Hip pain can slow you down, but it doesn't have to stop you. Exercise, smart supports and, when needed, hip replacement help people get moving again.

Start here

Your first 30 days: a checklist

• Keep moving. Short, regular walks are better than long rests.
• Start simple strengthening exercises for your hip and thigh muscles, 2 to 3 times a week.
• Ask about a physiotherapist, or an exercise and education programme for hip osteoarthritis such as GLA:D.
• Try a cane or walking stick in the hand opposite your sore hip on bad days or longer walks.
• For pain on the outside of the hip, avoid crossing your legs and sleeping on the sore side for now.
• Ask your pharmacist which pain medicine is safe for you.
• If you carry extra weight, ask about support to lose some. Any amount helps.
• Learn the warning signs, such as not being able to stand after a fall.

• Starting exercise safely: a friendly guide for every body: How to start moving more with confidence: whether you need to check with your doctor, how much to aim for, how to build up, warming up, and the warning signs that mean stop. (7 min read)

Understand your hip pain

Osteoarthritis, pain on the side of the hip, and pain that comes from your back.

• Understanding hip pain: osteoarthritis and pain on the side of the hip: A friendly guide to the two most common causes of long-lasting hip pain in adults: hip osteoarthritis and greater trochanteric pain syndrome. Where it hurts, what it means, and why there's hope. (6 min read)

Your treatment options

Exercise first, then walking aids, pain relief, injections and, for some, hip replacement.

• Hip Osteoarthritis: Your Options: staying active with a stiff hip (video, 4:12)

• Hip pain: your treatment options: What helps hip osteoarthritis and outer hip pain: exercise and education first, weight support, walking aids, medicines, injections, and hip replacement when it's needed. (7 min read)
• Choosing a physiotherapist: what to look for and what to ask: How to find a good physiotherapist (physical therapist) for back, joint or balance problems: checking they're licensed, what a good first visit looks like, signs of quality care, costs and coverage. (6 min read)

Exercises for your hips

Strong glutes and thighs make walking, stairs and getting out of a chair easier. Start gently and build up week by week.

Before you start: Check with your clinician first if you have a new injury, recent surgery, osteoporosis or heart symptoms. Stop if you feel sharp pain, dizziness or chest pain. For chest pain, call 9-1-1.

• Hip Conditioning Program

  Stretches and strengthening for the muscles around your hip, to make walking, stairs and getting up easier.

  Hip; level: Beginner; you'll need: Mat and a sturdy chair; video, 8:59

  Based on the AAOS OrthoInfo hip conditioning program

  Printable program (opens AAOS OrthoInfo)

Living well

Sleep, daily tasks and staying active.

• What Exercise Does for Your Body: and how much you really need (video, 4:38)

• Living well with hip pain: sleep, daily tasks and staying active: Practical tips for everyday life with hip osteoarthritis or outer hip pain: sleeping comfortably, socks and shoes, stairs and cars, pacing, staying active and managing flares. (6 min read)
• Pain during exercise: how much is okay? The traffic light guide: Hurt doesn't always mean harm. Learn the pain-monitoring 'traffic light' that physiotherapists use, so you know when to keep going, when to ease back, and when to get checked. (6 min read)
• Strength training basics: getting stronger at any age: A beginner's guide to strength training for adults of any age: why it matters, how often, how many sets and repetitions, choosing the right effort, good form, progressing safely, and simple exercises to start with. (7 min read)

When to get help

Get emergency help now

• After a fall, you can't stand or put weight on your leg, or your leg looks shorter or is turned outward. This can be a broken hip
• A hip that is hot, red, swollen or extremely painful to move, with a fever or chills, or you feel very unwell. Go to an emergency department now: this can be a joint infection
• A painful, swollen calf or leg together with chest pain or sudden shortness of breath
• After a hip replacement: sudden severe pain, a 'clunk', and your leg looks shorter or turned. This can be a dislocation

Call 9-1-1 or go to the nearest emergency department. Don't drive yourself.

Call your doctor or physio soon

• A painful, swollen, warm or red calf, even without chest symptoms
• After a hip replacement or injection: fever, spreading redness, wound leaking, or pain and swelling that's getting worse
• Hip pain after a minor fall, especially if you have osteoporosis, even if you can walk
• Pain that is constant and getting worse, especially at night or at rest
• Hip pain if you've had cancer, or you're losing weight without trying
• New groin pain and a limp in a young person, or if you've taken steroid medicines for a long time
• Pain that hasn't improved after 6 to 12 weeks of exercise and self-care
• Side effects from pain medicines, such as stomach pain, black stools or swollen legs

If an older person can't get up or put weight on a leg after a fall, call 9-1-1 or your local emergency number. Keep them warm and comfortable, and don't try to lift them. A hot, red, swollen joint with fever needs to be seen the same day in an emergency department. For the second list, call your doctor, clinic or surgeon's office soon. If you can't reach anyone and you're worried, go to an urgent care centre or emergency department.

