Image credit ¹

If you are dealing with muscle tension or discomfort due to an unbalanced pelvis, Hands On Healing in Montgomery, Alabama offers postural assessment services designed to help determine the underlying causes.

Pelvic Pain & Discomfort

The pelvis is the keystone of the body and is the base for all movement and support for the upper body.

The pelvis and hip are not the same structure. The hip is the ball and socket joint that attaches inside the pelvis and allows for the movement of the legs so we can walk.

The tilt of your pelvis in any direction beyond where it should be will have a strong reaction throughout the entire body. When the angle of your pelvis changes even slightly, your body will HAVE to use certain muscles depending on that angle to compensate for the change.

These muscles must fire so that balance can be maintained in your body. If muscles did not compensate, then when gravity kicked in we would essentially fall over.

This tilt of the pelvis and ensuing compensation is the reason you feel certain tensions and is also the reason that we suffer from unnecessary injuries.

Anterior Pelvic Tilt

In Figure 1, you will see a depiction of someone that has Anterior Pelvic Tilt.

Figure 1

As you can see in the image it says that the erector spinae (include the quadratus lumborum also) and the iliopsoas (also including the adductors and the quads of the legs) are what is tight and that the gluteus maximus and abdominals are weak.

Symptoms associated to this type of posture would include:

• Tight feet and calves
• The hips could hurt due to the lack of strength in the glutes
• The lower back would be affected due to overworking to try and keep the body upright.
• Between the shoulder blades due to over work in an attempt to keep the shoulders back
• The upper shoulders and neck would be affected due to forward head posture

Can It Be Helped?

Yes, bodywork and massage can help you loosen the tense muscles that are holding you in place and making your body work harder than it has to.

Then with a little bit of homework, you would do a couple of exercises and stretches to rebalance the pelvises position. This would cause the tight muscles to actually stop firing and the weak muscles would then do their job in supporting your body.

There are still more challenges that pelvis position can be involved in.

If you are interested, please ask your therapist for information and they will be happy to discuss how this might be affecting you.

1. Source: A photograph promoting the film “Jailhouse Rock” depicts singer Elvis Presley. Public Domain via Wikipedia » [go back ↑]