Your hip is a strong, ball-and-socket joint connecting the long bone of your thigh to your pelvis. Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common condition which can affect any joint, but it most commonly affects the large weight bearing joints such as the hip. The cartilage which protects the surface of your joints get worn/ damaged which causes friction and prevents the joint from moving smoothly. The joint can become swollen, the joint can change shape and the muscles can feel weaker. Symptoms Certain movements become difficult, especially trying to rotate or turn your leg inwards. Pain is usually into your groin and can travel down your leg towards the knee. Your pain may get worse the more you walk. The hip feels stiff in the morning but gets a little better as you get moving. The hip may be painful to lie on and disturb your sleep. It is more common in people over the age of 50 It may be triggered by an injury to the hip such as a fracture or come on for no particular reason. A diagnosis is made by your clinical history and an x-ray to rule out other causes. Click here to visit the Harrogate Osteoarthritis website. Versus Arthritis have also developed exercises to help people who have Hip Osteoarthritis . https://versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/exercising-with-arthritis/exercises-for-healthy-joints/exercises-for-the-hips/ Further Resources: Versus Arthritis OA Hip Booklet https://www.versusarthritis.org/media/22728/osteoarthritis-of-the-hip-information-booklet.pdf Alternatively, check out the Escape Pain information for Osteoarthritis here  Nuffield Joint Pain Programme - A six month programme which is designed to help you self-manage your joint pain, with access to Nuffield Facilities and lifestyle advice and exercise sessions. You can refer yourself. Please click the link here: https://www.nuffieldhealth.com/about-us/our-impact/healthy-life/joint-pain-programme  Active North Yorkshire - Healthy You - 12 week free weight loss programme and gym access. You can refer yourself. Please click the link here: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/healthy-living/healthy-you  Active North Yorkshire - Exercise Classes. Please click the link here: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/active-north-yorkshire/exercise-classes  Active North Yorkshire - MSK Hub: The MSK Hub is a free 12 week programme to help support working people that have a reduced ability to work due to musculoskeletal joint pain. You can refer yourself. Please click the link here: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/active-north-yorkshire/lifestyle-and-wellbeing-sessions/help-musculoskeletal-conditions  Live Well with pain website. Please click the link here: https://livewellwithpain.co.uk/

What is Greater Trochanteric Pain Syndrome (GTPS)?GTPS is an umbrella term describing pain in the outside of your hip. It includes bursitis (inflammation if the bags of fluid between tendons/bones) and tendinopathy (inflammation of the tendon).Causes: More common in the age of 40 - 60.Female sex (especially post-menopausal and post-partum).Repetitive movements of the hip.Sudden increase in activity.Lying on your side, crossing your legs, repetitively standing with more weight one one leg than the other. A fall onto the hip.Reduce strength in the hip muscles (sometimes due to other injuries).Other risk factors: smoking, being overweight, having a high cholesterol, high blood pressure, having diabetes, thyroid issues, poor diet or sedentary lifestyle.Symptoms:Pain over the outside of the hip which can radiate to the knee.The hip may be painful to lie on and disturb your sleep.Pain with walking, stairs, running, hills, standing on one leg, crossing legsYour pain may get worse the more you walk.It can be painful to press onto the outside of your hipTreatment:Most commonly a physiotherapist will be able to make a diagnosis of greater trochanteric pain syndrome through an assessment of your hip and talking to you about your symptoms.The mainstay of treatment for greater trochanteric pain syndrome is exercise to help strengthen and improve your hip muscles ability to manage load. Sometimes treatment for greater trochanteric pain syndrome (particularly when going through hormone changes) can be unpredictable and your hip muscles may not respond to exercises as we would hope. Your physiotherapist will guide you to complete exercises which help your currently level of irritability in the hip muscles. The key element of GTPS exercise management is to make sure that exercises are not making your pain worse but equally are doing enough to help you improve. Things that may help: ·       Change your activity by reducing how much you walk up hills, the duration of your walks or how long your runs are.·       Pain relief short term e.g. paracetamol or anti-inflammatories (please speak to your GP if you are unsure).·       Losing weight to reduce the amount of load going through your glute muscles.