Obturator Nerve Tension Test & Nerve Glide
Obturator Nerve Tension Test & Nerve Glide (2 Ways!)
Obturator nerve tension refers to a situation where the obturator nerve, one of the main nerves that goes through our inner thighs, is prevented from sliding like it’s normally supposed to and instead tugged into a position of too-much-tension when we try to stretch our adductors (inner thigh muscles). This can be tricky because it may feel a whole lot like muscle tightness, so it’s important to be able to recognize whether the inner thigh “tightness” or “stretching” sensation you are feeling is actually a muscle stretch (good!) or nerve tension (probably less productive) - so let’s talk about how to figure that out!
Nerve Tension 101
If you’re unfamiliar with the concept of nerve tension, I suggest you start by reading this blog post which goes into more detail about what it is, how we typically identify it, and how it can affect our flexibility training. The super short summary is: nerves are not meant to stretch like muscles - instead they have a bit of slack in them and are meant to slide or “glide” back and forth through our soft tissue. When something prevents our nerves from sliding appropriately, they get tugged into tension, which can limit how much we can safely stretch.
The tricky part is nerve tension often feels just like a muscle stretch - so it can be challenging for students to identify whether they’re stretching their muscles, or if what they’re actually feeling is tension in the nerve (and they should back off the intensity of the stretch). But lucky for you, there are simple tests we can do to see if the sensation is likely nerve-related!
Test #1: Seated Obturator Nerve Tension Test
Here’s my go-to test for seeing whether the inner thigh stretch you’re feeling is likely “just” a muscle stretch, or if it’s actually a bit of nerve tension:
Step 1: Start sitting in a chair with your legs together, torso lifted nice and tall. Open one leg out to the side (I’m doing my right leg in the photo) until you feel a gentle inner thigh stretch in the side leg (keep it easy, like 3/10 intensity). If you open the leg all the way out to the side and feel zero stretch, try the second test instead.
Step 2: Keeping your legs in the same position, paying attention to the sensation of the stretch that you feel on your inner thigh, round your neck by looking at the floor (rounding the neck will tug on the nerve a bit). Does that increase the intensity of the inner thigh stretch? If so, you’ve likely got some nerve tension. If not, proceed to Step 3.
Step 3: If the stretch feels the same, you can tension the nerve a bit more by rounding the upper back (make sure to keep the hips in the same position, don’t let the hips tilt). Does that make the inner thigh stretch feel a bit more challenging, or still the same?
If either of the adjustments (rounding the neck and/or rounding the back) made the sensations feel more intense - that’s a positive sign that you’ve likely got some nerve tension in that obturator nerve.
Adding a gentle nerve glide (like the one below) to your warm up can potentially help lessen this tension by helping those nerves slide around before you do your deeper, more intense flexibility training:
Recommended Nerve Glide: Seated Obturator Nerve Glide
Start sitting up straight with both legs together
As you open one leg out to the side, look up towards the ceiling- only open the leg out into a gentle stretch (3/10 intensity), don’t push it into a deep stretch
As you bring the leg back in to the middle, tuck your chin towards your chest, rounding your neck
Repeat for 10-15 reps
Test #2: Half Middle Split Obturator Nerve Tension Test
I prefer this test for flexier students who don’t feel an inner thigh stretch when seated and opening their leg out to the side.
Step 1. Start in a gentle half middle split stretch (one leg straight, one knee bent), finding a comfortable (3/10 intensity) stretch on the inner thigh in the straight leg.
Step 2. Keeping the legs and hips in the same position (don’t let them move!), round your neck by tucking your chin towards your chest. Does this make the inner thigh stretch feel more intense? If so, you’ve probably got some nerve tension. If not, proceed to Step 3.
Step 3. Still keeping your hips/legs in the same spot (don’t let the hips tilt), round your upper back along with your neck. Does that increase the “stretch” feeling in the inner thigh?
If rounding the spine (either just the neck, or the neck and the upper back) made the inner thigh stretch feel more intense, then there’s a good chance what you were feeling was nerve tension!
Here’s a nerve glide you can do similar to the test to help the nerve slide around a bit before going into your deeper stretches:
Recommended Nerve Glide: Half Middle Split Slides with Obturator Nerve Glide
Start kneeling with one leg kicked straight out to the side
As you slide the straight leg out into a gentle (3/10 intensity) half middle split stretch, arch your neck by looking up toward the ceiling
Then slide the foot back to the starting point as you round your neck, looking down towards your belly button
Repeat for 10-15 reps
Final Thoughts: How to “Fix” Obturator Nerve Tension
While not nearly as common as sciatic nerve tension (my super unscientific, anecdotal guestimate based on testing the students I work with is around 50%+ of my students have sciatic nerve tension, but only 5-10% have obturator nerve tension), for folks that have obturator nerve tension, addressing it can absolutely make a difference in their flexibility practice.
As I mentioned in my previous nerve tension post, a short-term solution is to include some nerve glides as part of your warm up. Remember to:
Keep them gentle! Don’t push to the point of feeling intense sensations
10-15 per leg is all you need, don’t go overboard on the reps
As for a long-term “fix” - if the nerve tension isn’t limiting you from being able to make flexibility progress or work on specific skills, you don’t have to worry too much about it, because the nerve glides are such a good help during your training! But that being said, typically things that help decrease nerve tension over time are things like active flexibility training for both the “big mover” muscles, as well as the “small stabilizer” muscles that we use in positions where we typically experience nerve tension to ensure our muscles can support our joints in these positions. For folks with obturator nerve tension that rears it’s head when doing things like straddles, that would mean doing active flexibility drills to target:
Inner thighs & glutes (in straddle-y positions)
Hip rotators (in straddle-y positions)
