Most hip pain improves with a combination of targeted stretching, simple habit changes, and the right over-the-counter pain relief. The specific approach that works best depends on where your pain is and what’s causing it, but several strategies help across nearly all types of hip pain. Here’s what actually works and how to do it.
Figure Out Where It Hurts
Hip pain isn’t one condition. The location of your pain points to very different causes, and knowing which one you’re dealing with helps you choose the right relief strategy.
Pain on the outside of your hip is most commonly caused by irritation of the tendons and muscles around the bony bump on the side of your thigh. This used to be called bursitis, but the more common culprit is actually damage or inflammation in the tendons of the muscles that stabilize your pelvis when you walk. Friction from the thick band of tissue running down the outside of your thigh can make it worse.
Pain deep in the front of the hip or groin often comes from problems inside the joint itself. Osteoarthritis, the gradual wearing down of cartilage, is the most common cause in adults over 50. In younger, active people, the issue may be a structural mismatch where extra bone growth on the ball or socket of the hip joint causes pinching during movement.
Pain in the buttock that shoots down the leg can result from a muscle deep in the hip compressing the sciatic nerve. This falls under a broader category called deep gluteal syndrome, where several different muscles in the back of the hip can trap nerves and cause burning, shooting pain.
Stretches That Target Hip Pain
Stretching is one of the most effective tools for hip pain relief, and the key is consistency. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons recommends doing these stretches daily, holding each for 30 seconds, and repeating each one in sets of 2 with 4 repetitions per set.
IT Band Stretch (for Outer Hip Pain)
Stand next to a wall for support. Cross the leg closest to the wall behind your other leg. Lean your hip toward the wall until you feel a stretch along the outside of your hip. Hold for 30 seconds, then switch sides. This targets the tight tissue band that contributes to lateral hip pain and is one of the fastest ways to get relief from that sharp, outer-hip ache.
Knee to Chest (for Front Hip and Groin Pain)
Lie on your back with both legs extended. Pull one knee toward your chest, holding it with both hands, and hold for 30 seconds. This gently opens the front of the hip joint and stretches the muscles that tighten from prolonged sitting. It’s especially helpful if your hip feels stiff first thing in the morning.
Seated Rotation Stretch (for Deep Hip and Buttock Pain)
Sit on the floor with both legs straight. Cross one leg over the other, bending the knee. Slowly twist your torso toward the bent leg, placing the opposite arm against your bent thigh to deepen the stretch. Look over your shoulder and hold for 30 seconds. This stretch reaches the deep rotator muscles in the buttock, including the piriformis, which can compress the sciatic nerve when it gets too tight.
Strengthen, Not Just Stretch
Stretching provides relief, but strengthening the muscles around your hip is what prevents pain from coming back. Weak glute muscles force other structures around the hip to compensate, which leads to overload and irritation. Two exercises matter most.
Side-lying leg lifts build strength in the muscles on the outside of your hip. Lie on your pain-free side, keep your top leg straight, and slowly lift it about 12 inches. Lower it with control. Start with 10 repetitions and work up to 3 sets. Bridges target the large gluteal muscles that support the hip joint. Lie on your back with knees bent, feet flat on the floor, and lift your hips toward the ceiling. Hold for 5 seconds at the top, then lower slowly. These two exercises address the underlying weakness that drives most non-arthritic hip pain.
Adjust How You Sleep
Hip pain that wakes you up at night or feels worse in the morning is often a positioning problem. Sleeping on your back with a pillow under your knees keeps the hip in a neutral position and takes pressure off the joint. If you’re a side sleeper, place a firm pillow between your knees to keep your hips aligned. Without that pillow, the top leg drops inward, rotating the hip and compressing the structures on the outside of the joint for hours at a time.
If your pain is on one side, avoid sleeping directly on that hip. Even with a pillow between your knees, the weight of your body pressing against a sore hip for several hours can increase inflammation and stiffness by morning.
Over-the-Counter Pain Relief
Oral anti-inflammatory medications like ibuprofen and naproxen reduce both pain and the inflammation driving it. They work best when taken consistently for a few days rather than sporadically. Topical anti-inflammatory gels applied directly to the skin over the hip can help, though the hip joint sits deeper than the knee or hand, which limits how much medication reaches the joint itself. Topical options tend to work better for outer hip pain, where the problem is closer to the surface.
Ice and heat serve different purposes. Ice is most useful in the first 48 to 72 hours after pain starts or flares up, applied for 15 to 20 minutes at a time to reduce swelling. Heat works better for chronic, ongoing stiffness by relaxing tight muscles and increasing blood flow. A warm shower or heating pad before stretching can make your stretches more effective.
Why Losing Even a Little Weight Helps
Your hip joint bears a multiplied version of your body weight with every step. Losing just one pound of body weight removes 3 to 4 pounds of pressure from your joints. That means losing 10 pounds relieves roughly 40 pounds of force on your hips during walking. For people carrying extra weight, this is one of the most impactful long-term strategies for hip pain, especially when arthritis is involved. Even modest weight loss can noticeably reduce pain and improve mobility over the course of a few months.
What Cortisone Injections Can Do
If stretching, exercise, and over-the-counter options aren’t enough, cortisone injections are a common next step. A doctor injects a corticosteroid directly into the painful area, whether that’s the bursa on the outside of the hip or the joint space itself. Relief typically lasts anywhere from a few weeks to six months. Injections work best as a bridge, buying you enough pain-free time to commit to the strengthening exercises that address the root cause. They’re not a permanent fix, and most doctors limit how many you can receive in a given year because repeated injections can weaken surrounding tissue.
Signs Your Hip Pain Needs Medical Attention
Most hip pain responds to home treatment within two weeks. If yours hasn’t improved in that window, or if it keeps coming back, it’s worth getting evaluated. Morning stiffness lasting more than 30 minutes after waking is a hallmark of inflammatory conditions like arthritis and warrants a visit. The same goes for hip pain that disrupts your sleep or prevents you from doing normal activities.
Some situations call for faster action. Severe hip pain that appears suddenly without any fall or injury, a hip that’s swollen and warm to the touch, skin color changes around the hip, or hip pain accompanied by fever could indicate infection or another serious condition that needs same-day evaluation. And if you’ve had a fall and can’t bear weight on the leg, or you notice tingling or numbness in your hip or leg afterward, that’s an emergency.