JEFF: What's up, guys?
Jeff Cavaliere, ATHLEANX.com.
Today I want to help you get rid of IT band problems and pain forever.
Not just for a short period of time.
I’m talking about for the rest of your life.
It’s possible.
If we go at the real root cause of what the problem is.
So, I really don’t need an introduction to IT band syndrome because if you have it,
you know it.
You’ve been Googling it; you’ve been finding out.
It’s when you get that pain on the outside of the knee.
That can run all the way up the side of your leg.
I conveniently wear these pants just for this video.
I never wear these pants, ever before.
You get a chance to see the IT band in action.
Following those stripes.
You guys know that was sarcastic, right?
The following the stripes here of the knee, all the way up to the hip.
If you get any kind of pain, especially when you press out there, or when you’re foam
rolling – you’re not foam rolling, right?
Because for this problem, foam rolling is banned.
You’re not allowed to foam roll this because all you’re going to do – I made a whole
video about this before.
You can see some of it here.
Foam rolling is just making this worse.
You’re enflaming an already enflamed tissue.
You’re picking on a tissue that had nothing to do with this in the first place.
You need to get to the root cause.
What I did in that video, if you haven’t seen it, I showed you how to attack a muscle
called the TFL.
Which is right here.
You can see this TFL feeds down into that IT band.
The IT band itself is just a tendinous structure.
It’s just being impacted by the muscles that we can have an influence over, that attach
into it.
And it’s not just the TFL, but this one over here, too.
That is the glute medias.
You can see how they feed into the white portion here – the tendon structure, which is the
IT band.
We know if we can go after this, we can start to relieve some of the tension that’s being
placed here, down at the knee, and along the whole band itself.
We know if this muscle up here is tight and pulling, if it’s attached somewhere else,
we’re going to get tension down there, too.
Up here we’re pulling, and down here where it’s attached.
So, we can influence that.
That whole video is a must watch, if you haven’t watched it, on the right way to change the
composition of the muscle that’s up here and overactive.
But we want to get to the root cause of what’s happening here, to permanently make sure this
goes away forever.
You have to understand, this other muscle is really what’s happening.
This is the problem.
Both of them feed down, in.
One feeds down here vertically, if you follow the fibers.
That’s what we always talk about.
Then the glute medias is feeding into it this way at a different orientation.
If you look at the combined effect of these muscles and the tension that they can apply
to this common band, we need to have contributions from both.
We need to stop this from being so overactive and get this to stop being so underactive
because that will guarantee your glute medias is incredibly weak.
I made a whole video about it being the weakest muscle in every person’s body.
I’m going to give you a couple tests in this video to show you that you can determine
your own strength there – mostly weakness – and then a couple of things to do to really
fix it very quickly.
For the sake of why we’re doing this, when this is weak and unopposed, you allow this
downward force to dominate.
So, all this force from this muscle here that tightens, is pulling straight up on here,
which is going to cause the most pain and discomfort down here along the whole band.
If we can offset some of that by having more of this counterbalance from behind, we’re
going to disperse those forces, taking all the strain off the IT band itself, and get
this thing going forever.
I’m going to bring Jesse in at this point to test those weak-ass – I guess ‘ass’,
really – glute medias of his and show you guys how to test yours, and then give you
those exact drills, and a couple of maintenance stretches to do to make sure it never comes
back again.
Now we’re-
JESSE: Whoa.
Aren’t you going to introduce me?
JEFF: You need an introduction after all this time?
JESSE: I mean, I think it would be nice if you introduced me anytime I come on this whole
deal.
JEFF: How about, I let you do it when we edit the video?
JESSE: All right.
That’s fair.
JEFF: All right.
Can I proceed?
JESSE: Please.
JEFF: Thanks.
All right, guys.
Back to what I was saying.
Now, with Jesse on the ground here, I want to show you a test that you can do for yourself
that will likely reveal a humongous weakness in this glute medias.
This is what’s causing – remember, the root cause of your TFL problems are not anywhere
here and down here.
They’re way up here in the hip, and on the back side because we’re not getting that
counterbalance.
Here’s what you do.
Jesse, lie on your side.
So, what I want you guys to do is stack your hips.
Make sure you’re not rolled back one over here, or one too far forward.
You stack one, right on top of each other.
The legs are stacked on top of each other.
