How To Effectively Prevent And Treat Hip Pain

Try Low-Impact Exercises

When individuals have ongoing hip issues, preventing pain can be a challenge. Resting too much can cause the joint to stiffen up, which makes movement painful, and it's important to retain as much range of motion as possible. At the same time, doing high-impact exercises can cause extreme stress to an individual's joints. With conditions like arthritis or osteoporosis, this can damage the individual's bones and greatly worsen hip and other joint pain. Individuals should always consult their doctor before starting a new exercise regime, but it can help to try low-impact exercises.

High-impact exercises are exercises where both feet leave the ground at once. Low-impact exercises, on the other hand, don't place nearly as much stress on joints. Strengthening the hips is great, but moving them at all is more important. Researchers recommend aerobic exercises to prevent future pain flare-ups and reduce current levels of hip pain without causing problems. Some available options are cycling, walking, and swimming.

Gentle Stretching

Stretching exercises help increase flexibility and maintain the range of motion in the hip, which will keep individuals from stiffness and pain when moving in the long term. Stretches might cause a temporary feeling of discomfort as the muscles move, though they shouldn't aggravate existing pain or cause further pain. Patients who have had hip replacement surgery should consult their doctor or physical therapist before adding any stretching to their exercise regimen.

If individuals haven't been stretching, they should only add one or two stretches at a time and should start by performing them three times per week. If the routine doesn't cause pain or aggravation, they can start doing more stretches more often instead. The goal of most stretches for hip pain is to stretch the muscles that surround the hip, which helps increase an individual's overall mobility.