Sports Medicine
A Crucial Period
Good Pain, Bad Pain
On Your Knees
Secondary Injuries
Imaging Technology
What's Sciatica?
The Female Athlete
Putting Your Feet First
Itis Schmitis
Too Much, Too Soon
Under the Influence
Twisted
What's Goin' On?
Think Inches, Not Pounds
Preventing Vaginitis
That Painful Pull
Athlete's Heart
Exercise & Arthritis
Chilled to the Bone
Measuring Body Fat
Exercise and Your Breasts
Choosing a Sports Doctor
Lean on Me (Shoulder)
Exercise & Anemia
Exercise Abuse
Pelvis Sighting
Hand Aid
It's All in the Wrist
Back in Action
Altitude Adjustment
Tennis Elbow, Anyone?
Exercising in the Heat
Agony of the Feet
Restless Legs
Night Time Cramps
Birth Control Concerns
No Periods, No Babies?
Post Partum Prescription
Weight Loss Mystery
Undesirable Cooldown
To Brew Or Not To Brew
Fitness After Baby
Biking and Back Pain
Swimmer's Shoulder
A Hidden Athlete
Avoiding Osteoporosis
Drug Testing
Maximum Heart Rate
Headway Against Headaches
Torn Rotator Cuff
Fat Figures
SOS About PMS
Bloody Urine
Sag Story
Lackluster Leg
Bothersome Bulge
Gaining in Years
Taking It On the Shin
Aching Ankles
Hoop Help
Tender Toes
Meals For Muscle
Growing Pains
Hot Tips
High Altitude PMS
Personal Bests
Air Pollution
Ankle Blues
Heartbreak Heel
Yeast Relief



Pelvis Sighting

Knowing about your hips can help you prevent and treat injuries.

With broad pelvis bones, many women are well-designed for well-designed for childbearing. Unheeded, this characteristic can limit them in certain types of athletics, yet women can take measures to stay in the game.

About half of all women have a wide pelvis, creating an alignment of the lower body that predisposes them to some injuries. It's important to know about the muscles and bones of the hip and pelvis: how to avoid injuring them and how to recover if you get injured.

Anatomy of the Pelvis

The pelvic bones and the hip joint are a complex connection of bones held together by ligaments. The major muscles of the trunk and legs attach to or cross the hip joint. The pelvis is a ring of bones connected by ligaments into a bowlike shape.

They attach in the rear to the sacrum, the lower portion of the spine, at two joints called the sacroiliac joints. The bowl closes in front at the pubic symphysis. On the side, the part of the pelvis we can feel is called the iliac crest.

We sit on the bony ischium overlaid by the buttocks, or gluteal muscles. Below the iliac crest is a deep socket called the acetabulum; the ball-like head of the femur, or thigh bone, fits into it.

The joints of the pelvis don't have much mobility, but the hip joint does. Balance between the strength and flexibility of the back, abdomen and hip muscles is important in reducing injury potential.

A woman's pelvis is a broader and deeper bowl than a man's, and so requires that the hip joints be farther apart. The leg is angled inward slightly from the hip to the knees to allow the knee to be near the midline of the body.

This angle is recognized by a knock-kneed appearance. The lower leg is angled slightly outward from the knee to the foot, sometimes resulting in excessive pronation, or rolling inward, of the foot.

These increased angles cause greater force during movement and a propensity for overuse injuries. Doctors can evaluate whether you have the alignment associated with the broad pelvis by measuring the angle from the knee to the hip, the Q angle.

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Table of Contents

Foreword: Billie Jean King

Comments by Barb Harris
Editor in Chief,
Shape Magazine



General Health
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The information in this web site is for educational purposes only and is not providing medical or professional advice. It should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease. It is not a substitute for professional medical care. If you have or suspect you might have any health problems, you should consult a physician.


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