I wanted to show you five healthy hip strengthening exercises for runners.
CLICK HERE to watch the video.
I had Jenna to demonstrate the exercises.
1. Single-Leg Bridge
Lie on your back with hands on the side. Bend the knees and relax the upper body and straighten out one leg. Push through the heel and lift your build stronger hips for running off the ground. Go to a point where on one side, your hips, knee, and shoulder are in proper alignment. Hold that top position for a second and then come back down.
Single-leg Bridge
Perform one set of 5 repetitions on each side in a smooth, controlled movement with a good stop at the end. When you get to the end position, the glutes and hamstrings should do the work to target the hip. The intensity can be light to moderate, depending on the stability in your hips and the strength in your core.
2. Donkey Kicks
Start in a four-point position. Maintain a good alignment with the head, shoulders and hips, and tighten the abdominal area. Hands are underneath the shoulders and knees are underneath the hips and extend one leg back. Go to the start position and repeat the movement with the opposite leg.
Donkey Kicks
Perform one set of 5 repetitions on each side in a smooth, controlled movement with a good stop at the end. When the leg is going to the end position, you are contracting the glutes and the hamstrings to target the hip. The intensity is light.
3. Single-Leg Hip Abduction
Lie on your side on the floor with the bottom arm overhead and rest your head on that arm. Lift the top leg up not more than 45 degrees as we don’t want too much movement happening in the hip. You want to make sure that your hip is stack. Bring the leg back down, relax and repeat the movement. This exercise targets the outer part of the hip.
Single-leg Hip Abduction
Perform one set of 5 repetitions in smooth, controlled movement with a good stop at the top position to make a good contraction at the outer part of the hip. The intensity of this exercise is light.
4. Single-Leg Dead Lift
For this exercise, it is better if you can use an external weight or dumbbells, but it’s not necessarily required. You can do this exercise without any weight.
Begin in an upright standing position with the external weight or dumbbells to the side. Maintain a proper alignment with the head, shoulders, and hips. Put the weight on one leg and knee soft. Bend through the hips and try to keep the body as one unit. Hold the end position and then come back to the start. Utilize the glutes and hamstrings as you move back to the starting position to build stronger hips for running.
Single-leg Dead Lift
Perform one set of 5 repetitions on each side in a smooth, controlled movement with a good stop at the end. The intensity is moderate.
5. Split Lunge
For this exercise, use an external weight or dumbbells. Begin in a nice and upright standing position with weights in front of the shoulders. Take a step back with one leg and hold that position. Bring the back knee toward the ground then straighten the leg out, and then repeat the movement.
Split Lunge
Perform one set of 5 repetitions on each side in a smooth, controlled movement with a good contraction at the end of the movement. The intensity is moderate.
Give these five exercises a go to improve hip strengthening, especially if you are a runner. These will help improve your running form, prevent injuries and overcome hip pain.
If you want to get a slimmer waist, flatter stomach and healthier back, then check out the Invincible Core program, here!
Take care!
Rick Kaselj, MS