Now, you’re going to lift this leg up into adduction, which is toward the sky.
You’re going to do so with the hip backward from that midline.
So, you’re not just lifting straight up off that other knee.
It’s up, and then back, and you’re leaving it right here.
Do you feel that right here?
JESSE: Yeah.
JEFF: You should be able to feel it right here, in this spot.
Right on the back side in that glute medias.
Hold it there.
I let go and he already started dropping because he doesn’t really have that strength.
But there are two tests to do here.
If you have somebody nearby, the first thing they can do is stabilize right here and just
push to see how much resistance you can take, if you really can’t take much.
Or you just try to hold it there.
I want to see if you can hold it for 60 seconds.
How you doin’?
JESSE: It hurts.
JEFF: It hurts?
Do you think you’re going to make it?
JESSE: No.
JEFF: So, this is a very easy drill here.
You’re just lifting and holding, but a lot of you won’t be able to do that and hold
it for 60 seconds.
Or you certainly won’t have the strength to be able to withstand any kind of downward
force.
JESSE: Right.
JEFF: The next thing we want to do is try to strengthen that.
So, how do we do it?
JESSE: You tell them.
JEFF: The same way we just did it.
The same thing becomes an exercise.
It’s so simple.
It’s not remedial.
I’ve mentioned it before, the “Jane Fonda” exercise, side leg lift.
This is incredibly helpful here.
This helps with low back pain as well, to prevent that from coming back.
So, get back into position, stack everything, and now you have to go slow and deliberate.
So, make sure you go straight down to the ground.
Flat down.
All right.
There you go.
Now what you want to do is lift straight up, slow, control it, squeeze through here, bring
it back at the same time.
That’s where you’re going to start and end, okay?
You’re going straight down, and then up, and back.
Right there.
Squeeze it.
Is that – right.
Okay, go down.
And up.
Right there.
And squeeze it.
So, every one deliberate, every one squeezed, every one with a purpose.
I’m telling you; you’ll be lucky if you get 10 or 12 good repetitions here.
But it showcases just how weak this muscle is.
Once you start to finally address it, you’re going to be amazed at how much more effective
it is for getting rid of this pain.
A couple of other things.
Number one: things to watch out for.
As you lift it up, don’t lift up and start bringing it in front of the body.
That’s a substitution.
Instead of being back here at extension, you’re shifting the focus off the glute medias to
more of the hip flexor to do this work for you.
You don’t want to do that.
The next things that’s likely going to happen is, as you start to bring the leg up, you’re
going to turn your body.
Your pelvis is going to drop back in this direction.
That’s no good either because what’s happening there is this weak glute medias is begging
for help and trying to get help from the hip flexor on the front side, or maybe even the
TFL, to lift up for you.
We don’t want that either because all you’re going to do is feed more into the problem
you’ve already caused.
This imbalance between the two.
The second exercise I want you to do to strengthen up these weak glute medias’ is to sit on
a bench.
Again, a lot of cyclists, a lot of runners will get this problem because they’re going
through this continued cycle of a straight leg, and then a bent leg.
A straight leg, and a bent leg.
What happens, as you can imagine, this band – this tendinous attachment down here at
the knee – when the leg straightens out there’s the most lax that there’s going
to be on it.
Then when I bend, I start to bend that structure that’s already tight.
Then it tends to snap over the outside structures of the knee.
Then when I go straight again it’s lax and can move.
Then when I start to bend it builds that tension, and it snaps.
That leads to a lot of the irritation, repetitive irritation, of the outside here.
So, you want to make sure you’re strengthening this under load, in all scenarios of extension,
or flexion of the hip.
So, what we can do is take a band like this.
You step through it, like that.
So, you just step your feet through.
Now you wrap it around here, you cross over once, like Jesse’s doing there.
Now you take this band, you’re going to wrap it around the knees one more time.
So, over the thighs and under the foot.
Over the thigh and under the foot.
Now you’ve got this resisted structure here for your hips.
Now however far apart you keep your feet is going to determine how much more tension you
have on that band.
But about hip width apart is a good place to be.
Now we move from here.
You’re going to go and spread the legs apart.
Go out into adduction and then you come back in.
Again, deliberate, good repetitions.
Out, squeeze, hold.
You can feel it right in that spot, right?
JESSE: Yep.
