The hips are complicated, and it’s difficult to give fast generalized advice on improving them when they have problems. This is one of those articles where it feels incumbent upon me to remind my readers that I am not doctor or an athletic trainer, and you should consult with one before performing this or any exercise program. However, speaking anecdotally, I have found that there are two exercises that have had a high degree of success in improving hip functioning in both myself and my athletes.
Sit Ups
That’s right. You may have heard over the years that somehow they’re bad for you or inadequate. and it seems that they are only getting an even worse reputation. The problem with this line of thinking is sit ups are a simple and well known exercise, so it is easy for someone to try them and perform them the wrong way and develop a reputation for being dangerous. Further, it’s easy for an exercise to get a reputation for not being dangerous if few people have had the opportunity to injure themselves with it. Moreover, even if an exercise isn’t dangerous, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it is effective.
Sit ups are one of the most functional exercises a person can perform. Think about it. How do you get out of bed every morning. My experience is it is an excellent way to build hip and core strength. Just make sure you perform them with proper form. Touch the tips of your fingers to the side of your head. Don’t interlace your fingers behind your head. And make sure come all the way up and all the way down in a controlled manner.
Kick Backs
I’m talking about the exercise that you see in the video. A lot of people know these as glute kick backs, and use them to develop their butt. And for years, I thought of them the same way, but as I’ve gotten older, they’ve become a staple movement. With age, I’ve become increasingly aware of the imbalance in strength and stability between my right and left legs, and this exercise has been excellent for offsetting this imbalance.
I have also noticed these imbalances improve as I have performed sit ups. I stopped doing sit ups for quite a while because of their reputation; but once I started doing them again, I only noticed improvements, and I didn’t notice any side effects.