Exercises to substitute DLs and Squats

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BlackPantherChick123
BlackPantherChick123 Posts: 425 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I had a hip flexor injury probably from DLs and Squats and I had to take a break from them because if I put any pressure on my left hip, the pain is unbearable. I limp a bit whenever I walk but not as bad since it's starting to heal. I do stretches, put Icy Heat on it (not sure if it actually works),take Advil, and avoid intense heavy lifting that involve my hip flexors. I want to be able to still do lower body/full body workouts because the last thing I wanna do is neglect my lower body. The holidays are coming up and I want to be able to keep my muscle and avoid fat gain because of an injury. What are some good substitutes for DLs and barbell Squats? I can do leg presses and goblet squats but sometimes I feel like they are not intense enough. I no my main priority is to heal first but it's hard to have patience when you're stubborn. I normally do 2 types of DLs, Squats, Good Mornings, Hip Thrusts, and Kickbacks but I can't even do that. Even lifting just the barbell alone can cause pain in my left hip. I try to do a little bit at a time to test my flexor (like 1 set of 5 with just the barbell alone every time I go into the gym). My goal is to continue to build strength but kinda hard right now but I'll get back into it once I'm fully healed but my main goal is to stay in shape, keep my muscle, and avoid fat gain. I want to continue to build my glutes and shape my thighs but not sure where to start because right now I just feel stuck. My body has also been reacting differently since I stopped doing heavy lifting recently and it's also bothering my self esteem. I could really use some advice about what to do and how to heal quicker.

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  • JessAndreia
    JessAndreia Posts: 540 Member
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    Maybe try negative goblet squats and leg presses.
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
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    BlackPantherChick123 wrote: »
    I had a hip flexor injury probably from DLs and Squats and I had to take a break from them because if I put any pressure on my left hip, the pain is unbearable. I limp a bit whenever I walk but not as bad since it's starting to heal. I do stretches, put Icy Heat on it (not sure if it actually works),take Advil, and avoid intense heavy lifting that involve my hip flexors. I want to be able to still do lower body/full body workouts because the last thing I wanna do is neglect my lower body. The holidays are coming up and I want to be able to keep my muscle and avoid fat gain because of an injury. What are some good substitutes for DLs and barbell Squats? I can do leg presses and goblet squats but sometimes I feel like they are not intense enough. I no my main priority is to heal first but it's hard to have patience when you're stubborn. I normally do 2 types of DLs, Squats, Good Mornings, Hip Thrusts, and Kickbacks but I can't even do that. Even lifting just the barbell alone can cause pain in my left hip. I try to do a little bit at a time to test my flexor (like 1 set of 5 with just the barbell alone every time I go into the gym). My goal is to continue to build strength but kinda hard right now but I'll get back into it once I'm fully healed but my main goal is to stay in shape, keep my muscle, and avoid fat gain. I want to continue to build my glutes and shape my thighs but not sure where to start because right now I just feel stuck. My body has also been reacting differently since I stopped doing heavy lifting recently and it's also bothering my self esteem. I could really use some advice about what to do and how to heal quicker.

    That sucks. I did that overdoing it at an aerials workshop (~3 too many pancakes)(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFrA3UUCeSw)(too many repetitions of the brief shoulder landing is what did it). I remember it hurt like a b* just stepping over stuff - so no squats or deadlifts for me for a while. I would avoid anything that may aggravate it and put you out of commission for longer. Some of the alternatives that don't use the stabilizer muscles as much might work - leg presses or leg extension machine (mainly quads), leg curls machine (mainly hamstrings), back extensions (mainly glutes). If you think it was the squats or deadlifts that caused it in the first place, you should probably have someone check your form once you recover so it doesn't happen again.
  • tcunbeliever
    tcunbeliever Posts: 8,219 Member
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    maybe donkey kicks and fire hydrants...possibly back tendu (from ballet)...lunges???
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,442 Member
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    Have you been to a doctor?
  • BlackPantherChick123
    BlackPantherChick123 Posts: 425 Member
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    I haven't been to a dr. but talked to my trainer and my mom who is a nurse. If it doesn't heal soon, I am scared I might have caused more damage than I believe, but I believe it's minor.
  • BlackPantherChick123
    BlackPantherChick123 Posts: 425 Member
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    Not to mention that the cold weather actually causes more pain in my flexor. The other day there was very little pain, but today I woke up with more pain due to it being so cold. I hate walking around everywhere when it's cold. Makes it hard to walk across campus and go up and down stairs. I have to walk slow right now and feel like I could start limping.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    BlackPantherChick123 wrote: »
    I haven't been to a dr. but talked to my trainer and my mom who is a nurse. If it doesn't heal soon, I am scared I might have caused more damage than I believe, but I believe it's minor.

    So what exercises does your PT suggest?
  • Joel_518
    Joel_518 Posts: 35 Member
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    Is it painful due to tightness? I'm not a doc and call me cray, but I would check out Dr. YouTube to get a hold of some good hip flexor stretches. Kelly Starrett, Mindpump, smashworks....Google any of those peeps and they might help.

    My hips we're glued up for years doing squats and DL incorrectly. I'm 41 and....well I wish I knew what I know when I was younger. (I think that's a song right??) Lol
  • BlackPantherChick123
    BlackPantherChick123 Posts: 425 Member
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    I think its pulled rather than tight.
  • DawnOfTheDead_Lift
    DawnOfTheDead_Lift Posts: 753 Member
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    Single leg variants.

    Split squats, step ups, SLRDLs
  • notarunnermfp
    notarunnermfp Posts: 43 Member
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    I'm avoiding squats and dls because of a back injury (so these might not all apply for you). I've been doing hip thrusts, leg press- wide and narrow variations, leg curl and extension, walking lunges, goblet squats, abductor machine. I feel like I still get a pretty good workout with adjusted volume.

    If you pulled something, stretching it might not be a good idea..?
  • JAYxMSxPES
    JAYxMSxPES Posts: 193 Member
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    How long ago was the injury? And it still hurts?

    If the injury has gone on for a while, you should see a doctor to rule out a tear/rupture or even to see if your hips are misaligned.

    The problem with a hip injury is that in most lower body exercises the hip is either eccentrically or concentrically loaded. Not picking on anybody, I just see some "alternatives" that could still be problematic.


    The hip flexors are eccentrically loaded during a squat. A "negative" or eccentric lifting places added emphasis on that phase of a lift. If you focus on the eccentric in a squat, single leg squat / lunge then you are putting added pressure on the hip flexor. Hip thrusts / bridges, definitely loaded the hip flexors on the way down.
    Even step-ups that begin in a flexed position, if you control yourself on the way down it's probably going to hurt. Leg extensions are probably about the best you can do without aggravating the hip flexor, but even then you may feel it when you extend your knee.

    Best bet is to give it some rest and if it's not getting better to see a doctor.

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