Hip Pain Exercises to Avoid (and Safer Swaps)

The main hip pain exercises to avoid are the ones that squeeze or overload the sore spot: deep squats, lunges, cross-legged stretches, side-lying leg lifts with a heavy band, high-impact jumping and long sessions on one leg. You usually do not have to stop moving, just swap them for gentler versions for a few weeks.

As a NASM corrective exercise specialist with more than 20 years of coaching, my job has always been finding the version of a move a body can handle today. That is the whole idea behind this guide.

Below you’ll find the common moves that often aggravate sore hips, why they bother them, and safer swaps for bursitis, outer hip tendon pain, SI joint pain and piriformis pain.

Why Some Exercises Make Hip Pain Worse

Most sore hips are irritated by two things: compression and too much load. Compression means a tendon or joint is being pressed against bone. Load means the hip is being asked to do more than it can handle right now.

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The tendons on your outer hip sit right over a bony bump on the side of your thigh. When your leg moves across your body, like crossing your legs or a deep figure four stretch, those tendons get squeezed against that bump. A few seconds is fine, but repeated or held compression often keeps them sore.

Load is the other side. Deep squats, lunges, running and jumping all ask a lot of the hip. If your glutes are not strong enough yet, the joint and tendons take the extra stress.

The goal is not to avoid everything. It is to find moves that keep you strong without poking the sore spot, then build back up.

Hip Pain Exercises to Avoid for Now

These are the moves I most often suggest pausing or changing when a hip is sore. You may not need to avoid all of them. Notice which ones make your pain worse during or the day after, and start there.

1. Deep Squats and Low Lunges

Deep squats bend the hip past 90 degrees, which can pinch the front of the joint and load irritated tendons. Low lunges add balance on one leg and a big stretch at the front of the back hip.

Safer swap: Sit to stands from a chair, or a partial squat to a high bench. Do 2 sets of 8 to 10, keeping your knees in line with your toes and stopping at a comfortable depth.

2. Crossing Your Legs and Figure Four Stretches

Crossing your legs, the figure four stretch and pigeon pose all pull the leg across the body. For outer hip pain, this presses the tendons into the bone and often keeps them irritated.

Safer swap: If your outer hip is the problem, skip these stretches for now. Sit with your knees hip-width apart, and do gentle glute bridges instead to keep the area moving.

3. Side-Lying Leg Lifts with Heavy Bands

Side-lying leg lifts can be useful later, but with a heavy band or high reps they often overload sore outer hip tendons. Lying on the sore side to do them adds pressure too.

Safer swap: Standing wall press. Stand beside a wall, sore hip away from it, and press the outer knee of the leg nearest the wall gently into the wall. Hold 30 seconds, 3 to 5 times. This works the side glutes with no squeeze on the tendon.

4. Running, Jumping and High-Impact Classes

Impact sends a jolt through the hip with every step or landing. If your hip is already sore, this often turns a mild ache into a flare.

Safer swap: Walking on flat ground, a stationary bike with the seat set high enough that your hips stay above your knees, or water walking. My guide to low-impact cardio has more options that are kind to sore joints.

5. Long Single-Leg Holds and Step-Ups

Standing on one leg makes the side glutes work hard to keep your pelvis level. Long balance holds, tall step-ups and single-leg deadlifts can be too much while the hip is irritated.

Safer swap: Do balance work with a light hand on a counter, keep holds to 10 to 15 seconds, and use a low step of 4 to 6 inches if you step up at all.

6. Deep Hip Flexor Lunges and Big Leg Swings

Long, deep kneeling lunges and fast leg swings can strain the front of a sore hip, especially if the joint itself is the issue.

Safer swap: A gentle standing hip flexor stretch with a small step back, held 20 to 30 seconds, only if it feels good. Skip it if it pinches.

Which Swap Fits Your Pain

Exercises to Avoid with Hip Bursitis and Gluteal Tendinopathy

Hip bursitis and gluteal tendinopathy both cause pain on the outer hip, and they usually respond to the same plan. Current evidence favors strengthening and load management over stretching the outer hip.

That means pausing deep IT band stretches, figure four stretches, crossing your legs, and standing with your weight hanging on one hip. Lying on the sore side and side-lying leg lifts with heavy bands also tend to flare it.

