I recently came across this video, and I immediately felt compassion for the young man going along with the exercise. Although the intentions are for the good of this young athlete, the potential harm far outweighs the benefit of this exercise when applied blindly. The instructor may be excellent at applying this on an individual basis, but I must politely disagree on this one being “mass marketed.”
This mobilization has a high potential to cause structural damage to the labrum and lengthen the anterior hip capsule that may or may not need more length/compliance. Prior to performing a mobilization of this nature, a client MUST BE ASSESSED by a qualified and licensed professional. I would estimate that <1% of patients/clients seen in our clinic would benefit from this mobilization.
Blindly applying a forceful anterior glide to the hip without assessment on a routine basis will more likely create INSTABILITY than do anything to “warm up” for exercises that that require a posterior glide of the hip.
Proper function of the anterior capsule should limit or “check” hip hyper-extension. Kelly may not literally mean “tearing,” at least I hope not, but you should never feel “tearing” while performing a stretch.
If the goal is to “stretch” or inhibit the TFL, far less force is required.
If you are a healthcare professional you may want to read the following clinical practice guidelines.
1. Lewis CL & Sahrmann SA. Acetabular labral tears. Phys Ther. 2006; 86:110‐121.
2. Lewis CL, Sahrmann SA, Moran DW. Effect of hip angle on anterior hip joint force during gait. Gait and Posture. 2010; 32:603‐607.
3. Enseki K, Harris-Hayes M, White DM, et al. Nonarthritic hip joint pain: Clinical practice guidelines linked to the international classification of functioning, disability and health from the orthopedic section of the American Physical Therapy Association. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2014;44(6):A1-A32.
