The Psoas-The Most Overlooked Muscle in Walking: How to Walk Properly

The psoas muscle is the most overlooked muscle in walking. The psoas is one of your core muscles, connecting your upper body to your lower body. The psoas flexes the unweighted leg and pulls the spine forward when the leg is weighted. It is known to be critical in maintaining upright posture, but its contribution to walking is largely ignored. In most EMG studies on muscle use in gait, the psoas is not even measured. This is based on the assumption that the muscles in the legs control walking and the torso and its muscles are mere passengers. This is incorrect.

The psoas muscle on the side of the standing leg helps pull the torso forward to trigger the swing through. After the heel contacts the ground, the same side psoas contributes to pulling that leg forward. People tend to think that the glutes are pushing us forward. But we know from the EMG studies that the glute extensors are inactive at the initiation of the swing through. They are not pushing the body forward.

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This video is part of The Walking Code by Todd Martin MD.

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00:00 Introduction
00:30 Anatomy of the Psoas
00:48 Function of the Psoas
01:53 Psoas function in walking
03:00 Incorrect use of the psoas
04:49 Psoas function exercise

Proper walking technique is essential to good health. It maintains proper spinal alignment and weight distribution over the joints. This minimizes wear and tear on the spine, knees, ankles, and feet. The psoas muscle coordinates with the other core muscles to guide every step. They determine how we walk and where we walk. Watch the Walking Code lessons on this channel to help perfect your walking technique.

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