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What is Hip Rotation?
We’ve been talking about corrective exercises a lot, and many readers don’t really know what this means and how it might apply to them. Let’s take a closer look at one common habit to demonstrate how a simple twist can expand up and down the body.
Think about how often you stand on one leg. Most of us do it regularly throughout the day, and it’s somewhat likely it’s causing a problem that starts at the hip and reverberates from there.
Get up from your chair. Seriously, stand up. You’ll have to feel this to catch the meaning.
From a standing position, shift your weight to the right leg. Go ahead and rest your weight to the side as you’d normally do. Does your left hip drop down and your right hip jut out?
Re-center yourself and put the palm of your right hand on the front of your right hip. Shift back to the right side, only this time slow it down. Do you feel how your hip actually turns?
What has just happened is your right hip rotated inward, moving the weight of your body off the muscles of your full leg and onto the weaker muscles above the back of the hip and at the outside of the leg. Over time, this common habit is causing both tightness and weaknesses that are not natural.
Next, still with your weight on the right leg, purposefully bring your hip around so it’s facing the front, which is its correct position. Do you see how hard that is to do, and to hold there? Those are the tightness and weakness issues keeping your hip from its natural placement. Interesting, isn’t it?
We’ve seen the problem at the hip and realize we’re reinforcing that bad position numerous times each day. You next question may be, “What’s the big rip?”. What’s the difference if the hip rotates inward?
Go back to the original side stance, the weight resting fully on your right side with the hip jutted to the right. Look down at your knee (you may have to drop your pants for this one; hope you’re not at the office). Is it still facing forward, the healthy way it should be? Nope, probably not – how could it be? You have knee pain? Stop and read this again, slowly; you’re onto something important.
No wait, let’s look a little further: The ankle’s messed up, too, isn’t it? The knee is turned in, so the weight on the ankle is toward the outside. And there’s pressure on your heel instead of having your weight balanced on your entire foot, am I right?
Just for kicks, check out the left side by shifting your weight over there. Is it as bad as the right?
You’ve just seen how our bad standing habits, our postures, have a ripple affect down the body. Over time, this puts strain on the joints, connective tissue and muscles causing the joints to become less mobile in an attempt to protect the body, causing arthritis due to excessive pressure in unnatural positions, causing muscle tightness and vulnerability at crucial points, all leading to a list of easily fixable pain that can last a lifetime.
And that can be prevented if you’re willing to recognize that Dave and his peers were wrong about one thing: There actually is a little more to this than just hitting the iron, and in this case, those science guys really are onto something.
We talk about this and more in the movement patterns section of the forum. This stuff is important, and I’m so thrilled it’s becoming part of the mainstream fitness discussion.
Laree Draper
on April 11th, 2008 at 5:32 am
Wow, nice to see this article, I actually have this problem and have been treating my ankle for 9 months - it’s from the hip! and the opposite one to be exact. Finally found a P.T. who realized what was going on.
on April 22nd, 2008 at 6:56 am
Wow, This is my problem and has been for a long time I think. I have had knee surgery, then ankle surgery and still cannot walk right. My left hip feels like its tight and out of line with the rest of my leg!
No one has even listened to me when I said I think it originates in my hip!!! I wish I had known this was my problem from the start. Now in PT for my hip rotation problem.
on July 15th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
Great article. What stretching and strengthening needs to be done to correct the problem?
on September 7th, 2008 at 11:53 am
On July 15th, anonymous asked what stretching and strengthening needs to be done to correct that problem? It hasn’t been answered as far as I see. Please comment.
on September 8th, 2008 at 8:32 am
Sorry, folks, this was posted back in April. I don’t look for new comments this far after the posting and missed the question.
The first step is to break bad habits such as standing on one leg, crossing the legs when sitting or any other personal habit that puts the head of the femur in extreme positions. Your goal is to retrain yourself to rest as much as possible in a neutral femur position so the head of the femur — the top of the leg — sits in the middle of the hip socket. That will help a great deal.
You’d also want to figure out your basic hip mobility: Is one hip more mobile than the other, do they both move freely in forward/backward and side-to-side directions, and do they circle easily in both directions, or is there a hesitation in some areas? Smoothing out hip mobility would come first before strengthening.
on November 18th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
Learn all-68 age years-physical perfect full physical exercises
on March 19th, 2009 at 6:22 pm
really painful and no pill or therapy can take away the pain when you injure yourself as I have beening ran over by a truck,thanks for explaing and having a outlet to voice how this pain make one feel
on April 16th, 2009 at 8:11 am
I have a 18 year old disabled son. He has hip rotation. His right knee is turned in horably. He does have hypertomic CP. However does walk. His condition started last May. Its taken 10 months to find the reason. (Love being blown off by doctors) He has low muscle tone due to the CP. However I am told there is nothing I can do. I have heard about a Pelvic Brace. When I mentioned it to the doctor. I was told he is to big for one.I’ll bet somewhere the make them for adults too. I bought him a pair of shoes that cost the hilt. With Reinforced rollbar. Plus put in spinco’s. It seems to balance him better. Plus he isn’t limping when he stands up. The spincos can be bought and does help. My husband has hip pain due to herniated disk. I got him a pair of spincos and his hip pain is gone.
