Tip Pop Your Sacrum to Squat Better Search Skip to content Menu Menu follow us Store Articles Community Loyal-T Club Loyal-T Points Rewards Subscribe to Save Search Search The World s Trusted Source & Community for Elite Fitness Training Tip Pop Your Sacrum to Squat Better Your glutes won' t fire properly if your sacrum is out of alignment Try this and save a trip to the chiropractor by Tessa Gurley August 20, 2017December 31, 2021 Tags Mobility, Tips, Training When Half of Your Butt Won t Work If you've spend a decent amount of time in the squat rack, you've probably had a couple of workouts where one of your glutes just didn't seem to be pulling its weight. It's like your right glute woke up that morning, but your left glute is still snoozing. We often blame weak muscles or "quad dominance" for our glute woes, but the problem is usually something else altogether. In this case, your sacrum could be out of alignment. The Sacrum and Glute Activation Dr. Grove Higgins says: "Very simply, any joint that a muscle crosses across, it controls. If that joint is dysfunctional, out of alignment, or injured, that muscle will be dysfunctional as well. The glute max crosses across the SI/sacroiliac joint and not only moves the leg but helps to stabilize the pelvis. So, if the sacrum is out of alignment and the SI joint is subsequently dysfunctional, so is the glute max." So how do you fix this when you can't get in to see your chiropractor right away? How to Align Your Own Sacrum Lie on your back, belly facing up. Bend your knees and bring the soles of your feet to the ground, hip-width distance. Make sure your feet are in the same plane. Walk your feet together and make sure your big toes touch each other, then walk them back out to hip-width distance. Lift your knees to 90 degrees and place one hand on the top of your thigh. With your other hand, grab behind your knee on the opposite leg. Isometrically kick into the hand that's behind your knee, and push back into your hand that's on top of your thigh. You must keep your feet and hips even the whole time! Hold the isometric contraction for 15 seconds. Switch your hands and repeat. Bring your feet back to the ground. Place a block, foam roller or rolled up towel between your mid thighs. Isometrically squeeze in on the prop for 15-30 seconds. You might hear or feel a pop. This is normal as long as it's not accompanied by pain. That was your sacrum/pubic symphysis adjusting. If needed, the process can be repeated. Even if you don't hear or feel a pop, you're helping realign your sacrum. Get The T Nation Newsletters Don' t Miss Out Expert Insights To Get Stronger, Gain Muscle Faster, And Take Your Lifting To The Next Level related posts Training Tip 4 Ways to Boost Your Bench Press Here's a quick overview of four methods more advanced lifters use to bench press more weight and keep the gains coming. Exercise Coaching, Tips CJ McFarland April 5 Training Say Goodbye to your Weakest Link The purpose of this column is tri-fold. Purpose number one is as a "refresher course" for seasoned lifters. Sure, deep down, you may know this stuff, but it's been so long since you first read about it that you've forgotten the rationale behind the subject matter. Training Mike Mahler February 15 Training Variety and Rules for Progression The real secret to building muscle and strength is to progress. You have to challenge your body and find ways to progressively ask more of it. Christian tells you how. Bodybuilding, Powerlifting & Strength, Training Christian Thibaudeau July 10 Training The Sacked Back - Part 2 In this article I'll be focusing specifically on handling injuries to the lower back or lumbar region. Training Ian King February 24