Hip Abduction Exercises Are the Secret to a Strong, Pain-Free Lower Body. Try These 5 Moves

In fitness and wellness circles, there’s a lot of talk about hips, whether they’re tight, weak, or holding trauma. What many people might not know, however, is just how complicated the hip joint is. There are about 20 different muscles that act on the joint and move your leg in all different directions, plus help to stabilize your pelvis and work synergistically with muscles above (in your core) and below (in your legs).

One essential part of this complex system is the hip abductors—the muscles you might be poking when you massage the outer side of your glutes or try to stretch with figure four pose after an intense cycling class.

“This muscle group plays a key role in side-to-side movements, stabilizing during single-leg activities, and preventing overcompensation from other muscles,” explains Stacy Orsborn, CPT, certified personal trainer and co-founder of Victress MVMT. Still, your abductors can become weak or dysfunctional from everyday activities (like sitting at a desk all day) and accidentally be neglected when we’re doing strength work.

Luckily, the fix is easy: You can activate and strengthen your hip abductors with just a few minutes a day. All you need are the five simple hip abduction exercises below, which require no more than your body weight and a mini band. Keep reading for all the details, including why they’re totally worth your time.

What are your hip abductors?

The hip abductor muscles are a group of muscles that move the leg away from the midline of the body (i.e. out to the side), explains Schuyler Archambault, DPT, CSCS, physical therapist, strength coach, and owner of Arch Physical Therapy and Fitness. Here’s a breakdown of the three primary hip abductor muscles:

• Glute medius: The gluteus medius is a fan-shaped muscle that stretches from the back of the hip bone down to the top of the femur (thigh bone). It lies underneath the gluteus maximus (the largest glute muscle), and its main job is to abduct your leg or extend it out to the side.
• Glute minimus: The gluteus minimus is like a miniature version of the gluteus medius. It lies underneath the gluteus medius and stretches from the back of the hip bone to the top of the femur. It’s an important hip stabilizer and helps abduct your leg as well as rotate your thigh inward.
• Tensor fasciae latae: The tensor fasciae latae (TFL) is a small muscle on the front outside of your hip; if you put your hands on your hips, it’s located just below the hip bone. The TFL helps abduct and internally rotate your leg, but also acts as a hip flexor muscle, pulling your thigh up/closer to your torso.

The piriformis (a tiny muscle deep in your glutes), sartorius (a thin hip-flexor muscle), and certain parts of the gluteus maximus also help with hip abduction, though to a lesser degree than the muscles listed above.

Why is it important to strengthen your hip abductors?

Hip abduction might not seem all that important in your day-to-day life (unless you regularly grapevine or speed skate around your kitchen), but the value of these muscles goes far beyond the specific movement pattern of lifting your leg out to the side.

“The hip abductors’ most important function is stabilizing the hip and pelvis,” Archambault says. For example, when your weight is on your right leg, your right hip abductor muscles are holding the pelvis, preventing it from dropping down to the left, she says. This is essential for weight-bearing activities like walking, running, or any movement that requires you to balance on one leg.

“When your hip abductors are strong, they keep the pelvis level and aligned, which reduces strain on the knees and lower back and prevents misalignment issues,” Orsborn adds. “This helps decrease the risk of knee injuries, prevent lower back pain, and improve balance and power in daily activities (walking, climbing stairs, standing for long times) and sports (soccer, basketball, track, tennis, etc.).”

It’s true: Weak or dysfunctional glute medius or minimus muscles can cause a cascade of problems, leading to issues like an abnormal walking gait or knee and ankle injuries like iliotibial (IT) band syndrome, ACL tears, or patellofemoral pain syndrome (one of the potential causes of “runner’s knee”). Research also shows that weak hip abductors are linked to chronic lower back pain and that strength in this muscle group is crucial for balance and mobility across all age groups.

And, unfortunately, there are a lot of lifestyle factors that can result in weak or inhibited hip abductors. For example, standing with your weight shifted onto one leg, certain sleeping positions, sitting with your legs crossed for extended periods of time, and having tight adductors (i.e. inner thigh muscles) can all contribute to abductors that don’t work optimally.

As you may have come to understand, this means training your hip abductors is important for pretty much everybody, including runners, walkers, desk workers, and people with lower back, hip, knee, or foot pain, Archambault says.

How to work your hip abductors

Both Archambault and Orsborn generally recommend training your hip abductors two or three times per week. “I’ll often have clients perform at least one isolated hip abductor exercise as part of their warmups in each session,” Archambault says.