The Spincos aren’t a cure, but the do help with the balance and seem to aline the hip down much better. I also added a heal pad on the left side.. I will switch to the right in a month. This goes under the spinco.
Thanks Lily
on July 20th, 2009 at 4:15 pm
Hi, I have feet pronation and my knee is turning inwards..i do have lower back pain and hip pain too..so thanks Laree!!..you have given me evidence that I am not mad saying that all this is connected..Laree I dance flamenco..do you think it is very bad for my knees since they are turning inwards?or if i do the necessarily excercises so strenghten muscles etc i should continue?(just to let you know I have weak ankles,collapsing arch,hib and knee pain,and also hereditary since my mum is 50 and can barely walk well or stand, and my grandmother changed both of her knees)
Laree if the main cause is from the hip causing the femur to rotate inwards,is it possible to rotate the femur back again?any solutions?
sarah
on July 25th, 2009 at 8:39 am
Hi, Sarah,
I’m glad to see you found this older post and that it was helpful!
I wonder if I can get you to post your question in our forum? We’ll help you consider this, and hopefully help you figure out how to fix your pain. Here’s the link to the corrective exercise section.
If you didn’t see it already, you’ll also want to read this section on starting at the bottom: fixing the feet.
I’ll keep an eye out for your post in the forum, and make sure you get the help you need.
on August 12th, 2009 at 10:02 pm
Hi, I’m a 17-year-old and my school’s physical therapist said recently that I rotated my hip. ever since I was very little I’ve leaned almost entirely on my right leg. my left knee starting hurting, and popping when I moved it wrong, so I went to see a doctor. He said that I had loose joints, common for young people. a year or two later, I tore a ligament in my left knee, trying to play sports. For the last several years I’ve been bending over to pick up kids (my brothers and sisters are all much younger than me), and when I hold small children i rest them on my left hip, but still putting pressure on my right side, to hold them up better. Most recently I’ve been experiencing back pain, mostly in my lower back, and mostly on my right side. but, many days I can feel it all over my back, and in some sitting positions, too. I know teenagers are known to exaggerate, and maybe it isn’t as bad as an older person’s pain, but I know that a person my age should not be hurting this much. What can I do? Is it actually hip rotation? should I talk to my doctor? Or would it be as simple as standing straight rather than leaning on my right (yeah sounds easy but i’ve tried before and it’s a pain in the neck, and back, and lower back, and knees).
on August 17th, 2009 at 11:24 am
We would absolutely love to help you sort this out, and yes, better now than later. The earlier you start, the faster and more complete the success of the correction. If I could talk you into signing onto the forum and posting your question there, we’ll help you, but we’ll need to ask a lot of questions, maybe even get some pictures if you’re willing. I’m confident we can help.
Here’s the link to the corrective exercise section of the forum — if you’re not already a member, you’ll have to register in order to post.
http://www.davedraper.com/fusi.....hp?fid/67/
on November 30th, 2009 at 2:07 pm
I have had hip rotation for years use to have chiropractic corrections plus orthodics to handle problems that have resulted from injuries ( many twisted ankles, whip lash and now arthritis in the back)age…etc plus chronic pain in the groin area and in the low back and cannot get any relief with stretching, chiro, myofcial release massage…I do not take pain meds, just two advils and they are not working….going to a PT that specializes in female issues ( I have pelvic floor problems coupled with the back..had a facet block 2 years ago)
Have noticed that the pelvic tilt forward on the right side is so pronounced along with the pain… seems that I need help to correct the tilt with correct exercise….can you help???
Nancy, we could try to help you if you wanted to repost this in the forum, click here. We’ll have more questions, and mostly it will be a lot of trial and error, but it sounds like the other options aren’t working, so might as well give it a try. Or we could try to find you a specialist in your area, which is by far the better option than us doing a lot of guessing. Here’s the link to the directory we’ve collected, but there are certainly many more.
on February 3rd, 2010 at 4:39 pm
I went to the doctors and was diagnosed with a rotated left hip like this sort of thing I lean my body weight on my left leg. Is there a way to solve this my walking is getting affected and is starting to hurt. Im going to see a physio therapist soon will they be able to help me?
Yes, I absolutely believe a good physiotherapist can help you. You’ll have to do the exercises he or she gives you, though — regularly, like even several times a day. If you go once a week and expect the physio to do all the work, it probably won’t happen.