Meghan Callaway 5 Hip Flexor Strengthening Exercises You Likely Haven't Tried!

The hip flexors are a muscle group most people totally neglect, particularly when it comes to strengthening. Raise your hand if you can relate! Most people do not give their hip flexors the strengthening attention this important muscle group needs and deserves!

While this might come as a shock, “tight” hip flexors might need to get stronger. Stretching isn’t always the solution (and can sometimes be counterproductive). Strengthening can help address both weakness and tightness.

To note, I have tight in quotations as there are different reasons why your hip flexors might feel tight. So there is no “one size fits all” answer.

Here are 5 innovative and effective exercises for strengthening the hip flexors you likely haven’t tried before. These can be done at home or the gym.

#1) Hollow Body + Single Leg Band Resisted Cycles

This exercise strengthens the hip flexors, and improves lumbo-pelvic stability.

Coaching Tips:

Attach a long resistance band around a secure surface, and loop the band around your ankle (you can also use a cable machine). The resistance here is coming medially versus straight ahead, and you can also have the resistance coming laterally. The band placement also makes this exercise more anti-rotational in nature.

Lie on your back on the floor. Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position.

Lift up your legs so they are in a vertical position, fully extend your legs, and point your feet away from you (plantarflex).

Take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine), and tuck your ribs towards your hips (close the space in your midsection/think about wrinkling the front of your shirt).

Now slowly lower your legs towards the floor, and to a range where you are able to maintain proper form.

While maintaining the hollow body position, perform “cycling” movements on the side where the band is attached. Make sure your hip, knee, and foot remain in line.

For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your legs or feet to strike the floor.

For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, torso, spine, or hips to rotate, or hips to leave the floor.

For the duration of the exercise, keep your core muscles braced (360 degree brace around your spine).

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

#2) Foot Elevated Band Resisted Leg Extensions + Band Resisted Isometric Psoas March

This exercise strengthens the hip flexors and quadriceps, improves lumbo-pelvic stability, and shoulder and scapular stability.

Coaching Tips:

Place a resistance band around your feet.

Hold a long resistance band in your hands, and loop the band behind your knees. There should be resistance in the band for 100% of the exercise.

Elevate your forefoot on a bench, or other stable surface.

On the other side, bring your knee and thigh in towards your body. For the duration of the exercise, keep your knee and thigh relatively close to your body.

Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position.

Start so your thighs are relatively vertical, knees are bent, and are several inches above the floor.

Your hands should be approximately below your shoulders, or slightly ahead. Figure out what works and feels best for you.

Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), and brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine).

Now use your quadriceps and extend your leg. Pause for a count when your leg is fully extended and really contract your quadriceps. Do not let your knee hyperextend, and make sure the movement is smooth and controlled.

Return to the starting position with complete control. Stop when your knee is just above the floor, and thigh is in a relatively vertical position.

For the duration of the exercise, press your body away from the floor/towards the ceiling and protract your shoulder blades (spread them apart and move them away from your spine and around your ribcage). Do not mindlessly hang out.

For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine, or hips to rotate.

For the duration of the exercise, keep your core muscles braced (360 degree brace around your spine).

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

#3) Ball Lateral Hip Switches + Band Resisted Psoas Marches

This exercise strengthens the hip flexors, and improves lumbo-pelvic stability. The lateral isometric ball press makes this deceptively challenging in terms of lumbo-pelvic stability.

Coaching Tips:

Place a resistance band around your feet.

Place a stability ball against a wall/stable surface, and so it’s against your upper arm/torso on one side. For the duration of the exercise, apply pressure into the ball with your upper arm and torso.

Your body should be leaning into the ball (drive your foot into the floor and press your body against the ball), in a slightly diagonal position, and in a relatively straight line from your head to feet.

Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine), and squeeze your glutes (on the planted side).

While remaining in the plank position, and while pressing against the ball with your upper arm/torso, lift your knee and mimic a running stride. Move with control.

Gain a moment of control, then return your leg and foot to the starting position with control.

For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your shoulder blades or shoulders to elevate towards your ears. Keep your shoulder blades down/depressed. Imagine you are sliding your shoulder blades down towards your heels.

For the duration of the exercise, your body should remain in a straight line from your head to heels. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, torso, spine, or hips to rotate, or hip to drop on one side.

For the duration of the exercise, keep your core muscles braced (360 degree brace around your spine), and squeeze your glutes on the planted side.

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

Get STRONG hip flexors, improve your mobility and athleticism! Getting your hip flexors STRONGER might be the missing link to helping you function, perform, and feel better in the gym, with your running, your sport, and even in your daily life. For “experienced beginners” to advanced trainees, and also coaches. Great for home AND gym workouts!

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#4) Standing Isometric Psoas March + Hanging Weighted Hold

This exercise strengthens the hip flexors, and the muscles in the lower leg and foot.

Coaching Tips:

Stand on one foot, and have a slight bend in your knee. Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position.

Hang a weight (or household item) from a medium to high tension resistance band, and place the band over your knee/lower thigh area.

Form a tripod base by placing your weight on the back portion of your foot, and the base of your big and baby toes. These parts of your foot should remain in contact with the floor for the duration of the exercise. Pretend you are suctioning or screwing your foot to the floor.

Take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine), and squeeze your glutes (on the planted side).

Lift your leg so your thigh is at least parallel to the floor. For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your thigh to drop towards the floor. Hold for the target amount of time.

For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your knee to fall inside or outside of your foot. Maintain the tripod foot base.

For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, torso, spine, or hips to rotate, or hip to drop on one side.

For the duration of the exercise, keep your core muscles braced (360 degree brace around your spine), and squeeze your glutes on the planted side.

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

#5) Banded Psoas Marches From Iso Single Leg Glute Bridge + Banded Scapular Protraction

This exercise strengthens the glutes AND hip flexors.

Many people don’t do glute bridge/hip thrust variations correctly as they compensate by using their back versus performing the movements with their glutes. ⁣⁣ ⁣

A few years ago, I got this awesome glute hamstring raise variation from coach Eric Cressey, but for glute hamstring raises. The ‘’hack’’ Eric uses addresses this common compensation/form breakdown people have. He added in a banded reach component. The banded reach component trains scapular upward rotation, which is something that many people lack the ability to do.

As per Cressey’s description, ‘’the serratus works like an anti-lat’’ so during the concentric portion of the movement you can’t cheat by extending through the lumbar spine instead of extending through the hips.

Coaching Tips:

Place a resistance band around your feet.

Lie on the floor. Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position.

Rest a long band so it is at the bottom of your shoulder blades, and hold the band in each hand. For the duration of the exercise, your arms should remain at a 90 degree angle with your torso.

Keep your shoulder blades protracted for the duration of the exercises (spread apart from your spine, and around your ribcage).

Extend your hips by pressing through the back of your foot and squeezing your glutes, and get into the top position of a single leg glute bridge.

In the top position, your body should form a straight line from your shoulders to knee. Maintain this position for the duration of the exercise.

Now perform a “march” and bring your knee and thigh in towards your body.

Gain a moment of control, then return to the starting position with complete control.

For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your knee to fall inside or outside of your foot.

For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine, or hips to rotate.

For the duration of the exercise, keep your core muscles braced (360 degree brace around your spine), and squeeze your glutes on the planted side.

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

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