Top 3 common types of hip pain and what to do about each one
Do you have hip pain? It might be one of these 3 common types of hip pain: IT band pain, hip flexor pain, or SI joint pain. IT band pain commonly affects active people. It is usually pain on the outside of your hip (think under the side seam of your jeans). It can be up by the hip, or on the outside of your knee. Hip flexor pain is also common and can be felt in the front of your hip. This is usually most painful when you are standing or walking. SI joint pain is a common type of pain in the back of your hip at about your beltline.
IT band pain
What is it?
This type of pain is caused by friction from your IT band at either your hip or knee. The IT band is a thick piece of connective tissue that runs from the top of your pelvis (the ileum) down the outside of your leg to your shin bone (tibia) just below your knee. The glutes and quads directly connect to the IT band. If there is tightness in your glutes or quads, it can pull extra tension on the thick and strong IT band and cause it to rub at bony prominences either at your hip or knee.
What can I do about it?
Strengthening: it is important to keep these exercises pain free. You can do that by adjusting how much you bend your knee and whether or not you hold dumbbells.
Quads (the front of your thigh): air squats, lunges, and step ups on a stair or box
Glutes (butt muscles): bridges, single leg bridges, standing hip extension with a band around your ankles
Stretching:
Quads: use a standing runner’s stretch, bend your knee and pull your heel toward your glutes
Glutes: use a supine figure 4 stretch
Gentle foam rolling
Roll on a foam roller along the outside of your thigh, but avoid the bony areas at your knee and your hip
Hip flexor pain
What is it?
This type of pain is caused by irritation of the muscles on the front of your hip. These muscles bring your thigh closer to your stomach, which is called hip flexion. These muscles can become tight and functionally short if you sit a lot such as for work or hobbies. When these muscles become shortened, it makes it harder for you to stand up fully, and can also cause pain with walking.
What can I do about it?
Strengthening for your glutes: bridges, lunges, and standing hip extension with a band
Stretching for your hip flexors: do a gentle lunge keeping the heel of your back leg on the ground and pushing your hips forward until you feel a gentle stretch at the front of your hip
SI joint pain
What is it?
This type of pain is felt in the back of your hip where your sacrum (the triangle bone at the bottom of your spine) meets with your ileum (the top part of your pelvis). This joint can become overly mobile, or overly stiff. To add to the complication, the function of the right and left SI joints is closely related, so often an issue on one side can lead to an issue on the other side. SIJ pain commonly hurts with standing on one leg, going up and down stairs, and asymmetrical positions like lunging. This is more common in women, and especially common in women pre- and post-partum.
What can I do about it?
Strengthening
Core muscles (abs, or stomach muscles): supine pelvic tilts, planks (from your knees is a great place to start), and pallof press
The outsides of your hips: clamshells, standing hip abduction (kick out to the side with your toes pointed forward), side planks