The hip is a ball-and-socket joint, similar to the shoulder. The ball is the top of the femur, which is the major bone of your upper leg, and the socket is a part of the pelvis called the acetabulum. Contractions of the muscles crossing the hip joint cause the femur to rotate within the acetabulum. This allows you to move your leg through various ranges of motion, including backward and forward through extension and flexion, and side-to-side through abduction and adduction. You can perform resistance exercises through these ranges of motion to strengthen your hip muscles. This will help them function effectively and may prevent injuries.
Glute Activation Lunges
The glutes are the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius and gluteus minimus muscles of the buttocks. The gluteus maximus is the major hip extensor, and the other two abduct the hip, moving the femur sideways away from the body. Glute activation lunges strengthen these muscles along with the hip adductors, which move the femur toward the body. This is a great at-home exercise because it doesn't require any equipment.
To perform the exercise, stand upright with your feet about hip-width apart and arms extended in front of your shoulders. Step in front of your right foot with your left, squat until your right knee nearly touches the ground, and then rotate your torso 90 degrees to the left. Reverse back to the starting position and repeat in the opposite direction, crossing your right foot in front of your left. Keep your upper body vertical throughout the movement.
Inverted Flyers
For inverted flyers, all the muscles that cross the hip joint have to work simultaneously to stabilize the body on one foot. Additionally, the exercise recruits the gluteus maximus, hamstrings and hip flexors to move the femur through extension and flexion. Like glute activation lunges, this exercise doesn't require equipment, although you can use dumbbells for extra resistance if desired.
Stand upright with your feet about shoulder-width apart and hands at your sides. Lift your right knee to waist-height and bend your elbows to 90 degrees, raising your left hand to shoulder-height and lowering your right hand to waist-height. Bend forward until your torso is parallel to the ground and simultaneously extend your right leg and left hand, creating a straight line with your upper body. Reverse back to the starting position and repeat on the opposite side.
Leg Press
The leg press exercise emphasizes the hip extensors through both concentric, or shortening, and eccentric, or lengthening, contractions. It is performed on a machine with a chair positioned close to the ground so you can extend your legs diagonally upward to a foot platform, which is secured by a safety bar. The foot platform is attached to bars on which you can load weighted plates. Start with a weight you can perform 15 times, and then gradually increase the weight and decrease the repetitions over time.
To perform leg presses, sit on a chair and place your feet on the platform about hip-width apart and equidistant from the center of the platform. Release the safety bar and allow your legs to flex slowly so the platform moves toward your body. When your knees form a 90-degree angle, powerfully extend your legs, pressing the platform back to the starting position, and then repeat.
References
- "Basic Biomechanics (Fifth Edition)"; Susan J. Hall; 2007
- American Council on Exercise: Glute Activation Lunges
- American Council on Exercise: Inverted Flyers
- "Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning"; Thomas Baechle and Roger Earle; 2000
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