The psoas muscle connects at the bottom of your spine from the last vertebrae of the thorascic portion to the fifth lumbar vertebrae and down to the thigh bone. The psoas activates to flex the hips and works with the abdominals to move the legs and stabilize the pelvis during core exercises. Ab exercises on an exercise ball strengthens the psoas.
Single-Leg Knee Rolls
The knee rolls exercise targets the psoas muscle. You can do the knee rolls with one leg to strengthen each psoas individually. Lie face down with and exercise ball under your shins or feet. Place your hands under your shoulders and then push your body up so that your whole body is in a straight line. Bend your right knee to 90 degrees to get it out of the way. Then, roll the exercise ball and your left knee along with it toward your abdomen. Raise your hips slightly to make room but keep your spine straight. Roll the ball back by straightening your left leg behind you. Complete a set on the left and then switch legs and perform an equal number of repetitions.
Pike
The pike is a challenging exercise for the psoas because of the degree of hip flexion. The hip flexors must raise the hips against gravity to nearly the limit of their range of motion while the legs are straight Since your feet rest on the ball, the difficultly is high to maintain control of the ball. Assume plank position to begin the pike with exercise ball. The ball is under your feet with your body face down in a straight line. Hold your body up with your arms straight and in line with your shoulders. Next, push your feet into the ball and pull it toward you. Raise your buttocks toward the ceiling and flex your hips as if to touch your stomach to your thighs. Slowly drop back to the starting position with your body parallel to the floor to complete a pike with exercise ball.
Reverse Crunch
The reverse crunch with an exercise ball has you flex your hips with your psoas and hip flexors while holding onto an exercise ball for increased weight. Holding onto the ball keeps your knees from collapsing inwards and engages core muscles as you squeeze tightly so the ball doesn't drop. Sit down with your hands on the floor behind you for balance to do the reverse crunch with exercise ball. Squeeze a ball between your calves and turn your feet in slightly to better grasp the ball. Begin with your feet about 12 inches from the ground and your knees bent slightly. Then, bend your knees and flex your hips to move the ball toward your chest. Return the legs to the starting position to complete a reverse crunch with exercise ball. Do not let your lower back round.
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