There is a correct pelvic alignment and I try to describe as many ways for people to feel it as I can. When the pelvis is aligned correctly it is much more likely that the spine and the extremities will be able to function successfully. The previous post discussed the need for a relaxed butt. Here is another cue and one of my favorites. Give your butt a room of its own.
Gluteus maximus is our big butt muscle that brought us up to standing from all fours. If you have pets or think of a horse or a cow, four legged creatures don’t have big butts. And since we have these big beautiful muscles we need to use them well and treat them kindly. Using them well means walking correctly so they act as designed and standing with your big but muscle relaxed so as to not over work this key muscle in the course of your day.
- Come to stand with the feet a couple of inches apart and parallel. Feel what your butt is doing.
- It shouldn’t take you long to feel how your butt is almost always “on”, gripped and working to hold us up. This is not the design of the gluteus maximus. Turn it on and off and feel the difference.
- Now stand in your normal way again and feel the back of the thigh or hamstring where the butt meets the back of leg and feel if the butt is hanging or sitting down on the leg or hamstrings. Lift the butt up, or tilt your pelvis slightly forward.
- Give the big gluteus maximus a room of its own.
If you read the previous post on relaxing your butt you should find that these two positions—relaxed butt and giving it a room of its own—are the same.
Finding the correct pelvic alignment is key to developing a healthy and balanced body. If your pelvis is in its proper alignment you can begin to work on bringing similar balance to all of the many muscles (57) that connect to the pelvis.