Hip tightness can affect your whole body. Simple exercises can help you move more easily.. When Ian Root was in his early 20s, he began having persistent hip pain. His construction job — which required him to bend, balance, lift heavy objects and stand for hours at a time — became grueling. He was also a competitive runner, but the discomfort affected his ability to train.. “My hips, hamstrings and lower back were so tight they felt like they’d snap if I stood up quickly,” Mr. Root said.. Massages helped, but the relief only lasted a day or two. Eventually, he saw a physical therapist who explained the source of his issue: His glutes weren’t strong enough to properly move his hips through all those repetitive motions. His hip flexors were bearing most of the burden, making them tight and overworked. The physical therapist gave him a mobility and strength regimen, and after eight weeks Mr. Root was able to resume most activities without pain.. “Most people don’t think about their hips at all unless they have a problem with them,” said Miho Tanaka, director of the Women’s Sports Medicine Program at Mass General Brigham. That’s a mistake, Dr. Tanaka said, because “every sort of function or movement you perform is somehow related to your hips.”. Your hip joint can’t function properly if it can’t move through its full range of motion or if muscles like your glutes and hamstrings are weak. Other joints and muscles will take over, even if they’re not strong enough to manage the load. That can lead to muscle imbalances, pain or overuse injuries from your back down to your ankles.. A little movement can significantly improve your mobility, but it takes more than just holding a stretch. You also need to strengthen the muscles that control your hips.. We are having trouble retrieving the article content.. Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.. Thank you for your patience while we verify access.. Already a subscriber? Log in.. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
