So again, our Psoas get stiffer and stiffer. Psoas doesn’t expand on its own but gets stiffer to hold us vertically stable.
When we walk for a longer time , repetitive movements in joints, muscles get more and more stiffer and in wear and tear leads towards degeneration.
Therefore, just keeping moving and being active doesn’t help to expand span of Psoas muscle at its full range and lose its skill.
Walkers, Dancers , performing yoga or sports, or physical trainers often have a great deal of in their Psoas muscle, dominance of flexors is more, and extensor muscles are weak. hence, they suffer from health issues.
Psoas muscle is vital for appropriate for alignment/structure. It’s full muscular range of motion and smooth action and correct joint rotation is essential.
The role of this Psoas in Linear movement of our torso/ body from leg and hands is important movement, which we have lost and forgotten . This is the movement children do in their sliding forward on the belly to prepare to walk. We must learn this sequential order with the flow of muscular architecture to learn it’s natural behaviour pattern.
Psoas and its relationship with respiratory diaphragm and is important for ventilation breathing:
Psoas has a vital role for both the movement of ribcage and respiratory diaphragm.
It attaches to the diaphragm, 12th thoracic, lumbar vertebrae, and discs, travels through the pelvis to the thigh, and therefore is closely connected to the central nervous system.
The psoas connects to the diaphragm by connective tissue/fascia, which directly relates to our breathing ability and capacity as well as the automatic fight or flight response. Hence, it has a very important role in our ventilation/
At the top, the psoas attaches to the spine in 3 places: through the arcuate ligament which has a direct attachment to the diaphragm, and the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd lumbar vertebrae of the spine. In some texts, it appears that the diaphragm and the ligament blend with anterior ligaments of the spine. Allowing them to work together to move the spine and influence breathing function; essentially, a tight psoas can restrict deep breathing and vice versa, impacting posture and movement throughout the body.
Psoas and its “fight or flight” response:
The Psoas is the main muscle involved in the “fight or flight” response of the body. When we are startled – feelings or frightened with sudden shock , our psoas contracts, and when we experience mental or emotional stress, the psoas will respond by contracting, tightening. When the fear reflex gets activated, the contraction of the psoas chest and the hips towards center.
Psoas and it’s relationship with organ systems:
The Psoas muscle that is most central to our fight/flight response. When we don’t respond, these stress hormones go unspent and become stored in the body. This can bring many health problems, including insomnia, lowered immune system, anxiety, eating disorders, depression, and living in a constant state of fear or alert.
Because the psoas is so intimately involved in such basic physical and emotional reactions, a chronically tightened psoas continually signals your body that you’re in danger, eventually exhausting the adrenal glands and depleting the immune system.
Organs situated below diaphragm are on bed of this Psoas muscle, Liver with gall bladder, stomach with spleen ,small and big intestine, kidneys with adrenal gland, pancreas, reproductive organs – prostate gland in male and uterus with ovaries in female , excretory organs – bladder ,anus and related blood vessels like Aorta , Vena cava and it branches and lymph vessels, nerves etc.
The digestive system can also be affected by the Psoas.
The psoas dive behind and then under the digestive system, creating a hammock that can act as a massage to the organs.
With this in mind, psoas loses some of the connection to these organs
When it becomes stiff and hard. It loses its elastic property, and it loses its ability to generate movement and some of the connections to these organs. Stiffness and hardness can generate too much pressure on the organs of the abdomen. This will increase stimulation and neural activity inside the visceral cavity, igniting patterns that lead to tension in the organs.
This state of hardness, when it is chronically tight and activated, ignites the sympathetic nervous system and increases adrenal activity when we need to prepare the body for quick action. This is useful and defensive action for our own protection, which shuts down digestion. Chronic activation of these sympathetic responses can lead to indigestion, anxiety, fatigue, etc.
Above diaphragm: heart, lungs.
Psoas as a hydraulic pump:
The psoas supports the internal organs and functions as a hydraulic pump. Its movement allows for fluids to be pushed in and out of cells, which helps nutrients be drawn in and pushed out of the cells such as blood and lymph.
When the fear reflex gets activated, the psoas flexes the hip and chest, it’s is at a deep level, and a very strong flexor.
Why do researchers say stretching doesn’t work?
As we have seen, the dominance of flexion is a very strong force . So, as the resting level of tension in our elastic muscles is set by our nervous system to make us stable as well as protection ,it is a defensive mechanism. So only if muscles are elastic, they recoil it’s natural state and not if they are stiff and hard.
