Are you struggling with lateral hip pain, but can’t exactly pinpoint what may be causing it? There are two common conditions that are most likely causing your pain and we can help you distinguish between the two. Hip Bursitis is the first common problem in which the hip bursa, which is a fluid filled sac that acts as a cushion, becomes inflamed. If you have pain on the outer surface of the hip with walking, standing, or when pressure is applied (sleeping on your side) then these are the common signs you have hip bursitis. Now, if you are experiencing pain towards the back of your hip (towards the glute) with exercise, standing on one leg, or walking downstairs then you are most likely experiencing tendinopathy.
Now that you are able to distinguish the source of your pain, what precautions should you be taking first? Since hip bursitis is an inflammatory condition you want to reduce that inflammation by resting, icing, and taking an anti-inflammatory to help calm it down. Along with taking these steps you should also be performing the exercises we demonstrate. If you are experiencing tendinopathy then you should modify some of your activity/exercise as well as work on the hip strengthening exercises.
We show four phases of exercises you should be working on. The first phase is where you should start and each phase following progressively gets more difficult. Advancing your program helps you enhance your strength, proprioception, and mobility to not only help your condition, but to prevent it from happening again.
We guide you through everything you need in our detailed video below! If you have any other questions or are local to us and need some physical therapy, reach out to us at 678-400-0300.
