Sacral Tilt

The sacrum angle, or sacral tilt, is exessential for protecting the lower lumbar spine because it influences the alignment and movement mechanics of the entire spine. The sacrum forms the base of the spine and connects and wedges into the pelvis. When the sacrum is positioned at your optimal angle, it helps maintain proper curvature in the lumbar region (lower back), ensuring that forces are distributed evenly and reducing strain on the vertebrae and core, and the surrounding 21 muscles within the hip.

Sacrum rotating within the pelvis changes the promontory angle.

Preventing lower back pain in sports often involves strengthening the core muscles, improving flexibility, using proper technique within your “Zone-of-Motion: ZoM”, taking rest days, and gradually increasing intensity in training. Proper warm-ups and cool-downs, as well as appropriate footwear, are also essential for injury prevention.

Less talked about is the sacrum, the keystone within your pelvis. In many sports, this area of your body, the sacurm has motion and it has long been a mystery. The reason is there hasn’t been a objective method to track the sacrums 3D motions it real-time with precision. High tech methods like MRI, X-Ray are static, or Pressure mapping, including Video, they can’t track the promontory angles in closed-chain or open-chain when there is motion.

Poor Technique: Improper form during exercises or sports movements, such as lifting, twisting, or jumping, skiing, cycling places excessive stress on the spine and surrounding muscles. For example, improper loads pulling, lifting techniques can strain the lower back muscles, ligaments, and discs, then add G-force from speed, to it all.

Weak Core Muscles: The core muscles (including the abdominals, obliques, and lower back muscles) play a crucial role in stabilizing the spine. Weak or underdeveloped core muscles in their best line-of-pull, along with length and tension fail to support the spine properly during physical activity, leading to excess strain on the lower back.

If the sacrum is tilted too far forward (anterior pelvic tilt) or too far backward (posterior pelvic tilt), those directly changes the hip sockets in their X-axis in the sagittal plane, and the transverse plane y-axis, including your (Sacral-on-Iliac) and the sacral promontory angle constrains, that disrupts the natural curvature of the lumbar spine, leading to increased pressure on the discs, joints, and muscles. This misalignment can contribute to pain, fatigue, and long-term issues such as herniated discs or muscle imbalances.

A well-aligned sacrum in (e.g., pitch, yaw and roll) helps to maintain the natural lumbar lordosis (inward curve), allowing for more efficient movement, better posture, and less strain on the lower back. But also allowing you to transfer more force from your core/spine as a lever through the pelvis to the thighs. It’s a key factor in overall spinal health and injury prevention.

The PSIA landmarks rotates posterior about the more fixed sacrum