If you’ve been dealing with nagging low back pain that just won’t quit, your hip flexors might be the hidden culprit.
Most people don’t even realize they have hip flexors, let alone how important they are for posture, mobility, and core strength. Whether you’re training in the gym, working at a desk, or just trying to move without pain—your hip flexors play a bigger role than you think.
Let’s break it down.
What Are Hip Flexors?
Your hip flexors are a group of muscles that connect your upper leg to your torso. Their job? To help you lift your knees, bend at the waist, and stabilize your pelvis.
The main hip flexor muscles include:
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Iliopsoas (made up of the psoas major and iliacus)
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Rectus femoris (part of your quads)
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Sartorius
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Tensor fasciae latae (TFL)
You use your hip flexors every time you walk, run, sit, squat, or lunge. And if you spend a lot of time sitting, they’re probably tight—which can lead to anterior pelvic tilt, poor posture, and yes, lower back pain.
Why Tight Hip Flexors Can Cause Back Pain
When your hip flexors are tight or weak (or both), your pelvis gets pulled forward into what’s called anterior pelvic tilt. That puts excess strain on your lumbar spine—leading to compression, stiffness, and often chronic low back pain.
Common signs your hip flexors might be the issue:
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Stiffness in the front of your hips
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Trouble standing up straight after sitting
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Low back pain after walking or working out
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Posture that looks “arched” or “tilted forward”
The good news? With proper exercise prescription, mobility work, and strength training, you can fix this. This is where a knowledgeable coach or St. Pete personal trainer makes a huge difference.
How to Locate Your Hip Flexors
Not sure where your hip flexors even are?
Here’s a quick way to find them:
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Stand upright and lift one knee toward your chest.
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Place your hand just inside your hip bone on the same side.
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You’ll feel a muscle contract under your fingertips—that’s your iliopsoas, the deepest of the hip flexors.
You can also feel them stretch by:
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Getting into a half-kneeling lunge position
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Tucking your pelvis under slightly (posterior tilt)
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Leaning forward slightly to feel the stretch in the front of the hip
(If you don’t feel anything, your hip flexors may be both tight and weak—very common in sedentary populations and even in active people who don’t train the area directly.)
Why We Train Hip Flexors at Our St. Pete Personal Training Studio
At our gym in St. Petersburg, FL, we work with all kinds of people—from desk workers with chronic back pain to athletes and special populations recovering from surgery or medical challenges.
A common thread across many of them? Poor hip function.
Here’s how we approach it:
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Mobility work to unlock tight hip flexors
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Strength training to build stability and support
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Core and glute activation to rebalance the pelvis
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Individualized assessments to identify the root cause of back pain
This is a standard part of our semi-private personal training, online coaching, and especially our programs for people dealing with chronic pain or movement limitations.
Take Care of Your Hips, Save Your Back
Your hips and your spine are teammates. If one isn’t doing its job, the other has to work harder.
By learning how to locate, stretch, and strengthen your hip flexors, you can often relieve low back pain without medications, injections, or guesswork.
And if you’re not sure where to start, we’ve got your back (literally).
Ready to Move Pain-Free?
If you’re in St. Pete and looking for:
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Personal training for low back pain relief
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Corrective exercise and hip mobility work
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Or just a safe, effective program to feel better and move better…
We’d love to help. Our coaches specialize in training real people with real challenges—and we’re proud to be one of the top-rated personal training gyms in St. Petersburg, FL.