Questions to ask your team

1. Is my pain coming from my hip joint, the tendons, or my back?
2. Do I need an X-ray? Why or why not?
3. What exercises should I start with?
4. Can you refer me to a physiotherapist or a hip exercise programme?
5. What can I do to sleep more comfortably?
6. Which signs mean I should come back sooner?

From our guide Understanding hip pain: osteoarthritis and pain on the side of the hip.

Go deeper

Written for clinicians and students. More technical material from Hibbert Medical, for readers who want more detail.

Podcast summaries

• Rehabilitation podcasts: Rehab specialists and physiotherapists on exercise, pain and recovery.
• Orthopaedic podcasts: Orthopaedic surgeons on joints, injuries and joint replacement.
• Exercise science podcasts: What the evidence says about activity, strength and training.

Lectures

• Osteoarthritis: Evidence-Based Management: Residency rheumatology: exercise, weight, medicines and surgery for osteoarthritis.
• Primary Total Hip Arthroplasty: Residency orthopaedics: how hip replacements are designed and fixed.
• Joint Injections: Knee, Hip and Shoulder: Residency pain medicine: when joint injections are used, and what they can and can't do.
• Osteoporosis and Fracture Prevention in the Elderly: Residency geriatrics: protecting bones so a fall is less likely to break one.
• Lower Limb: Hip and Thigh: Medical school anatomy: the hip joint and the muscles around it.

Seminars

• Musculoskeletal Conditions: Clerkship seminar: back pain, knee pain and other common joint problems in family practice.
• Rheumatic Diseases: Clerkship seminar: arthritis and other joint diseases.
• Musculoskeletal Imaging: Clerkship seminar: what X-rays and MRI can and can't show in joints and bones.

Clinical cases

• Secondary Hip Osteoarthritis Following Developmental Dysplasia: How hip osteoarthritis develops, through one patient.
• Osteoporotic Hip Fracture: A fall, a broken hip, and why bone health matters.
• Occult Hip Fracture on MRI: When a broken hip doesn't show on the first X-ray.

Common questions

What is hip osteoarthritis?

Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis. In the hip, the smooth cartilage on the ball and socket gets thinner and rougher, and the bone and joint lining change too. It usually causes pain in the groin, buttock or front of the thigh, sometimes felt down to the knee, plus stiffness and trouble with tasks like putting on socks. It doesn't always get worse, and exercise helps.

Why does the outside of my hip hurt when I lie on it?

Pain on the outside of the hip that is worse lying on that side, climbing stairs or standing on one leg is often greater trochanteric pain syndrome. It's usually caused by irritated tendons of the buttock muscles where they attach to the bony point on the side of your hip. It used to be called hip bursitis. Education and a specific exercise programme are the most helpful treatment.

Do I need an X-ray?

Not always. Doctors can usually diagnose hip osteoarthritis from your age, symptoms and an examination. An X-ray can help if the symptoms are unusual, if the cause isn't clear, or if you're thinking about hip replacement.

Will a cane help?

Yes, for many people. A walking stick or cane, held in the hand opposite your sore hip, takes some of the load off the joint and can make walking more comfortable and steady. A physiotherapist can check that it's the right height for you.

When should I think about a hip replacement?

Hip replacement is one of the most successful operations in medicine. It's worth discussing with a surgeon when hip pain, stiffness or loss of function is badly affecting your life and other treatments haven't helped enough. Many hip replacements last 20 years or more.

Sources for this page

1. NICE NG226: Osteoarthritis in over 16s: diagnosis and management
2. Bannuru RR, et al. OARSI guidelines for the non-surgical management of knee, hip, and polyarticular osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2019
3. Kolasinski SL, et al. 2019 ACR/Arthritis Foundation guideline for the management of osteoarthritis of the hand, hip, and knee. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2020
4. Fransen M, et al. Exercise for osteoarthritis of the hip. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2014
5. Mellor R, et al. Education plus exercise versus corticosteroid injection versus wait and see for gluteal tendinopathy (LEAP). BMJ. 2018
6. AAOS OrthoInfo: Osteoarthritis of the hip
7. AAOS OrthoInfo: Hip bursitis
8. Arthritis Society Canada: Osteoarthritis