When Stretching Doesn’t Help: Understanding a Hypertonic Psoas

Do you ever feel like your body just won’t fully relax, no matter how much you stretch?

Maybe there’s a constant pulling at the front of your hips.

Maybe standing up feels effortful.

Maybe you feel like you’re always holding something in, even when you’re lying down.

You might stretch your hip flexors, roll them out, or try to “release” the area, and sometimes it helps for a moment. Other times, it makes everything feel more irritated or switched on.

If this sounds familiar, your psoas may not be tight at all.

It may be hypertonic - working overtime to keep you upright, stable, and safe.

And that changes how we approach it completely.

Understanding Psoas Tone

Muscle tone is regulated by the nervous system. When the body perceives instability, pain, or stress, certain muscles increase their activity to protect the spine and maintain control.

The psoas plays a key role in:

• Lumbar spine stability

• Postural control

• Coordinating movement between the trunk and legs

When the nervous system senses threat, the psoas may remain active even at rest. This is a protective strategy, not a fault.

In these situations, stretching treats the symptom, not the cause.

Why Forceful Stretching Often Fails

Passive hip extension stretches can be interpreted by the nervous system as unsafe, particularly in people who:

• Have chronic pain

• Are hypermobile

• Habitually brace or hold their core

• Have a history of injury or instability

When stretch is perceived as threat, muscle tone increases reflexively. This explains why many people feel temporary relief, followed by more tightness or discomfort later.

To change tone sustainably, the nervous system must feel supported, coordinated, and safe.

Normalising Psoas Tone Without Stretching

1. Start with the Nervous System

High psoas tone often correlates with elevated sympathetic activity (fight-or-flight).

Gentle strategies that down-regulate the nervous system can reduce tone indirectly:

• Slow nasal breathing

• Longer, unforced exhalations

• Quiet, supported positions

When overall arousal decreases, the psoas often softens without being targeted directly.

2. Restore Breathing–Stability Coordination

The psoas works in close relationship with the diaphragm and pelvic floor. When breathing is shallow, held, or overly abdominal, the psoas may compensate.

Helpful cues include:

• Encouraging lateral and posterior rib expansion

• Avoiding belly pushing or forced “core engagement”

• Allowing the abdomen to soften on the exhale

Improved breathing mechanics often reduce hip tension without any direct stretching.

3. Use Gentle, Active Hip Flexion

Rather than stretching into hip extension, offer the psoas small, supported amounts of work.

Examples include:

• Supine marching with bent knees

• Floating one foot a few centimetres off the floor

• Slow, controlled movements with minimal effort

Active control reassures the nervous system far more effectively than passive stretch.

4. Improve Posterior Support

Excessive psoas tone is often associated with under-recruitment of the posterior chain.

Gentle strategies include:

• Bridging with relaxed breathing

• Heel slides

• Shallow hip hinge patterns

When the back of the body contributes effectively, the psoas no longer needs to “hold everything together”.

5. Reduce Chronic Abdominal Gripping

Many people have been taught to constantly “pull the belly in” or brace the core. While useful in short bursts, chronic bracing increases compressive load and can drive hip flexor tone.

Encouraging:

• Abdominal softness at rest

• Natural recoil on the exhale

• Movement without rigid control

often leads to noticeable changes in hip tension within minutes.

6. Use Positioning to Signal Safety

Certain positions reduce tone by changing sensory input rather than muscle length:

• Side-lying with hips slightly flexed

• Supported child’s pose

• Semi-supine with legs elevated

These positions allow the nervous system to down-regulate without effort.

How Hands-On Therapy and Movement Help Normalise Psoas Tone

While stretching is rarely the answer, hands-on therapy and intelligent movement can play a powerful role in helping the psoas down-regulate when used appropriately.

Massage Therapy

Massage can help psoas tone by:

• Reducing global nervous system arousal

• Improving tissue hydration and sensory input

• Decreasing guarding in surrounding structures (abdominals, diaphragm, quadratus lumborum, gluteals)

Massage works best when combined with movement therapy.

Dry Needling

Dry needling can be helpful when psoas tone is persistent or long-standing, particularly if there are:

• Trigger points maintaining protective tension

• Altered motor patterns following injury

• Pain-related guarding

When applied thoughtfully, dry needling may help reset neuromuscular signalling and reduce excessive tone. Importantly, it is most effective when followed by gentle movement retraining, rather than stretching.

Needling is not about forcing a muscle to relax, it’s about giving the nervous system new information.

Pilates

Pilates is particularly effective for psoas tone because it:

• Restores load-sharing across the trunk and hips

• Improves posterior support and movement efficiency

• Encourages coordination without bracing

When taught with an emphasis on breath, control, and ease (rather than constant core gripping), Pilates helps the psoas return to its role as a responsive stabiliser, rather than a muscle stuck “on duty”.

Small-range work, slow transitions, and supported positions are often more beneficial than large or demanding movements.

Low Pressure Fitness (LPF)

Low Pressure Fitness can be especially helpful for people who:

• Habitually brace their abdominals

• Hold tension in the front of the body

• Struggle to let go of hip flexor tone

LPF encourages:

• Improved diaphragm function

• Reduced intra-abdominal pressure

• A shift away from constant abdominal gripping

By improving breathing mechanics and pressure regulation, LPF can indirectly reduce psoas overactivity, without ever stretching it.

As with all approaches, it works best when cues prioritise expansion, ease, and coordination, rather than effort.

Signs the Approach Is Working

When psoas tone is normalising, people often report:

• Easier breathing

• Reduced pulling at the front of the hip

• More freedom when standing or walking

• A sense of settling rather than stretching

If tension increases, it usually indicates too much effort, too much range, or too much focus on “fixing”.

A Different Way to Think About the Psoas

The psoas does not need to be forced into submission.

It responds best when the body feels:

• Supported

• Coordinated

• Safe

When these conditions are met, tone often normalises on its own.

Rather than asking “How do I stretch this muscle?”, a more useful question is:

“What does my system need to feel secure enough to let go?”

References:

• van Dieën, J. H., Reeves, N. P., Kawchuk, G., van Dillen, L. R., & Hodges, P. W. (2019). Motor Control Changes in Low Back Pain: Divergence in Presentations and Mechanisms. The Journal of orthopaedic and sports physical therapy, 49(6), 370–379. https://doi.org/10.2519/jospt.2019.7917

• Kolar, P., Sulc, J., Kyncl, M., Sanda, J., Cakrt, O., Andel, R., Kumagai, K., & Kobesova, A. (2012). Postural function of the diaphragm in persons with and without chronic low back pain. The Journal of orthopaedic and sports physical therapy, 42(4), 352–362. https://doi.org/10.2519/jospt.2012.3830

• Jiroumaru, T., Nomura, S., Hyodo, Y., Wachi, M., Ochi, J., Shichiri, N., & Fujikawa, T. (2025). A Pilot Study on the Influence of Diaphragmatic Function on Iliopsoas Muscle Activity in Individuals with Chronic Ankle Instability. Muscles (Basel, Switzerland), 4(2), 16. https://doi.org/10.3390/muscles4020016