How to Relieve Lower Back Pain Caused by a Tight Psoas Muscle

Lower back pain can feel frustrating, especially when nothing seems to fix it. You stretch, you rest, maybe even try a few treatments, but that nagging discomfort keeps showing up. One of the most overlooked pieces of the puzzle is the psoas muscle.

This deep hip flexor plays a big role in posture, movement, and spinal stability. When it gets tight or overactive, it can pull on your spine, mess with your alignment, and contribute to conditions like stenosis, where the space in your spinal canal becomes more narrow and starts irritating the nerves.

Let’s walk through what the psoas does, why it tightens up, and how to get real relief by giving your body what it actually needs: stability.

The Psoas Muscle: What It Does and Why It Matters

The psoas is one of your main hip flexors. It connects your spine to your femur and helps bring your leg forward when you walk or run. It also plays a stabilizing role, especially in your lower back.

Here’s where things go wrong. When the psoas gets tight, it can tilt your pelvis forward into an anterior pelvic tilt. That puts extra pressure on the lower spine and increases your risk of developing or worsening stenosis.

If you’ve ever felt compressed in your low back or noticed that standing upright makes your symptoms worse, a tight psoas might be part of the reason.

Why Does the Psoas Get Tight?

There are a few common reasons the psoas becomes overworked:

• Too Much Sitting: When you sit for long periods, your hip flexors stay in a shortened position. Do this day after day, and your body adapts by keeping them tight.
• Chronic Stress: The psoas is involved in your fight-or-flight response. Ongoing stress keeps it activated even when there’s no actual danger, making it hard for the muscle to relax.
• Lack of Core Stability: If your deep core muscles aren’t providing support, the psoas tries to pick up the slack. This compensation keeps it tense and overworked.

Why Releasing the Psoas May Not Be the Best Solution

Many people try to stretch, foam roll, or release the psoas to loosen it up. And yes, that might feel good in the moment. But it doesn’t always solve the underlying issue.

I’ve been there. I once had dry needling done to release my psoas. It gave me temporary relief, but later my spine felt unstable. That experience taught me something important: my body wasn’t asking for more flexibility. It was asking for better support.

If the psoas is tight because it’s trying to protect an unstable spine, releasing it without adding support can actually make things worse. It’s like removing scaffolding from a shaky structure. It might look better, but it’s not more stable.

The Better Approach: Build Stability First

Before you focus on loosening your psoas, make sure your core is doing its job. When the deep core muscles are active and supporting your spine, the psoas doesn’t have to overwork.

I like to explain this with the Coke can analogy from Mary Masterson. A sealed soda can is incredibly strong because of the internal pressure. Your core works the same way. When you breathe well and engage your core properly, your spine becomes much more stable — just like the can.

The goal isn’t to stretch your way out of pain. It’s to create enough internal support that your psoas no longer needs to stay tight to protect you.

A few great exercises to start building that support include:

• Bridge (done properly): This isn’t about how high you lift. Focus on using your glutes to initiate the movement, while keeping your core lightly engaged. You want to feel the hips lift without pushing through your feet or arching your low back. Move slow, stay controlled, and avoid flaring your ribs.
• Side plank: This one lights up your deep core stabilizers. Start with modified versions if needed, and aim for good alignment over time held.
  
• Walking: Yes, walking counts. Gentle, consistent walking with a focus on upright posture and core awareness is one of the simplest ways to promote stability and circulation without overloading the spine.
  
  

Key Takeaways

• The psoas often tightens as a protective response to instability.
• Releasing it without addressing the core can make you feel less supported.
• Deep core strength and proper breathing are key to building that missing stability.
• Focus on functional strength, not just flexibility, to reduce tightness and pain.

Build Strength First, Then Everything Changes

If you’re dealing with stubborn hip flexor tightness or ongoing lower back pain, try flipping your approach. Instead of chasing short-term relief with stretching, focus on creating long-term support by training your deep core.

When your core becomes your body’s main stabilizer, the psoas no longer has to do all the work. You’ll feel more balanced, more supported, and far less tight overall. It’s not about doing more. It’s about doing the right things, the right way, and letting your body do what it was built to do. Try our 7-day free trial of the Core Balance Training program to alleviate your chronic lower back pain today! 

Have you noticed psoas tightness in your own body or experienced the difference once your core got stronger? Let me know in the comments. I’d love to hear what’s helped you.