We all need more mobility in our hips. Day-to-day life is really hard on our hips. Prolonged sitting, driving, sedentary lifestyle… the list goes on. Prolonged sitting shortens your hip flexors which causes them to be tight and weak. This in turn can lead to hip pain, low back pain, and even knee pain. If that isn’t enough, lack of mobility in your hips also seriously impacts athletic performance by reducing movement capabilities and power.
This Shin Box progression series will help mobilize and strengthen your hips for improved performance in both your daily and athletic life.
Shin Box
The Shin Box is great because it works both internal and external rotation in one fluid movement. You can also regress or progress the movement based on your level of strength/mobility. It is also an excellent warm-up drill, especially prior to any squatting, deadlifting or running.
Progression 1
For those new to the Shin Box exercise, this is a great place to start. This version of the exercise encourages movement in the hips while strengthening the glutes.
From a seated position, have your front leg in a 90 degree angle and your back leg in a 90 degree angle. One hip internally rotated and the other hip externally rotated.
Engage your glutes and press the knee of your externally rotated leg into the ground, which will drive your hips up.
Once your hips are fully extended at the top, slowly lower back to the ground.
As you flow through the exercise, be really aware of maintaining good form and engaging your core.
Repeat 12-15 times or until fatigue.
Progression 2
Once you have mastered Progression 1, incorporate a lunge into the movement to challenge your hip strength and stability. Once your hips are fully extended, step your back leg forward into a lunge and then back, returning to the starting position.
Progression 3
The final progression increases the difficulty of Progression 2 by holding a medium to heavy weight in your hands.
