Exercises for osteoarthritis of the hip

Learn exercises to help with osteoarthritis of the hip

After osteoarthritis of the hip, it's important to get movement and strength back. This supports tissue healing and will help you get moving again.

You may not be able to return to your usual exercise levels immediately and improvements may be slow to start with. However, a gradual return to normal activities is the best way to get good short and long term results after osteoarthritis of the hip.

When doing exercise you should listen to your pain levels, especially in the early stages. You may find that these exercises increase your symptoms slightly in the beginning. However, they should get easier over time and, with regular practice, can help to improve movement in the hip.

If the exercises do cause some discomfort then taking prescribed medication from your GP or pharmacist may help to keep you exercising.

The exercises in these videos are suitable for most people.

Please ensure you do these exercises in a safe environment. Only try these exercises if you are feeling well enough.

If you start to feel unwell stop these exercises immediately.

If this is the first time you have attempted these exercises please read the information below before starting.

You should do this exercise while lying down. A good place to do this exercise is on your bed.

Bending and straightening your knee is one repetition.

  1. With both knees straight, slowly bend your sore leg by sliding your foot along the floor or bed towards you as far as is comfortable.
  2. Hold this position for 2 seconds before straightening your leg.

You should begin standing up for this exercise with a chair behind you.

Bending and then standing is one repetition.

  1. Begin in a standing position. Slowly bend your knees so that you end up touching the seat behind you.
  2. You can put your arms out in front of you to support your balance. Make sure your bottom just touches the chair behind you - don't sit down completely.
  3. Return to a standing position.

You should do this exercise lying down. A good place to do this exercise is on your bed.

Bringing your hips up and down again is one repetition.

  1. Begin by lying on your back with your arms by your sides. Your knees should point towards the ceiling.
  2. Using your arms for support, slowly push your hips up towards the ceiling.
  3. Hold for a few seconds and then slowly bring your hips back down to the floor.

You should do this exercise standing up.

Moving your leg out and back in is one repetition.

  1. Begin in a standing position. You can place one hand on a chair or wall for support.
  2. Lift the leg that is furthest away from the chair into the air. Take care to keep your leg straight as you do this movement.
  3. Hold for a few seconds and then bring your leg back down again.

You should do this exercise standing up.

Moving your leg out and in again is one repetition.

  1. To begin, place a chair in front of you for support.
  2. Keeping one leg straight, lift the opposite leg behind you. Hold for a few seconds and then return to the starting position.

Do this exercise in lying with your head supported, your bed is a good place to do this exercise.

Taking the legs out to the side and then back to the starting position is 1 repetition

  1. Begin by lying on your bed with your knees bent and your feet on the bed
  2. Gently let your knees roll out to the side until you feel a stretch to your inner thigh
  3. Hold for a few second and then return to the starting position

Stand side on, at the bottom stair or on a step with the affected leg over the side, support yourself with your hand(s) on the banister or other supportive surface

  1. Slightly bend the knee of the leg on the step
  2. Gently swing your affected leg like a pendulum starting with small movements and gradually increase this, the leg should be relaxed as you do this

Stand side on, at the bottom stair or on a step with the affected leg over the side, support yourself with your hand(s) on the banister or other supportive surface

  1. Slightly bend the knee of the leg on the step
  2. Gently swing your affected leg like a pendulum starting with small movements and gradually increase this, the leg should be relaxed as you do this

How to tell if you're exercising at the right level

This guide can help you to understand if you're exercising at the right level. It'll also let you see how much pain or discomfort is acceptable.

It can be helpful to rate your pain out of 10 (0 being no pain 10 being the worst pain you have ever had), for example:

  • 0 to 3 - minimal pain
  • 4 to 5 - acceptable pain
  • 6 to 10 - excessive pain

Pain during exercise

Aim to keep your pain within a rating of 0 to 5. If your pain gets above this level, you can change the exercises by:

  • reducing the number of times you do a movement
  • reducing the speed of a movement
  • increasing rest time between movements

Pain after exercise

Exercise should not make your existing osteoarthritis of the hip worse overall. However, practicing new exercises can sometimes cause short term muscle pain as the body gets used to moving in new ways. This kind of pain should ease quickly and your pain should be no worse the morning after you’ve exercised.

How many and how often

You should add exercises into your routine gradually to help your osteoarthritis of the hip.

Movement exercises

Repetitions are how often you do a single movement. When starting new exercises, it can be helpful to do 2 to 3 repetitions at a time.

It’s better to do small amounts throughout the day. For example, practise your repetitions every hour.

As this gets easier, and if you feel able to, add 1 or 2 repetitions to your movements every few days.

As you become able to do more repetitions, it can be helpful to break things up into sets. This means you could do more repetitions at a time but you'll do them less often throughout the day. For example:

  1. Do 8 repetitions.
  2. Rest for a minute.
  3. Repeat another set of 8 repetitions.
  4. Repeat this 2 to 3 times a day.

Over time you can try to increase the number of repetitions you do. You should aim for a maximum of 2 sets of 15.

Stretching exercises

The aim of a stretch is to hold a position for a longer period of time. Over time this can help to improve your range of movement.

When doing the exercise you should be able to feel a gentle stretch. This shouldn't be sore or uncomfortable.

You should try to hold stretches for 20 to 30 seconds if possible.

Try to focus on doing sets of exercises. For example, do 2 to 3 sets of stretches. Aim to do this 2 to 3 times a day.

As you do more stretching you should feel your range of movement improve and you’ll be able to stretch further.

When to stop

Stop these exercises if they make your symptoms worse, or if they cause new pain.

If your hip worsens while following this advice, it’s a good idea to talk to a healthcare professional about your symptoms.

Help and support

Read more about self-managing a hip problem

If your hip hasn’t improved within 6 weeks of following this advice, it’s a good idea to talk to a healthcare professional about your symptoms.