My physical therapist, who helped me learn to walk again after nearly three months of post-surgery therapy and exercise, emphasized the importance of the adductor muscles on the inner thighs. These bad boys are often overlooked in favor of other leg exercises that target the hamstrings and quads. This could be a big mistake, considering they might just be the secret weapon for your next leg day. Personally, I remember realizing how tight and truly sore my adductors were when I started working out again. I would joke with my physical therapist that they felt more like leather belts.
What are the adductors?
The muscles on your inner thigh are given the umbrella term of “adductors”, which includes the pectineus, gracilis, adductor longus, adductor brevis, adductor magnus, and obturator externus (on the outside of the upper thigh). Starting at various points on your pelvis and pubic bone, the muscles run down to your femur thigh bone, making their way down your inner thighs.
This group of muscles helps you move your legs inward toward the center of your body, a movement known as adduction. Squeezing your legs together can help you feel the activation of these muscles. With the right moves, you can strengthen your adductors, which comes along with plenty of benefits.
The importance of the adductors: Neglected but necessary
Your adductors are some of the biggest muscles in your body, and they help stabilize your lower body when you’re going about your day-to-day tasks, from walking to climbing stairs and squatting down. The adductor muscles are especially important for sports and exercise, as they contribute to agility, sharp turns, and movements such as jumping and running.
These long, larger muscles assist your hip joints for full mobility. Most people sitting at a desk job have tight adductors. Training your adductors not only enhances your overall mobility and performance but also reduces your risk of injury.
Top moves and stretches for your adductors
These are the top moves and stretches for your adductors:
- Frog pose
- Wide-legged forward bend
- The adductor machine (where you sit with the pads positioned between your legs and squeeze your thighs together).
- Wide-stance squat (the sumo squat)
- Standing adduction with a resistance band (wrap a resistance band around an anchor attached to the floor, and stand facing the anchor point with the band around your working foot.)
- Seated adduction with a resistance band
- Side-lying adduction with a resistance band
- Lateral lunge
- Single-leg glute bridges
- Copenhagen hip adduction
Level up your deadlifts and squats
By incorporating these moves that strengthen your adductors, you can also boost your ability to perform other more common exercises like deadlifts, squats, sled pushes, and box jumps. Your adductors are secondary supporting muscles when you perform moves like deadlifts and squats, so targeting and stretching them more directly with the adductor machine and other movements doesn’t just boost your flexibility; it could level up your leg day or full-body workout.