If you’re a runner or are experiencing hip, knee, foot, or ankle pain, you may want to increase this to three to four times per week, doing two to three hip abduction exercises each time, she adds. (Note: If you’re dealing with severe or chronic pain, it’s a good idea to see a medical pro or physical therapist, too.)

“This schedule allows you to build strength without overworking the muscles, which is especially important if you’re also engaging in other lower-body exercises,” Orsborn says—because your hip abductors will also be jumping into action to stabilize your pelvis during squats, lunges, and other moves, even if they aren’t abductor-specific exercises.

Best hip abduction exercises

Want to get your hips in tip-top shape? Try incorporating these five hip abduction exercises, as recommended by Orsborn and Archambault, into your workout warmups a few times per week.

1. Standing abductor leg lift

“This simple move is great for targeting the outer hips and helping with balance and stability,” Orsborn says. You can do them with just your body weight or with a mini band, as shown, to increase the difficulty. If needed, you can lightly hold onto a wall or chair for balance.

1. 1.
   Stand with your feet hip-width apart, holding onto a sturdy object for balance if needed. Shift your weight onto your right leg and lift the left leg off the floor.
2. 2.
   Keeping your core engaged and your standing leg softly bent, extend your left leg straight out to the side without leaning your torso. Keep your left knee pointed forward.
3. 3.
   With control, return your left leg to the center, tapping your toes to the floor if needed. That’s 1 rep.
4. 4.
   Do 3 sets of 10-15 reps on each side.

2. Side-lying abductor-focused leg lift

You may have seen this simple move in Pilates classes—and it’s awesome at activating your glutes and improving hip strength without stressing the knees, Orsborn says.

1. 1.
   Lie on your left side with your bottom leg bent and your top leg extended straight. Prop up your torso on your left elbow, and place the right hand on the floor in front of your ribs for balance.
2. 2.
   Engage your core so that the left side of your torso is taut, not collapsing into the floor. Lift the right leg up to about shoulder height, engaging the outer thigh and hip muscles. Keep the knee pointed forward, and don’t allow your hips to tip or move.
3. 3.
   Lower the right leg with control. That’s one rep.
4. 4.
   Do 3 sets of 10-15 reps on each side.

3. Banded lateral walk

“Lateral band walks with a mini band around your thighs or ankles are excellent for isolating the gluteus medius,” Orsborn says. If you have limited space, you can repeat the reps going back and forth, as shown; if you have more room, take multiple steps in one direction before switching. “Be sure to lead the movement with the heel, making sure your toes do not turn outward,” Archambault says. “Also, make sure to keep constant tension on the band without hiking up your hip as you step.”

1. 1.
   Place a resistance band around your legs just above your knees (easier) or ankles (harder). Bend your knees slightly into a quarter-squat position.
2. 2.
   Step out to the side with the left foot, keeping both feet pointing forward and maintaining the squat position.
3. 3.
   Then, step your right foot closer to the left while maintaining tension in the band.
4. 4.
   Continue stepping side to side for 10-12 steps in one direction, then reverse. Do 3 sets.

4. Clamshell

Clamshells (another Pilates fave) are awesome for strengthening the hip abductors and glute medius, which are key for knee and hip stability, Orsborn says.

1. 1.
   Lie on your left side with your legs stacked and bent at a 45-degree angle so your feet are in line with your hips, shoulders, and head. Prop up your torso on your left elbow and engage your core so that the left side of your torso is taut, not collapsing into the floor.
2. 2.
   Keeping your feet together, lift your right knee as high as possible without rotating your pelvis (tipping backward or forward).
3. 3.
   Slowly lower the right knee to return to start. That’s 1 rep.
4. 4.
   Do 3 sets of 12-15 reps on each side.

5. Cossack squat

A cousin of the lateral lunge, Cossack squats work both leg strength and flexibility, Orsborn says. “They open up the hips and challenge your balance in a functional way.” These are especially great if you have tight and/or weak adductors (inner thighs) since that important hip muscle group gets stretched and strengthened in this move, too.

1. 1.
   Start standing with your feet wide, toes slightly turned out.
2. 2.
   Shift your weight to the right side, bending the right knee deeply while keeping the other leg extended.
3. 3.
   Sit your hips backward and lower as far as possible, focusing on engaging the outer hip and abductor.
4. 4.
   Push through the bent leg to return to standing, then repeat on the other side. That’s one rep.
5. 5.
   Do 3 sets of 10-12 reps.