Posterior Pelvic Tilt
 

Any experience/insights on fixing this issue?
A friend of mine asked me to write a program for him as I saw fit. Since he has a very obvious case of "flatback"/posterior pelvic tilt I thought that would be the first thing to address.

Some more info on the trainee: he is just turning 30, currently trains with weights 3 times a week (curls and such). He jogs ~40 minutes outside or on the treadmill almost every day. No lower body work in the gym at all because he says his thighs grow too fast (they ARE big). Doesn't like to bench for the same reason. Suffers from lower back pain occasionally. His scapulae are constantly retracted, shoulders are hyperflexible, and he says pull ups make his neck hurt.

After reading a bit of Eric Cressey's stuff I came up with this program:

Lower body 1 (in the gym):
Front Squat 3 x 5 reps
Back extensions 3 x 10-15 reps
KB swings - 50 reps
Weighted pike stretch 3 x 30 seconds

Lower body 2 (at home):
Double leap from knees (sit on your knees on the floor, leap to feet and immediately jump up to touch the ceiling) 3 x 5 reps
Pistols 3 x 3-8 reps each leg
Seated straddle leg lifts (butt stays on the floor) 3 x 30

Upper body (in the gym - twice a week)
(A1) Dips
(A2) Pull ups*
3 x 5 (weighted if necessary)
Cuban press 3 x 10 (very light weight)
plank holds - front, side, back, side, 60 sec each x2
Interval running on a high incline (treadmill)
Weighted pike stretch

Tennis ball rolling around the scapulae and on the glutes and hamstrings as often as possible

* Or substitute - I have to see if I can figure out what is making his neck hurt. Any ideas or good subs?

** Could the jogging be contributing to his posture problem? I'm not sure if I can get him to drop it completely.

Any comments or suggestions will be very much appreciated!

Have you looked at his feet?

He has normal arches. Can you explain the connection?
Thanks!

For myself, my feet dictate my back arch more than anything else. If you pronate (inward roll & flat feet), you tend to have a posterior tilt. If you supinate (outward roll & good arch), you tend to have an anterior tilt.

http://performancemenu.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3433

Weight training and strengthening tend to do very little or at least very slowly.

People who want quick results will examine their posture and FIX it. Yes, when you've had poor posture for a while, you'll get really sore when you revert to proper posture but once you do it for a week or so it will become normal.

It would be easier to do an analysis if we could see what is going on with his feet/legs & side posture like Donald was saying..

I would recommend the Postural Restoration Institute. I tried a lot of things for my (anterior) pelvic tilt and have gotten more mileage from just a few months of PRI sessions and individualized exercises than from years of "everything else."

Even with the best exercises if your posture is wrong your body will find a way to screw them up.

Start him working a desk job... should clear things right up.

Thanks all for your responses. Yes, come to think of it, the things that made a difference in my posture (anterior tilt) were
- Feldenkrais
- Hamstring & gastrocnemius stretching
- Actively changing foot placement
- Just plain awareness.

It IS odd to see the opposite problem. The only other young people i know with posterior pelvic tilt are ex soviet gymnasts or have multiple ruptured discs.

On the gymnast note, no practicing of the hollow position...

Lifting-wise, you might start with some top-down DLs and some bottom-up back squats, always making sure he is maintaining a neutral lumbar curve.