Instead, start with isometric holds, where you press a muscle without moving the joint, then build toward bridges and sit to stands. My guides to hip bursitis exercises and gluteal tendinopathy walk through those steps in order.

At night, a pillow between your knees keeps the top leg from dropping across your body.

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SI Joint Exercises to Avoid

The SI joint, where your spine meets your pelvis, often dislikes moves that shift load unevenly between your two legs. Long single-leg exercises, big lunges, twisting with weight and heavy one-sided carries are common triggers.

Hard pulls of the knee to the chest or deep twisting stretches can also aggravate it for some women. Keep your feet planted and your pelvis even when you can. Two-foot moves like glute bridges, wall sits and gentle core work are usually better tolerated.

Not sure if your pain is the hip or the SI joint? My guide to hip pain vs SI joint pain explains the differences.

Piriformis Exercises to Avoid

With piriformis pain, the deep buttock ache many women feel after sitting, the common mistake is stretching harder and harder. Cranking the knee across your body or holding pigeon pose for minutes can irritate the muscle and the nearby sciatic nerve.

Long sitting on hard surfaces and lots of hill running can also keep it sore. Gentle stretches are fine if they feel good, but strength usually does more. My guide to piriformis syndrome exercises shows the glute strength moves that help most.

When a Stretch Makes Your Hip Worse

A question I hear a lot is why a hip stretch makes the pain worse when stretching is supposed to help. Usually it is one of three things.

First, the problem may be a tendon, not a tight muscle. Stretching an irritated outer hip tendon presses it into the bone, so it feels worse afterward. Second, the stretch may be too deep. Aim for a mild pull, around 3 out of 10. Third, a burning or tingling stretch can mean a nerve is irritated, and that needs a gentler approach.

If a stretch leaves you sorer the next morning, drop it for two weeks and focus on gentle strength work instead.

How to Bring Moves Back Safely

Avoiding a move is usually temporary. Once your pain has settled for a week or two, you can start bringing exercises back in small steps.

1. Change one thing at a time. Add one move back, then wait 24 hours to see how your hip responds.
2. Start shallow and light. Return to squats at chair height, lunges with a short range, and bands at the lightest level.
3. Use a simple pain scale. Mild discomfort up to 3 out of 10 that settles by the next day is usually fine.
4. Build up weekly. Add a little depth, a few reps or a bit of time each week, not all three at once.
5. Keep the strength work. The bridges, wall presses and sit to stands that got you here keep the pain from coming back.

When to See a Doctor or Physical Therapist

Changing your exercises helps most sore hips. But some symptoms need a professional, not a new routine. See a doctor or physical therapist if you notice:

• Numbness or tingling in your leg or foot
• Leg weakness, or your leg giving way
• Hip pain that started after a fall or an accident
• Fever with joint pain, or a hip that is hot and swollen
• Pain that wakes you at night, no matter how you lie
• Loss of bladder or bowel control, which needs emergency care
• Pain that is no better after 2 to 3 weeks of gentler exercise

If you have had hip surgery, follow your surgeon’s plan for which moves to avoid and when.

Your This-Week Plan

1. Days 1 to 2: Notice which moves make your hip worse during or the next day, and pause those.
2. Days 1 to 7: Walk 10 to 20 minutes most days on flat ground.
3. Days 3 to 7: Do glute bridges, wall press holds and sit to stands on 3 or 4 days, 2 sets each.
4. Every day: Avoid crossing your legs, stand evenly on both feet and sleep with a pillow between your knees.

Quick Questions

This guide is part of my hip and lower body pain guide, where you’ll find help for hip bursitis, outer hip pain, SI joint pain and piriformis problems, plus clear advice on when to see a doctor.

The Bottom Line

The hip pain exercises to avoid are usually the ones that squeeze or overload the sore spot. Pause deep squats, leg crossing stretches, heavy side-lying lifts and high-impact work for a few weeks, and swap in gentler versions.

Keep moving, build glute strength, and bring moves back one at a time. If red flags show up or nothing improves after 2 to 3 weeks, see a doctor or physical therapist.

This article is for general education and isn’t medical advice. Talk to your doctor or a physical therapist before changing your exercise if you have ongoing hip, back or leg pain, a recent injury or surgery. Get medical help promptly for numbness or tingling, leg weakness, pain after a fall, fever with joint pain or a hot swollen hip, pain that wakes you at night, or any loss of bladder or bowel control.