The eighteenth in a series by Scot Willingham.

@##=#<1,R>@##=#Equipment: mat

Anatomy moment: There is a really deep muscle that few of us know about that connects from the inner side of our spine to our thigh bone (femur) and is key to pulling our legs up to our stomach. It’s called the psoas and on cyclists it can get overused and extremely tight. This stretch targets the psoas.

From that sprawled out position above, bring your hands up to either side of your shoulders on the floor. Push yourself up to your hands and knees. Bring one leg forward so that foot is flat on the ground and both knees are bent at 90 degrees. Bring your upper body up so that you are kneeling on one knee and one foot, with your body upright. Keeping your body in that position, tuck under with your butt. What does this mean, you ask?

Good question. OK, this may sound gross, but it’s an image that works. Remember the last time you had diarrhea and you weren’t near a bathroom and you clenched your cheeks til you were. Well, it’s the same feeling. Told you it was gross.

This is a posterior pelvic tuck. You use the glutes as mentioned above and also pull up on the lower abdominals. The only bony skeleton that you are moving is the pelvis and the lumbar spine. You stay in the kneeling position and the torso stays upright.

You should feel a slight stretch in the front of the leg that you are kneeling on. With the same arm as that leg, reach out far to your side and then up and over as if you were doing a hook shot in hoops. Tuck under more with your butt (remember that feeling?) and stay in that position for at least 4 deep breaths. If you feel unstable, do this near a wall. To get out of it, just bring your arm down and relax your butt. Switch legs and do the other side.