Figure-four glute stretch
Muscles worked : Glutes · Hip rotators
How to do it
- Lie on your back, knees bent, feet on the floor.
- Rest one ankle across the opposite knee, forming a figure four.
- Reach your hands behind the supporting thigh and draw it gently toward you.
- Keep the head and shoulders on the floor, then switch sides.
Common mistakes
- Head and shoulders lifting off the floor, which tenses the neck without adding anything to the stretch.
- Pulling in jerks instead of settling into steady traction.
- Pushing the crossed knee inward, which closes the hip instead of opening it.
Where you should feel it
The tension is felt deep in the glute on the crossed side, sometimes out toward the side of the hip. Nothing should pull in the crossed knee.
Range of motion
Draw the supporting thigh in until you feel a clear but tolerable tension. The closer the thigh comes to the chest, the stronger the stretch.
Tempo and breathing
No rhythm: the position is held still, breathing slowly. Exhaling often helps release a little further.
What works, precisely
The gluteus maximus and the deep external hip rotators, including the piriformis, are put under passive tension by the combination of hip flexion and external rotation the figure-four position creates.
Movement mechanics
Passive tensioning through hip flexion combined with external rotation, fully unloaded — the back stays on the floor, which avoids any spinal compression during the stretch.
Benefits
- Targets an area the thigh stretches do not reach, and one that stiffens with prolonged sitting.
- Done on the floor with no balance to hold, so it stays accessible even when the hip is stiff.
- Complements the glute work (bridge, abduction) with the matching mobility.
Precautions
If the crossed hip catches or pinches, ease off the traction: a shallower, pain-free position beats a forced one.