Orthopedic (muscles, bones, injury)

Take a quiz to find out if you have hip strain.

A hip strain (or hip flexor strain) is when you overstretch or tear one of the muscles that allow you to lift your leg up at the hip joint. This group of muscles is called the “hip flexors.” A strain can happen when you tighten (flex) the thigh quickly and with a lot of force, like when you sprint or kick a ball really hard.

Most people feel pain in the front part of their hip and sometimes in their thighs.

Hip strains usually heal with rest, ice, and pain relievers. Rarely, you’ll need surgery to repair the muscle.

Usually, the front of the hip is painful, tender to the touch, and swollen on one side. It may be hard to lift that thigh up, like toward the ceiling or when you get in and out of a car. Your hip flexor muscles in the front of your hip may also feel weak.

Pain and any other symptoms usually start right after the injury happens. It usually worsens over the next 1 to 3 days, and then begins to improve. But they can linger for weeks.

Leg feels weak when you try to lift or do squats.

Swelling or tenderness at the front of your hip.

Muscle spasms in the thigh or groin area—the muscle suddenly tightens.

Playing sports that involve kicking or high contact. Especially cycling, dancing, fighting (boxing, taekwondo), soccer, and football.

Not warming up before and stretching after playing sports and exercising.

Using too much weight during lower body weight-lifting exercises.

Hip strains are caused by the hip flexor being engaged too forcefully or if the leg is forced into an extreme position. Then the muscles and tendons stretch and may even tear from too much weight being put on the small muscles. It is most likely to happen when playing sports—kicking a soccer ball or football too fast or hard—or exercising.

If you have pain in the hip and thigh area after a fall, or think you may have broken a bone or have experienced other trauma like a really bad sprain, go to the doctor. If you cannot put weight on the leg or are in severe pain, go to urgent care or the emergency room.

If it's less severe, you can first try to treat it yourself. But if you still have pain after a week, see a primary care doctor, orthopedist, or sports medicine doctor.

Muscles and tendons heal on their own. It just takes time. You may need to rest it for 3 to 6 weeks. Even if the pain goes away after a few days or a week, you need to let the torn muscle heal.

Rest the muscle. Do not do anything that lifts your hip like squatting, sprinting, kicking, lunging or bending down low to lift heavy objects repeatedly for 2 to 3 weeks. If you still have pain, you haven’t rested enough. When pain goes away, gradually return to the activity.

Walking and very gentle stretching are ok.

Ice the painful areas for 15 to 30 minutes, four times a day. Do for the first 3 days.

Taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS)—like Ibuprofen, Naproxen—or acetaminophen (Tylenol) can help with pain. Do not take for more than 10 days. If you have other health issues—like kidney or stomach problems—discuss with your doctor which one is best and for how long.

Ask your doctor if you need to have physical therapy. Or you can do your own strengthening exercises at home.

In rare cases, if you have severe pain and weakness, a hip flexor muscle may need surgery to repair it.

We show you only the best treatments for your condition and symptoms—all vetted by our medical team. And when you’re not sure what’s wrong, Buoy can guide you in the right direction.

Ready to treat your hip strain?

If the pain and swelling get better on their own, no follow up is needed. If you have persistent pain for 6 to 12 weeks, see your doctor. This can be your primary care doctor, an orthopedic surgeon, or a sports medicine doctor. You may need physical therapy. Or the pain could possibly be from another issue, like a fracture or mass in the area.

When strength-training, don’t lift weights that are too heavy or cause you to use bad form.

Whenever you feel pain, rest until the pain goes away. If you keep using the muscle, the strain could get worse.

Always warm up before exercise and stretch after.

Snapping hip syndrome is a snapping sensation in the hip that is caused by tight tendons passing over bones. It can be treated with stretching and other at-home approaches.

Snapping Hip Syndrome

Hip pain can range from a mild annoyance to a constant ache to a severe discomfort. It can be caused by arthritis, bursitis, or may be referred pain from a back problem. Treatment ranges from taking NSAIDs to physical therapy to hip surgery.

Why Does My Hip Hurt?

Hip fractures are cracks in the top of the thigh bone (femur) where it meets the pelvis socket to form the hip joint. Risk factors include older age and female gender.

Hip Fracture

Hip bursitis is the painful inflammation of the bursa sac, a fluid-filled sac near the hip joint that cushions tendons and ligaments. Find out how to treat and prevent it.

Hip Bursitis

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How to treat a hip strain and prevent it from happening again.

Hip Strain: Symptoms & Treatment

A hip strain can usually be treated at home with OTC pain relievers, rest, and ice.

You still have pain after 2–3 weeks of home treatments.

You have pain in the hip and thigh area after a fall or you think you may have broken a bone.

Go to the ER if you have any of the following symptoms:

See a healthcare provider if your hip pain continues for about 3 weeks, you have severe pain, or you’ve had a fall and think you may have broken a bone.

Your provider will diagnose hip strain based on your symptoms and a physical exam.

If hip strain is more severe, your provider may request an ultrasound, X-ray, or MRI to check for tears, internal bleeding, and fractures.

Your healthcare provider will discuss what you can do at home to help your hip strain to heal, like resting your hip, using ice and heat, and taking anti-inflammatory medications.

Physical therapy may be recommended to treat your muscle pain and to improve your strength and flexibility. Or your provider may give you instructions for a home workout program.

A primary care provider can treat mild to moderate symptoms.

An orthopedist is a specialist who treats muscle, tendon, and bone issues. You may be referred to an orthopedist if hip strain is persistent or severe.

If hip strain was caused by a sports injury, you may be referred to a sports medicine provider.

A physical therapist can offer stretching, strengthening, and treatments to relieve your pain.

Rest the muscle for about 2–3 weeks. Do not do activities that stress your hip like squatting, sprinting, kicking, lunging, or bending down low to lift heavy objects. You can try walking and doing very gentle stretching.

Even if the pain goes away after a few days or a week, you need to avoid activities that stress your hip for 2–3 weeks to let the torn muscle heal.

After 2–3 weeks, if you no longer have pain, gradually return to your activities.

Ice painful areas for 15–30 minutes, 4 times a day, for the first 3 days after the injury.

Take ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) or naproxen (Aleve) for pain and inflammation. You can also take acetaminophen (Tylenol) for the pain.

You may be referred to physical therapy to learn some strengthening and stretching exercises you can do at home.

Hip Strain:  Treatments

When strength training, don’t lift weights that are too heavy or cause you to use bad form.

Do not kick objects forcefully unless you have specific training and conditioning.

Always warm up before exercise and stretch afterward.

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