Oh Butt…

What take home exercises do you give your clients’ to strengthen their lazy gluteal stabilizers?

How many people come into the clinic with issues relating to the lateral gluteal muscles? We treat by releasing any imbalances of the piriformis and other deep rotators, use neuromuscular techniques including myofascial release, muscle energy, trigger point therapy, and the list goes on. But do you give them homework to strengthen up the area and keep it flexible or not? It may not be within your scope of practice to provide exercise prescription in the clinic BUT you can give them homework and this is one that is a must.

This article is focusing on stability and the video will show you how to strengthen one of the smallest but most important of the buttocks muscles. Watch the video and make sure that you’re client has a straight back, knees and hips bent equally around 45 degrees and that they initial the abduction via the upper heel pushing into the other at the start of the lift. 

The super easy glut stretch shown at the end is one you should do every day because it just feels SO DAMN GOOD!!

WATCH THE VIDEO NOW

LITTLE CLAM EXERCISE

• Lie on your side, back straight and slightly leaned forward.
• Heels resting together and knees bent at 45 degrees from the hip.
• Pop a rolled up towel between the knees and lift the upper knee only as high as you can without feeling the towel fall out.
• Keep the feet together while you lift the top knee off the other leg
• Lift only about 2-3 cms and don’t allow your body to roll backwards.
• Lower that leg and rest it back on top of the lower knee.
• Repeat 20 times and enjoy the burning sensation in your butt 🙂
• Do the exercise once or twice a day.

STRETCH FOR GLUTS

• Cross one leg over the other so that they look like a figure 4.
• Lift your legs up towards your chest keeping them crossed.
• Grab your lower leg behind the knee to help you bring them both to your chest and feel for a deep stretch in the buttocks.
• Hold the stretch for 30 – 60 seconds and repeat on the other leg. Try to do this a few times each week, the more you can open the hip joint the better outcomes you will see.

Paula Nutting

After completing her nursing certificate Paula specialized in intensive care. She then completed her Personal Training Certificate, the Diploma of Remedial Massage and the Degree in Health Science Musculoskeletal Therapy. This established a pathway to corrective exercises and rehabilitation of the patient suffering soft tissue dysfunction. Paula has lectured for massage colleges in Brisbane on Diploma and Degree subjects and coordinated and designed units of study for both the vocational education arena and in higher education. She has a vast list of video’s demonstrating how to treat many conditions of the body, has written articles in a variety of journals and text books on massage and is currently finishing a six book series on best treatment options for anyone practicing in the remedial bodywork industries.

If you are interested in receiving more of Paula’s newsletters with video demonstrations you can click here to sign up. She is also offering a FREE eBook in the very near future on the Best 5 Neck Treatment Options that you may never have seen. Interested??? Then click here to join the list.