It is no secret that yoga is a great way to relieve yourself from life’s stress, tension, and negativity. But did you know it can also act as a remedy for hip pain and bursitis? Yes, you read that right! Yoga for hip bursitis can be done through a series of intentional yoga stretches. I will also mention which poses to avoid if you suffer from hip bursitis.
Using the proper techniques, combined with the right amount of rest, yoga poses can significantly reduce the discomfort of bursitis and improve your quality of life.
Are you also dealing with chronic hip pain or hip bursitis? Is persistent hip pain disrupting your routine? Are you tired of the suffering?
If so, read through this blog post to learn all about the yoga poses for hip bursitis to ease your achy hips.
But first, let’s shed some light on what hip bursitis is.
Hip Bursitis: Understanding the Condition
The hip contains many small sacs called bursae. These bursae act as cushions between the joints, and help everything glide smoothly.
However, at times things like injury, trauma, arthritis, or repetitive motion can cause the bursa to become swollen and inflamed. The area around these sacs gets filled with water, leading to sharp, unpleasant pain. This condition is known as hip bursitis.
Simply put, the hips hips hurt because of extra fluid in the hip joint. And if left untreated, this pain can spread to other regions, including the thigh muscles, groin, and buttocks, ultimately restricting movement.
The Benefits of Yoga for Hip Bursitis
Yoga is a form of traditional stretching that many people have found provides great pain relief to various body conditions. Regularly practicing yoga asanas not only strengthens the hip joint, but also stretches ligaments and tendons, reducing stiffness and increasing the hip’s mobility.
Yoga also helps alleviate the stress that comes with this painful condition and can help provide mental benefits for the sufferers of hip bursitis.
5 Yoga Poses For Hip Bursitis to Try
Ready to try yoga for hip bursitis relief? Below are some of my favorite poses and stretches that I recommend you try if you are suffering from hip pain.
1) Happy Baby Pose
Ever wondered why babies are so happy? Well, yes most of them don’t have hip pain! With the happy baby pose, you can give your hips a good stretch that will leave you as “happy as a baby.”
Start by lying on the floor on your back and bringing your knees up to your chest. Hold onto your big toes or the outer edge of your feet, whichever seems more comfortable. Make sure that your hips and spine are on the ground. Hold this pose for about 30 seconds or as long as you’re able. You will soon feel a gentle pull in your hamstrings and hips.
This exercise is an effective way to strengthen the hip joint-supporting muscles and can help reduce pain and inflammation in your hips.
2) Straight Leg Raises
The straight leg raise is a simple and effective pose for stretching the tendons and muscles around the hip. It can also help strengthen the hip joint muscle, as well as, reduce the inflammation and pain that accompanies hip bursitis.
Lie on your side with one hip facing to the sky, and use a cushion to support your head. Keep your hip aligned with the rest of your body and gently raise your leg until your foot maintains a distance of 11 inches from the floor. Maintain this raised position for 5 seconds and slowly lower your leg. This movement can be repeated 8 to 12 times.
3) The Pigeon Pose
The Pigeon Pose is another asana that focuses on stretching and strengthening your hip muscles.
For this pose, position yourself on your hands and knees and distribute your body weight evenly on all fours. Slowly lift your left knee to the outside of your left wrist as you slide your right leg out behind you. Make sure to keep your torso upright and your left shin in contact with the floor. Keep this position for 30 seconds and repeat as many times as desired.
4) Hip Rotator Stretch
Want to improve your hip mobility? If so, a hip rotator stretch is your best bet. This stretch is beneficial for loosening up the tendons and muscles around the hip joint. These can become tight from sitting for prolonged periods of time.
Lay on your back with both knees bent and feet flat on the ground. Put the ankle of the first leg on the opposite thigh close to the knee. Next, use your hand to push the suspended knee away slowly until you feel a stretch around your hip. Hold the stretch for 15 to 30 seconds and repeat on the other side. Do this 2 to 4 times.
Repeat these steps, reach behind the bent knee and bull your thigh and crossed leg towards the opposite shoulder to feel the stretch at the back of your hip.
You can also perform this stretch sitting on a chair or end of the bed if lying on your back is uncomfortable. This is a great stretch that Robin from Lindywell Pilates recommends doing every day!
5) Bridge Pose
One of my personal favorites, the bridge pose is a great way to relieve hip pain. This yoga pose engages your hip flexors, hamstrings, quadriceps, and glutes, thereby strengthening all your hip joints.
For this pose, lie flat on your back with your legs bent and feet flat on the ground. Move your feet close to your glutes. Raise your hips by pushing your heels down such that you create a line from your shoulders to your knees. Hold this position for five deep breathes, then slowly roll down through the spine into a flat back position.
Repeat this exercise 2-4 times.
Which Yoga Poses for Hip Bursitis to Avoid
Having discussed the best yoga poses for hip bursitis, I feel it’s also important to cover which yoga poses to avoid in this condition.
Positions or stretches that put undue stress and pressure on the hip bursa, such as walking long distances, lying down, or sitting in one position for an extended period of time can irritate the bursa and exacerbate the pain.
The following are the yoga poses that you should steer clear of if you have hip arthritis, hip bursitis, acute hip injuries, or weak and chronically-painful hips.
Knee-to-Chest Pose
The knee-to-chest pose has many benefits, but this pose is not recommended for people suffering from hip pain. It may feel fine when you pull your knee close to your chest, but you might feel a shooting pain through your hip upon straightening your leg.
Warrior Pose
The warrior pose requires you to balance your weight on one leg. This can put a lot of pressure and stress on the hip joint. Hence, this pose can aggregate hip impingement in your posterior hip joints and soft tissue injuries in the front of the joint.
To modify this pose and perform it without discomfort, you can lower the time spent in the pose as well as the depth of the lunge.
Revolved Lunge Pose
Another challenging yoga pose for hip bursitis is the Revolved Lunge Pose. It places the hips at a strained and unnatural angle and brings the front hip into full flexion which can be extremely painful for people with hip bursitis.
That being said, you can still perform this pose with a slight modification. Placing a block under the hand that is opposite from the front leg can help support your body weight and reduce internal rotation and hip flexion.
Additionally, keeping your torso upright during the twisting can minimize the strain on the hip.
Final Thoughts on Using Yoga for Hip Bursitis Relief
Now that you are aware of all the different types of yoga poses for hip bursitis, you are ready to begin your journey towards a more manageable, pain-free life.
So, what are you waiting for? Grab your yoga mat and experience the comfort and relief that you have been craving.
About the Author: Jane Hart
Working crazy hours in a high-stress work environment resulted in my body one day telling me, “Enough is enough!”
Navigating this serious health journey was both mentally and physically exhausting. But through some serious mindset work and instilling healthy habits, I was able to rebuild my life one day at a time and come out stronger on the other side!
Now my mission is to empower women like me to prioritize their fitness and well-being in a healthy, sustainable way and build a community of strong, happy and healthy women!
