Weak hips are problematic for a couple reasons, and the first one’s big: They invite pain and injury. Kelly Gerard, running coach and co-founder of the Kukimbe app, explains that the hip flexors, the group of muscles responsible for flexion at the hip, are important stabilizing muscles for everyone, but especially for cyclists. Yet, in the age of the desk jockey, they’re often neglected.
“Sitting at a computer all day then going for a [ride] or working out without stretching can lead to a muscle imbalance,” she says. “When we don’t do exercises that strengthen our stabilizer muscles, we set ourselves up for improper positioning of the hips.” And that can lead to everything from tight IT bands to sidelining knee pain.
Ready to bring your hips up to speed? We asked Gerard, as well as running and fitness coach Jason Karp, Ph.D., to share some of their favorite hip-strengthening exercises you can use as a regular part of your training.
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How to use this list: The exercises below are demonstrated by Hollis Tuttle, certified run coach and director of instructors at CityRow in New York City. Incorporate these moves as instructed into your cross-training schedule or perform them on an active recovery day. You will need a towel, a low bench, and a resistance band.
1. Leg Cycle With Resistance Band
Anchor one end of a resistance band to an immovable object and loop the other end around your left ankle. Face the anchored end and step back, creating resistance on the band. Rest one hand against a wall for balance and shift your weight to right leg. Raise your left leg, creating a 90-degree angle with your hip and knee. Swing the left foot forward, extending the knee, then lower right foot and sweep it behind you, as if you’re scraping something off the bottom of your shoe. Extend the leg behind you at the hip (this is where you’ll feel the most resistance from the band), then bend your knee and pull it back to a 90-degree angle. “You should feel an accelerated ‘snapping’ action from the effect of the resistance band,” Karp says. Complete 3 sets of 20 reps on each leg.
2. Reverse Leg Cycle With Resistance Band
Use the same set-up as the exercise above, but face away from the anchored end of the band. Balancing on the left leg, bring the right knee to a 90-degree angle. Swing the right foot forward, extending the knee. (You’ll feel the most resistance here, as you’re facing away from the anchor point.) Then lower your leg and sweep it behind you. Extend the leg behind you at the hip, then bend your knee and pull it back to a 90-degree angle. Complete 3 sets of 20 reps on each leg.
3. Pike
This plank variation isn’t for the faint of heart (or weak of core). It levels up a plank with a pike movement that zeroes in on the abs and hip flexors.
Start in a high plank position with wrists directly under shoulders and core and glutes engaged so body forms a straight line from head to heels. Keeping the back flat and the neck neutral, use the core and hip flexors to draw the hips up into a pike position. Hold for a second before extending back into a plank. Complete 3 sets of 12 reps.
For an added challenge, you can try this move with a TRX or by placing the tops of your feet and shins on a stability ball. Draw the hips up into a pike position until just your toes are on top of the ball. Hold for a second before rolling back to a plank.
4. Elevated Glute Bridge
The elevated surface ups the ante on this hip-strengthening staple. You’ll also feel this move in your glutes, core, and hamstrings.
Lie faceup, bend your knees, and place your feet on top of a stair, box, or low bench about hip-width apart. With your arms resting on the floor, drive through the heels and press the hips toward the ceiling. Lower hips to the floor. Complete 3 sets of 12 reps.
To make this exercise more challenging, add a resistance band around legs above the knee. Press knees out to keep tension on the band. You can also place feet on a BOSU, or try balancing on just one leg as you raise and lower the hips.
5. Banded Monster Walk
Yet another use for that pocket-sized resistance band—the simple yet effective banded monster walk targets the hip flexors, glutes, and hamstrings.
Loop a resistance band around your ankles. Stand with feet just wider than hip-width apart so there is tension on the band. Lower to an athletic position (a quarter squat), then step forward and out in a diagonal direction, maintaining resistance on the band. Take 10 to 20 big steps forward, then walk backward and repeat. Complete 3 sets.
6. Single-Leg Deadlift
“The single-leg deadlift combines core and hip stability, upper back strength, and balance,” Gerard says. Her tip for getting the most out of this move: Keep your back flat at all times.
Stand with the feet shoulder-width apart. With a soft bend in both knees, shift your weight to your right leg and, maintaining a flat back, hinge at the hips as left leg swings behind you. Lower chest until your torso and left leg are parallel to the ground. Pause, then squeeze the glutes and thrust the hips forward as you return to a standing position. Complete 3 sets of 12 reps on each leg.
To increase the difficulty of this movement, hold a dumbbell or kettlebell in the opposite hand of the standing leg.
[Looking to start cross training but don’t know where to start? The Beginner’s Guide to Strength Training will teach you all the fundamentals to get the most out of your weight session, priming you for stronger miles in the saddle.]
7. Single-Leg Squat
In addition to strengthening the hips, the single-leg squat fires up the core and challenges every muscle in the standing leg.
With your back facing a bench, box, or chair, stand with the feet shoulder-width apart. Shift your weight to your right leg and lift your left foot out a few inches above the ground. Send hips back and bend right knee as you sit back, just tapping your butt against the bench before driving through the right heel and returning to a standing position. Complete 3 sets of 12 reps on each leg.
This is a challenging move—the lower the chair or box, the harder it is. Start with a higher bench. As you gain strength and this movement becomes easier, lower the height of the bench to continue to challenge yourself.
Images: Julia Hembree Smith