·       Try low impact cardiovascular exercise like cycling, swimming, and gentle slow walking.Exercises: Level 1: Start off with these level 1 exercises for your hip pain, if you need help - please contact a health professional. These exercises should not be painful however they may be more sore to start with and get easier the more you do them. Pick a couple of exercises to start with and add more as you feel able. Double leg Glute bridge (isometric)Laying on your back, place your feet hip-width apart on the floor and place your hands across your chest. Squeeze your bottom and push through your heels to lift your bottom off the floor. Hold for 20-30 seconds then lower back down. If you are struggling with balance, place your hands on the bed either side of you.Complete 4 sets of 20-30 seconds hold.Seated abduction isometric: In sitting, place a band around your thighs or place your knee against a wall or chair arm. Push your thighs out into the band or wall and hold 20-30 seconds. Try keep your pain between 2-3/10 when you do this, if the pain is increasing, reduce how hard you are pushing or stop.Repeat 4x8 20-30 second holds – Once every day.Level 2:If you feel you have progressed with the level 1 exercises and would like some harder exercises, please have a go at the level 2 exercises. These exercises should not be painful however they may be more sore to start with and get easier the more you do them.Pick a couple of exercises to start with and add more as you feel able.Double leg Glute bridgeLaying on your back, place your feet hip-width apart on the floor and place your hands across your chest. Squeeze your bottom and push through your heels to lift your bottom off the floor. Then slowly lower down. If you are struggling with balance, place your hands on the bed either side of you.Complete 3 sets of 8-10 repetitions - 2-3x a week.Sit to standIn sitting, place your hands across your chest. Place your feet hip width apart, lean forward and push through your legs to stand up. Try avoid using your hands to push to stand and use your legs to stand up. Sit back down, bending your knees and pushing your bottom back to the chair.Complete 3 sets of 10 repetitions (3x10) - 2-3 times a week.Level 3:If you feel you have progressed with the level 2 exercises and would like some harder exercises, please have a go at the level 3 exercises. These exercises should not be painful however they may be more sore to start with and get easier the more you do them.Pick a couple of exercises to start with and add more as you feel able.Banded walk:In standing, bend your knees and push your bottom back to come into a crouched position with feet hip-width apart. Step with one leg to the side and then follow the other leg to the same side. Continue this 10 steps one way and then 10 steps the opposite way. Complete 3 sets of 10 repetitions left and right (3x10) - 2-3 times a week.Single leg glute bridge:Laying on your back, place your feet hip-width apart and place your hands across your chest. Bend one knee with the foot on the floor and place one leg off the floor. Squeeze your bottom and push through your foot that is on the floor to lift your whole bottom off the floor. If you are struggling with balance, place your hands on the bed either side of you.Complete 3 sets of 10 repetitions each leg (3x10) - 2-3 times a week.Lateral Step down: Standing sideways on the edge of a step on one leg, place the other leg off the step. Bend your knee placed on the step, push your bottom back and lower your other leg down to the floor. Try not to let your foot touch the floor. Push back up to stand with your leg on the step. Complete 3 sets of 10 repetitions each leg (3x10) - 2-3 times a week.Single leg sit to stand: In sitting, place your hands across your chest. Place your feet hip width apart, with one foot on the floor and one foot off the floor out in front, lean forward and push through your leg to stand up. Try avoid using your hands to push to stand up, Sit back down, bending your knee and pushing your bottom back into the chair. The lower the chair height, the harder this exercise will be. You could place a pillow on the chair seat to make it easier.Complete 3 sets of 10 repetitions (3x10) - 2-3 times a week.Leaflet:Click the link below for the information above, in a downloadable leaflet: Further Information: Nuffield Joint Pain Programme - A six month programme which is designed to help you self-manage your joint pain, with access to Nuffield Facilities and lifestyle advice and exercise sessions. You can refer yourself. Please click the link here: https://www.nuffieldhealth.com/about-us/our-impact/healthy-life/joint-pain-programme Active North Yorkshire - Healthy You - 12 week free weight loss programme and gym access. You can refer yourself. Please click the link here: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/healthy-living/healthy-you Active North Yorkshire - MSK Hub: The MSK Hub is a free 12 week programme to help support working people that have a reduced ability to work due to musculoskeletal joint pain. You can refer yourself. Please click the link here: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/active-north-yorkshire/lifestyle-and-wellbeing-sessions/help-musculoskeletal-conditions Active North Yorkshire - Exercise Classes. Please click the link here: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/active-north-yorkshire/exercise-classes  Live Well with pain website. Please click the link here: https://livewellwithpain.co.uk/