JEFF: Right through the glute med.
You’d do a set of 10 good, well-intentioned repetitions here.
This is with a pretty upright torso.
We have about 90 degrees of relative hip flexion.
If you want to make more hip flexion, just bring your torso forward.
Now the hips are flexed a lot more toward the trunk, relatively.
Instead of having to move the hip up, we move the torso down.
Now we do the same thing.
Sound effects included here.
Right?
JESSE: Yeah.
JEFF: Harder here?
JESSE: Yeah.
Way harder.
JEFF: Okay.
Again, probably weak in this range.
Same thing.
10 good repetitions there.
Then the last thing, you can put your hands on the bench, you allow yourself to lean back.
Your feet can come out a little bit this way, toward me.
Scoot your butt forward.
Now you’re into more of an extended range of motion at the hip.
Not fully extended, but you’re less flexed.
Now you do the same thing.
Out and in the same way.
Into adduction.
Hold, squeeze, and then come in.
You’re not speeding through these reps.
You’re doing each one with quality.
So again, something really simple you can do.
10, 10, and 10.
You do these a few times a week and I promise as that gets better, you’re going to start
to feel this pain on the outside of your knee, or even up your leg is going to be gone forever.
And you never had to foam roll in the first place.
One last thing I want to show you are two maintenance stretches you can do, just to
make sure you’re keeping it loose and feeling good all the time.
All right, Superstar.
You’re going solo on this one.
You got it?
JESSE: Yeah, I got you.
JEFF: All right.
So now, the stretch.
What you do is find something you can lean up against.
In this case it’s a box.
Go ahead and put your elbow on it.
Make sure your elbow is underneath your shoulder like Jesse’s doing there for support.
Then what you’re going to do is, if you’re going to stretch your right leg out – the
right IT band – then it goes out to the side and it’s straight like that.
You’re trying to keep your knee as straight as possible.
With your left leg now, step across and down.
Now, all he’s going to do is allow himself to sink straight down.
Just like that.
He’s just getting that stretch all the way around the outside.
Hip all the way down to the knee.
If you bend your knee, you’re going to lose some of that.
The other thing that you’re looking at is, up here at his torso he’s trying to create
some extra flexion.
Lateral flexion.
So, you can see he’s leaning in that direction to open it up.
That would be a nice, additional stretch.
You’ll feel it from the lat attachment up here at your armpit, all the way down to the
outside.
So obviously, do both sides.
Hold this for about 45 seconds or so, per stretch and you’re good.
So, this one, you don’t need to rest on anything.
You do it freestanding in space.
So, here’s Jesse, again, standing.
What he’s going to do is, against the right side, he’s going to step in front of that
right side with his left foot, and now turn his body in that direction, and then start
to lean his whole body while he shoots his hips – his right hip – all the way out
to the side, as far as he can.
I can hear him groaning from here.
So, the left leg there that’s in front is trying to hold his right leg straight to keep
his knee from bending in the back.
Is that what you’re doing there, Jess?
JESSE: Yes, sir.
JEFF: All right.
So, then you basically reach out, you kick that right hip out to the side.
Come back up again.
Relax.
Do it one more time.
Again, step there, across, now you’re leaning that way, kick the right hip all the way out
to the side.
Straight out to the side.
Like that.
Now lean down and try to touch the outside of your foot over here, in this direction.
Again, you’d hold this for about 45 seconds and that’s just a quick, easy thing you
can do.
The most important thing is, working on the strength is going to be the long-term key
to your success.
So, there you have it!
Finally, a permanent fix to your IT band problems, and it had nothing to do with your IT band.
At least, not directly.
As we remember, it’s these two areas right here that need your attention.
Mostly, this one right here is going to need your strengthening attention.
That’s what I’ve shown you here.
By the way, I have a whole other video that I didn’t mention in the beginning about
the weakness and the weakest muscle in your body being this glute medias.
I will link that as well at the end of this video to show you another exercise option
that requires no bands at all.
The fact is, guys; start paying attention to this, to counteract this, and I promise
this is going to start to feel a whole hell of a lot better.
If you’re looking for programs that put the science back in strength – because as
you see, all this matters.
There’s a reason why our bodies are put together the way they are.
We’ve built them into all of our programs.
They’re all over at ATHLEANX.com.
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See you soon.