Top Five Stretches to Alleviate Hip Pain
We all know that aches and pains increase with age. It’s rare to come across someone in their 40s, 50s, 60s, and older who doesn’t experience some kind of regular body soreness. But is this normal? Why does this seem to be a thing that affects so many people?
The truth is, there are thousands of reasons people experience body aches and pains as they age. But one that is a common thread for many people is deconditioning. As a society, we live much more sedentary lives than even a generation ago. We sit more, walk less, indulge more, and spend exponentially more time staring at screens than we should.
So, if decreased activity is the cause of problems, how come it’s often more painful to get up and move?
Simply put: our bodies are stiff. Over millions of years, and particularly the last several hundred thousand years, we have developed the muscle, joint, and bone mechanics to make us excellent upright beings. We can walk better than we climb. We can run better than we crawl. Our bodies are designed to live and function optimally in an upright position.
Is Today’s Culture Causing Hip Pain and Stiffness?
Unfortunately, with many jobs performed by computers now, our days are spent sitting. We sit while we eat, we sit to get to work, we sit while at work, we sit in the evenings. And the minimal amount of time that many people do spend upright is often not walking, but just standing.
Our muscles, joints, nerves, and brain crave motion. We need movement to stay limber enough to tolerate activity. Sedentary lives eliminate that motion, thickening the fluid in our joints, decreasing our muscle and nerve length, and diminishing our tolerance for movement and activity.
The solution to begin to tolerate activity and break the pattern of a sedentary lifestyle, with minimal pain and discomfort, is stretching. In particular, in order to increase our tolerance for upright activity, we need to focus on our center of mass and the core of our body where stability and mobility are critically important: the hips and pelvis.
Here are my Top 5 Stretches to Alleviate Hip Pain and Stiffness:
(All stretches may not be appropriate for all people. Please consult with your physician prior to starting any new exercise, fitness, stretching, or wellness activities.)
Piriformis stretch
Start by lying down on your back. You can be on a bed, couch, or the floor - any surface that’s comfortable and easy to get up from when you’re done.
Bend both your knees and put your feet flat on the floor (or bed or couch).
Place your right ankle just above the left knee. Your legs will look like when you’re sitting up in a chair with one foot on the opposite knee.
Place your right hand around the right knee, and the left hand over the right ankle.
Leaving the left foot and leg where it is, pull the right knee and ankle gently toward your chest. You should feel a pull in the glutes and the back of the right leg.
To increase the stretch, very gently pull the ankle up toward your chest more, so that eventually the right ankle and right knee are in line with each other. You can also increase the stretch by gently pulling the entire right leg to the left, across your body.
With ALL stretches, you want to feel a solid pulling sensation, but IT SHOULD NOT HURT.
Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds and gently release back to your starting position. Repeat on the left leg. All stretching can be performed 2-3 times each session, and can be performed 2-3 sessions each day.
Seated hamstring stretch
Start by sitting up in a firm chair - make sure you’re able to put your feet flat on the floor when sitting.
Bring your bottom close to the edge of the chair, but maintain a safe and comfortable sitting position. Your back should not be touching the back of the chair.
Straighten the right knee and place your heel on the floor in front of you. Your left knee should remain bent with the left foot flat on the floor.
Sit up as tall as you can, and place your hands on either your hips, thighs, or the arms of the chair. You will be using your arms to support the weight of your upper body.
Keeping your spine straight, bend forward from the hips. The key here is keeping the spine straight, so that all of the stretch comes from the muscles in the back of the legs - the hamstrings.
You should feel a strong stretch extending from the glutes down the back of the thigh. To increase this stretch, gently flex your right foot, pulling the toes toward you.
Hold 20-30 seconds, and don’t bounce. Gently release and sit back up tall. Switch your legs, and repeat on the left leg. All stretching can be performed 2-3 times each session, and can be performed 2-3 sessions each day.
90/90 hamstring stretch
Start by lying on your back.
Bend your right knee, and then lift your right foot off the floor, bringing your right thigh toward your chest.
Hug your right thigh to your chest and slowly start to straighten your right knee. You should feel a pulling sensation in either the largest part of the muscle right in the middle of the back of the thigh, or you may feel pulling at the very top of the back of the thigh, in the area of your buttocks. Either place is fine.
Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds and gently release back to your starting position. Repeat the same stretch on the left leg. All stretching can be performed 2-3 times each session, and can be performed 2-3 sessions each day.
Hip flexor stretch
Start by lying on your back on the edge of your bed, with both legs hanging off the edge and your upper body toward the center of the bed.
Bend the right leg and gently pull the leg toward your chest. You should feel a stretch in the front of the left hip and thigh.
To increase this stretch, bend the left knee by pulling your foot down and under you, toward your buttocks.
Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds and gently release back to your starting position. Repeat the same stretch on the left leg. All stretching can be performed 2-3 times each session, and can be performed 2-3 sessions each day.
Calf stretch
Start by standing in front of any surface that is slightly higher than the surface you are currently standing on. This can be a step, threshold, 2x4 board, or a large book - a step or threshold are certainly the most stable options.
Place the front half of your feet on the step, and allow the heels to hang down.
If your step is high enough that your heels don’t touch the ground, don’t bounce. Simply allow the heels to hang.
This SHOULD NOT BE PAINFUL. If you find yourself fighting the stretch because it is too much, switch to a surface with less elevation, like a 2x4 board. You can also place your toes on a wall and perform one foot at a time.
Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds and gently release back to your starting position. Repeat the same stretch on the left leg. All stretching can be performed 2-3 times each session, and can be performed 2-3 sessions each day.
Stretching daily, while not an absolute remedy for a sedentary lifestyle, is one tool in a vast toolbox of wellness modalities and products that can help you decrease pain, improve mobility, and help you get back to active living so you can