To make us physically stable muscles remain in a contractile position. The repetitive movements of joints in physical and mental stress , our nervous system learns to keep these muscles permanently tense.
If you observe yourself, you can actually make out permanent stiffness and hardness of muscular architecture that I see in my therapeutical practice. Hyper tonicity is muscle tightness (increased tone, hypertone ), which makes moving body parts more difficult, resisting to movement.
It is, while static stretching temporarily lengthens muscles by reducing the activity of our stretch reflex, the effect is short-lived. Our muscles typically start tightening up within a few hours as our stretch reflex regains normal function.
Therefore, It is necessary to understand your own status of muscular architecture and learn modification of stretch reflexes, and its memory programming is an important factor to bring back a natural span of expansion to improve enhance its proper function.
Muscles which are stiffer and their tendency for any physical or mental stimulator to contract then in this process , they lose their elasticity, own natural skill of behavior pattern.
Actually, stretching (from joints) instead does very little to release involuntary contraction of voluntary muscle when we lose its elastic property , we also lose its voluntariness, too.
One must understand and remember that Psoas as a strong flexor muscle, for any stimulation Physical and mental it will get more and more tighten, stiffer, and become hard permanently. This is a defensive mechanism that is reflex action of our own body.
A Song To our Psoas:
“Please Release me, let me be in ease ”.
How to release Psoas?
The Psoas muscle plays a huge role in our bodies, and unlike most other muscles, it lays buried because of their stiffness and hardness.
The psoas is a major contributor of flexion of torso and thighs at hip joint. It connects the upper body with a lower body. Therefore, to relax or expand at its full range of motion is more difficult and not easy.
We have to remove the dominating force of all these flexors and increase the force of all extensor muscles to bring equilibrium.
This movement is their in our ancient brain. Children unwind these movements and extend and expand but not learn consciously and intellectually and go into automation, and we lose and forget and get into reflex action of defensive mechanism.
To reach Psoas and move it at its full range of motion, it needs a lot of handwork. For expansion as well as Movement of this muscle, the Sequential flow of muscular order exactly like strings of pulleys in a particular and same direction with synchronized manner is essential to remove its dominance of flexion and move smoothly to extend us erect. This is the secret of nature, which we have to learn intellectually and enhance.
Due to its location deep within the core of the body and strong flexor, the psoas muscle instinctively tightens up when we feel stress or fear. For some people, learning to let go of the tension in their psoas is an intense emotional process. Which we observe during the expansion of muscles.
This needs regular, consistent, sincere, and dedicated practice with strictly following physical laws. We have to bring back it’s ancient memory and program it consciously to overcome health issues. It should not be saying wordy prevention is better than cure. We have to learn intellectually to bring back it’s memory even though now in today’s lifestyle, muscular hardness is a big obstacle. There is no easy way to release.
To reach and elongate Psoas, we need to elongate muscles, which are all attached from the skull and vertebral column to hip and from deep to superficial . They have a vertical span , neck muscles group, Para spinal group and serratus posterior group , Quadratus lumborum, downward towards hips . Then superficial muscles like ramboids, Trapezius, Latissimus dorsi expand like wings outward etc. We can only move these beautiful muscular architecture with expansion and movement of shoulder and pelvic girdle with related extremities. In this lifestyle, we must learn this technique at an early age as possible.
Relationship of Psoas with central axis ( Skull – Vertebral Column – ribcage )
Psoas is attached to central axis is related hence it has relationship and connection with Para spinal group of muscles which runs vertical with Vertebral Column as well as muscles which are attached to vertebral column from both girdles shoulder and pelvic with their extremities.
Why You Can’t Release our Tight Psoas Muscle with Stretching?
If we are doing stretching from joints, then it is not at all possible to increase the range of motion of muscular architecture.
If we make efforts to increase the range of motion of muscular architecture, then joint spaces will remain intact.
Conscious efforts to move muscles in their natural Sequential order are essential. This order and it’s natural flow of direction is imbibed in our ancient brain and which child unwinds but goes into automation.
We have to learn step by step to make efforts consciously in this direction of flow and with regular and consistent practice with dedication to bring back it’s memory and programming in our conscience brain.
Observe the Respiratory diagrams below its relationship with Psoas and related muscular architecture, try to understand to work appropriately to expand the Psoas. As Deeper and very strong flexor not easy to reach but with the right direction of effort we can achieve to bring control on these voluntary muscles.
