Misaligned hips?

Options
_lyndseybrooke_
_lyndseybrooke_ Posts: 2,561 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I've noticed (since getting a full-length mirror for my workout room) that, when coming up from a squat, my hips kick to right slightly. I thought I was doing it without knowing, so I made it a point to not do it, but it's involuntary. This occurs even with bodyweight squats, but is more pronounced with weighted squats. I've tried different stances, and it keeps happening. There's no pain associated with it.

That same hip also pops when I lift my right leg and lower it back down, but the left hip doesn't do the same. I've always had that problem. I was watching a YouTube video where a guy said he had one hip higher than the other and was working with a physical therapist because standing exercises like squats were more difficult for him regarding form.

Last night, my husband had me stand on my right leg while he measured from foot to the crest of my hip, then measured the other one the same way. He said it looked like my right hip was 1 inch higher than my left. He's no doctor and I'm not sure if what he found means anything at all, but I'm wondering if anyone has misaligned hips and what type of problems it has caused with workouts.

I'm not sure if I should bother seeing a doctor or if I should just make due with what I've got. Like I said, there's no pain, I just don't know what negative effects this could have down the road in regards to my workouts, strength, etc.

Thoughts?

Replies

  • jimmmer
    jimmmer Posts: 3,515 Member
    Options
    It's probably something you want to have someone qualified to take a look at.

    When you start piling more and more weight on the bar as time goes on, you'll probably end up with muscular imbalances and ultimately injuries. It doesn't hurt to have someone take a look now, rather than regret it later...
  • MagnumBurrito
    MagnumBurrito Posts: 1,070 Member
    Options
    See if any of this helps, especially the single leg stuff. Some of your muscles on one side may not be firing.

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/training/fixing-a-squat.html

    and get daily mobility work in:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBHzXF-mVjY
  • jimmmer
    jimmmer Posts: 3,515 Member
    Options
    ^Second the single leg work.

    Bulgarians, whilst a horrible exercise, are a great way to bring up a lagging side. And an over-tight hip flexor can cause no end of mischief from knee pain to ankle problems, so mobility won't hurt either.

    I'd still get a once-over from a professional, like a sports physio, to rule some stuff out.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Options
    Agree with the have someone look at it comments.

    I recently saw a physical therapist for a knee injury (unrelated), but they noticed right off that my hips were misaligned and worked on that (as well as muscle imbalances in general) as something that could lead to injury. They corrected it, but because it apparently has a tendency to come back gave me a stretch/adjustment thing to do to work on self-correction. I don't know to what extent it's related, but I traditionally do have a problem with a sore hip on one side with running that's gotten a lot better.
  • cantfail
    cantfail Posts: 169 Member
    Options
    An asymmetrical weight shift is actually pretty common. It has do do with muscular imbalance in the limbo-pelvic-hip-complex. Things you can do to correct it are: Stability ball squats, self myofascial release (foam roller) the TFL/IT bands and static stretch (hold for at least 30 seconds) your adductors on the same side as the weight shift and the piriformis on the opposite side. I'm sure if you search Youtube you'll find videos of all those.

Categories