Pilates for an anterior pelvic tilt on the Ladder Barrel

Usually with an anterior pelvic tilt the hip flexors have become overly dominant. They have become so tight that they pull the front of the hips down causing the pelvis to swing back and the lumbar spine to shorten. You can see in the diagram below by Andreas Vesalius that the Psoas Major (labelled as G) attaches from the lumbar spine to the Lessor Trochanter (which you can’t see in this picture). Other hip flexors that will be tight are the Iliacus and the Recus Femoris.

The tight hip flexors create an increased lumbar lordosis. So the little workout clip below will focus on:

Stretching:

  • Hip Flexors (Rectus Femoris, Iliopsoas)
  • Lower Back (Quadrates Lumborum)

Strengthen

  • Lower Abdominals
  • Hip Extensors (Gluteus maximus and Hamstrings – Semitendinosus, Semimembranosus, long head of Biceps Femoris)

What I love about using the Barrel for the bridging is that you achieve more segmental control of the spine into extension and flexion. The abdominal roll backs are also supported by the barrel making this the ideal piece of equipment to master the abdominal series on. Of course nothing can beat the amazing hip flexor, quad and glute stretches you can do on the Barrel. The Barrel just holds you in the correct position, especially for the quad stretch. I love seeing how my clients improve their hip flexibility in these stretches and this is really reflected in their posture.

Please enjoy this little workout on the Ladder Barrel. One of the under utilised pieces of equipment in the Pilates Studio.

By the way, if you are interested in booking into my Barrels of Fun course the link is here!

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