This Pilates Iconoclast post explores the accessing of core strength and stability with
three key elements:
Psoas
Inner Thighs
Lesser Trochanters
The lesser trochanters are small nubs of bone high up on the insides of the femurs. These little nubs are where the lower portion of the psoas muscle meets up with the inner thighs.
The lesser trochanters are the sites where the singular force of the combined lumbar spine and the core, which are central, split off into the paired central forces of the inner thighs.
Because the inner thigh and psoas are each connected to the lesser trochanter, the site where they meet is sometimes referred to as the psoas - inner thigh junction.
The psoas essentially connects the spine to the legs through it's connection to the inner thighs on the lesser trochanters.
This is a very important connection to understand, tap into, and utilize because it is the relationship between
the psoas and inner thighs
which gives the body the potential to sustain a powerful support for the large lumbar vertebrae.
If you are working your abs
without sensing the relationship
of the psoas between the spine and legs,
you are mainly working the outside stuff,
and probably tightening your hip flexors.
When the lumbar is extended and stabilized with this psoas -inner thigh connection through the lesser trochanter,
the floating ribs which begin right above the lumbar spine, can then expand back and wide by breathing deeply into the lower lobes of the lungs.
This expansion of the lower back ribs in turn gives access to the lats and lower trapezius, and then in turn the upper spine will be more free.
This psoas - inner thigh connection also gives a powerful facility to the legs,
relieves the overwork of the quads,
and grants muscle toning potential to the tone-challenged area of the upper inner thighs.
What's more, when the lumbar spine is extended and stabilized
using the inner thighs, psoas, and lats,
then the deepest abdominal layer,
the transversus abdominis,
has the most potential to expand and wrap
from back to front efficiently.
Again, the lesser trochanters can be described as little rounded protrusions or nubs of bone on the inside of each of the femurs.
It is interesting that these tiny nubs nestled so so deep and high up on the insides of the legs could be so intrinsic to core strength.
But there are so many ways that the core can and should be utilized for support, that it really shouldn't be a struggle to call upon the core.
Elusive connections are attained more mindfully, and with subtlety.
Most people are more aware of the greater trochanters
because these larger-than-the-lesser nubs are on the
outsides of the femurs,
and because the greater trochanters
can be sensed through touch.
Greater just means
that they are bigger,
not that they are more important.
However, this greater and lesser relationship is testament
to the beautiful balances within the body's ever-amazing design!
It's interesting to realize
that the lesser trochanters align down to the big toes and
the greater trochanters align down to the little toes.
It goes greater to little on the outside line of the leg
and lesser to big on the inside.
You really can't touch the lesser trochanters.
The phrase "you can't touch this"
resonates on a literal level in that
you cannot palpate the lessors.
However, I also consider this "can't touch" phrase figuratively,
as in the MC Hammer Rap Song "You Can't Touch This."
Hammer's version of the phrase implies something so astonishing that it can't be "touched,"
that is, it is without parallel.
Watch the video for this song, and witness how facile Hammer is with his femurs.
In terms of the "can't be touched" quality of the lesser trochanters, it's not just that you can't find them with your fingers.
It's that the vital connection between the inner thighs and the psoas that occurs on these lesser trochanters is essential, and actually, crucial to employing a truly deep core connection.
In my estimation, regarding the various muscular and skeletal relationships
that add up to accessing core support,
this lesser trochanter - inner thigh - psoas relationship
really can't be touched
in that it is an unparalled central connection.
Backbone and Wingspan®
at Mind Your Body Pilates Lexington Avenue @ 90th Street
and in Bedford Hills at Contour Studio
Call Tim at 212-647-8878
tim@backboneandwingspan.com
www.backboneandwingspan.com
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