PIRIFORIS: FRIEND OR FOE?
Decoding The Deep Hip!
Sunday, March 22nd, 9:00-10:30am (Los Angeles)
Is the piriformis your client’s secret stabilizing superherhero; or the sneaky problem behind that stubborn glute pain? Come find out and get your questions answered with Matt McCullogh’s triumphant RETURN to Level Up MVMT. You LOVED him with Active Arthritis, and he’s BACK to dazzle us again.
In this dynamic, anatomy-rich (but totally digestible!) Classtermind, we’ll explore the piriformis muscle through the lens of Pilates movement. Designed specifically for Pilates and movement instructors, this session will clarify the piriformis’ dual personality: powerful hip stabilizer and potential troublemaker.
Let’s unpack how the piriformis behaves in different hip positions, how it influences sacral mechanics, and why it often gets blamed for pain that may not even be its fault. Through practical movement exercises, cueing strategies, and programming ideas, you’ll leave confident in identifying when to strengthen, when to release, and when to look elsewhere.
Expect “aha!” moments, myth-busting, and movement experiences you can immediately apply in private sessions or group classes. Because sometimes the piriformis isn’t the villain of the story, it’s just doing the job no one else showed up to do.
What You’ll Learn / The Objectives:
Describe the anatomy and function of the piriformis
o Identify origin, insertion, and relationship to the sacrum and femur
o Explain its role in hip external rotation, abduction (in flexion), and stabilization
Understand positional function
o Differentiate piriformis action in neutral, flexion, and weight-bearing
o Recognize how pelvic orientation alters its line of pull
Differentiate “tight” vs. “overworking” vs. “protective” piriformis patterns
o Assess movement strategies contributing to overuse
o Identify compensatory dominance in common Pilates exercises
Apply targeted Pilates programming strategies
o Choose appropriate strengthening vs. mobility interventions
o Modify exercises to reduce over-recruitment
o Cue deep hip stability without gripping
Address common client presentations
o Understand the mechanics behind piriformis-related discomfort
o Distinguish between local muscular tension and broader lumbopelvic instability
Equipment Recommended: Reformer & a Mat
What You Get:
- Supplementary materials and session handout for tracking along with video.
- Full recording to the LIVE session (once complete) and 90 minutes of content with Matt.
- This live session comes with 1.5 NPCP CECs
- Indefinite access inside this course ticket! Come back anytime to review.
This session ALSO comes with 1.5 NPCP CECs, so don’t miss this one-of-a-kind opportunity to train with an expert on this topic.
Piriformis: Friend or Foe?
About Matt McCulloch
Matt is an educator of fitness and movement professionals, co-founder of Kinected and co-director of the Kane School as well as co-director of the FAMI and FAMI – Level Two workshops. A classically trained dancer, he began studying Pilates over 20 years ago to rehabilitate a knee injury following 4 separate knee surgeries. He is trained in both original and contemporary approaches and over the past 15 years, he has educated hundreds of fitness professionals. Matt’s passion for movement and pilates has been the resource for creating many workshops and teaching tools for movement professionals. These workshops emphasize proper biomechanics and creative progressions and modifications based on the original Pilates repertoire. The wide range of workshops he has created are designed to focus on various injuries, joint replacements, additional orthopedic injuries and special populations such as the young athlete with developmental issues as well as neurological issues.
Matt’s passion for education extends beyond the fitness professional to the clinical world investing in his mission to bridge the gap of movement and medicine. He lectures to clinical professionals, frequently leading workshops fusing movement and clinical information on the rehabilitative benefits of Pilates and alternative therapeutic movement to DPT students at Hunter College and physiatry residents at The Mount Sinai Medical Center, and frequently presents at Pilates on Tour. Additionally, Matt incorporates pilates as well as many different modalities such as GYROKINESIS® & GYROTONIC® , CORE ALIGN and BODHI suspension straps and yoga. He is committed to utilizing several different modalities in his sessions with clients not only to extend their body education beyond Pilates, but because he also believes this approach creates more balance in their body and raises their BODY IQ.