Pelvic Tilt

Pelvic Tilt is an important movement to learn. In this movement the psoas major and iliacus muscle are involved in tilting the pelvis by pulling on the spine. Posterior Pelvic tilt is when the top of the pelvis is rotated posteriorly towards the back of the body, resulting in a rounded lower back (decreased lordosis). Anterior Pelvic tilt is when the top of the pelvis is rotated towards the front (anteriorly) of the body resulting in an arched lower back (increased lordosis). When performing exercises such as squats, bent over rows, reverse flys, deadlifts, kettlebell swings the weight of the object and the contraction of the hamstring muscle will produce posterior pelvic tilt. To safely perform these exercises you need to be able to keep the spine in neutral position with no anterior or posterior pelvic tilt.

To achieve a neutral spine, first learn the pelvic tilt movement. Next progress to kneeling arm raise and kneeling leg raises keeping the spine in neutral position and the navel lightly drawn in. Next perform supermans once again keeping spine in neutral. From here you should be able to perform reverse flys and bent over rows. The last step is to progress to the full deadlift movement. You may need to incorportate a stretching program if tightness of the hamstrings is preventing you from producing anterior pelvis tilt

A neutrally aligned spine without anterior pelvic tilt or posterior pelvic tilt will help prevent injuries to the lower back. For this reason always preform back exercises with the best posture possible