Exercises
Hip exercises for strength and steady balance
Good hip exercises work the muscles around the hip in more than one direction: bridges for the back of the hip, clamshells and side leg lifts for the outer hip, and Chair Pose, lunges and one-leg balances for control. Do 8 to 12 slow reps or 5 breath holds, two or three times a week, and stop if anything pinches.
The hip carries you up stairs, out of a chair and onto one leg with every step. Long sitting days leave the muscles around it, the glutes, the outer hip and the hip flexors, fairly quiet.
Hip exercises give those muscles some work. The eight below come from yoga and simple bodyweight training. They need a mat and a wall or chair, and take about fifteen minutes.
When should you see a doctor before hip exercises?
See a doctor or physiotherapist first if you have:
- pain deep in the hip joint or groin, especially when walking or putting on socks;
- a hip that catches, locks or gives way;
- pain, numbness or tingling travelling down the leg;
- a hip replacement or recent hip surgery (ask which positions are safe for you);
An exercise should feel like effort in the muscle. A sharp pinch at the front of the hip, or pain in the joint itself, means stop.
How many reps and how often?
Start with 8 to 12 slow reps, or a hold of 5 breaths, for each exercise. One or two rounds is plenty at first. Two or three times a week is a sensible rhythm for strength work, with gentle stretching on the days in between. Breathe out on the effort and never hold your breath to finish a rep.
The routine: eight hip exercises
- Bridge, 10 reps then a 5 breath hold. Lie on your back, knees bent, feet hip-width apart and close to the hips. Breathe out and press through the heels to lift the hips; breathe in and lower slowly. Hold the last one for five breaths. The Bridge Pose steps show where the knees and feet go.
- Clamshell, 10 to 12 each side. Lie on your right side, knees bent, hips stacked, head resting on the arm. Keep the feet together and breathe out as you open the top knee like a shell, without rolling the hips back. Breathe in to close.
- Side-lying leg lift, 10 each side. Still on your side, straighten the top leg in line with the body, toes facing forward. Breathe out and lift it a hand’s width, breathe in and lower.
- Bird dog, 8 each side. From Table Top on hands and knees, breathe out and reach the right arm forward and the left leg back at hip height. Keep the hips level, as if balancing a cup on the lower back. Breathe in to return, then switch.
- Chair Pose, 3 holds of 5 breaths. Stand with the feet together or hip-width, bend the knees and sit the hips back as if into a chair, arms up or hands at the chest. Keep the knees behind the toes and the weight in the heels. Chair Pose has a version with the back against a wall.
- Crescent lunge, 5 breaths each side. Step the left foot back and bend the right knee over the ankle, back heel lifted. Keep the hips facing forward and the front knee in line with the second toe. Lower the back knee to the floor for the low lunge version.
- Warrior II, 5 breaths each side. With the feet wide, turn the right foot out and bend the right knee over the ankle, arms reaching long. Press the outer edge of the back foot down and let the front knee point towards the little toes. The warrior poses page covers all three.
- Tree Pose, 5 to 8 breaths each side. Stand on the left leg and place the right foot on the inner calf or thigh, never on the knee. A hand on the wall is fine. See Tree Pose for the foot placement.
Common mistakes
- Pushing the hips too high in Bridge. If the lower back takes over, lift less and squeeze the glutes more.
- Rolling back in clamshells and leg lifts. Keep the top hip stacked over the bottom one, even if the knee opens less.
- Knees collapsing inwards. In Chair, lunges and Warrior II, keep each knee pointing the same way as its toes.
Make it easier or harder
Easier: do fewer reps, keep the back knee down in the lunge, hold a chair in Chair Pose and the balances, and keep the foot on the ankle in Tree.
Harder: lift one foot in Bridge for a single-leg bridge, pause for a breath at the top of each clamshell and leg lift, sit lower and longer in Chair, or close the eyes for a breath or two in Tree, near a wall.
How do hip exercises fit with hip stretches?
Strength and stretching work as a pair. After this routine, slow hip stretches through every direction or the lunges in hip flexor stretches for long sitting days let the muscles soften again. The buttock muscles have their own page in glute stretches lying down and seated, and on rest days the slow joint circles in mobility exercises for hips, spine and shoulders keep the hips moving without tiring them. For a calmer cool-down, the foam roller exercises for legs and upper back are one gentle option.
Questions
What is the difference between hip exercises and hip stretches?
Hip exercises ask the muscles around the hip to work, by lifting, holding or balancing. Hip stretches ask them to lengthen and soften. Most people benefit from both: a few strength moves two or three times a week, and slow stretches on the other days or after a workout.
Can you do hip exercises every day?
The gentle ones, like bridges and clamshells, are fine most days for many people. Stronger work, like long Chair Pose holds or single-leg bridges, is better every other day so the muscles have time to recover. If the hips feel sore the next morning, take a rest day.
Which hip exercises can you do without equipment?
Every exercise on this page uses body weight only. A mat or a folded blanket makes the floor kinder on the knees, and a chair or wall helps with the balances, but none of it needs bands, weights or a gym.
Should hip exercises be done lying down or standing?
Both. Lying exercises such as bridges and clamshells are easy to start with because the floor supports you. Standing ones such as Chair Pose, lunges and one-leg balances train the hips to control the body in the way you use them for walking and stairs. A good routine includes some of each.
Do hip exercises also work the glutes?
Yes, there is a lot of overlap. The gluteus maximus and gluteus medius are two of the main muscles that move and steady the hip, so bridges, clamshells and side leg lifts work the glutes as well. Hip exercises also include the inner thigh and the front of the hip.