Too much of a good thing?

I love me some hip shift, but we can take things too far. We talk a lot about the need to optimally shift over a stance leg (Figure 1) but remember that everything exists in a pendulum.

While failure to fully shift (figure 2) over a side can excessively load the medial portion of the lower extremity and result in knee pain.

OVER shifting (figure 3) increases bending strain placed on the femur and predisposes the femoral neck to stress fracture and hip pain.

I find an underappreciated skill is simply asking the client where they experience discomfort. This gives us a better idea of where to begin and what to expect.