Further Information: Nuffield Joint Pain Programme - A six month programme which is designed to help you self-manage your joint pain, with access to Nuffield Facilities and lifestyle advice and exercise sessions. You can refer yourself. Please click the link here: https://www.nuffieldhealth.com/about-us/our-impact/healthy-life/joint-pain-programme Active North Yorkshire - Healthy You - 12 week free weight loss programme and gym access. You can refer yourself. Please click the link here: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/healthy-living/healthy-you Active North Yorkshire - MSK Hub: The MSK Hub is a free 12 week programme to help support working people that have a reduced ability to work due to musculoskeletal joint pain. You can refer yourself. Please click the link here: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/active-north-yorkshire/lifestyle-and-wellbeing-sessions/help-musculoskeletal-conditions Active North Yorkshire - Exercise Classes. Please click the link here: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/active-north-yorkshire/exercise-classes Live Well with pain website. Please click the link here: https://livewellwithpain.co.uk/

What is Femoral Acetabular Impingement (FAI)? FAI describes hip pain which is caused by impingement or 'nipping' of the hip. This impingement can be due to the shape of the hip bones or the balance of the muscles. In some cases the labrum or cartilage rim of the hip’ can become damaged/torn. You can be pre-disposed to this depending on the shapes of your hips or certain sporting/occupational demands. Causes: Repeated movements of the hip joint. Normal variations of the hip joint from when you are born. Symptoms: Pain into the groin when your legs are in certain positions. Pain with sitting for a long time, deep squatting or getting in/out of a car. Clicking or catching in the groin area. You may get back, buttock or thigh pain. Treatment Most commonly a physiotherapist will be able to make a diagnosis of FAI through an assessment of your hip and talking to you about your symptoms. The mainstay of treatment for FAI is exercise to help strengthen and improve your hip muscles surrounding your hip joint. Treatment advice: Avoid the things that aggravate the pain - crossing legs, laying on affected side, standing with all your weight on one leg, stretching the glute, sitting in low chairs and deep squatting. We would advise not laying on the affected side, however should you choose to lay on the unaffected side, try placing a pillow between your knees to stop a stretch on the affected side. Pain relief short term e.g. paracetamol or anti-inflammatories (please speak to your GP if you are unsure). Losing weight to reduce the amount of load going through your hip joint. Ergonomic changes to work environment such as, using a standing desk or higher chair so that your hip is not in a flexed position. Sometimes it may be necessary to complete an X-RAY of the hip, however this dependent on your duration of symptoms and/or if you have trialled physiotherapy rehabilitation with limited improvement. If you fail to respond to physiotherapy treatment, sometimes it may be appropriate to have a referral to orthopaedics for a surgical opinion. Exercises: Coming soon! Further Information: Nuffield Joint Pain Programme - A six month programme which is designed to help you self-manage your joint pain, with access to Nuffield Facilities and lifestyle advice and exercise sessions. You can refer yourself. Please click the link here: https://www.nuffieldhealth.com/about-us/our-impact/healthy-life/joint-pain-programme  Active North Yorkshire - Healthy You - 12 week free weight loss programme and gym access. You can refer yourself. Please click the link here: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/healthy-living/healthy-you  Active North Yorkshire - MSK Hub: The MSK Hub is a free 12 week programme to help support working people that have a reduced ability to work due to musculoskeletal joint pain. You can refer yourself. Please click the link here: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/active-north-yorkshire/lifestyle-and-wellbeing-sessions/help-musculoskeletal-conditions  Active North Yorkshire - Exercise Classes. Please click the link here: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/active-north-yorkshire/exercise-classes  Live Well with pain website. Please click the link here: https://livewellwithpain.co.uk/ Last reviewed April 2026. To be reviewed April 2027.

Coming soon.