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Snapping Hip Syndrome: 7 Exercises For Your Clicking Hip

Snapping Hip Syndrome-Hip Pain: Toronto Downtown Chiropractor

Does raising your leg trigger your snapping hip?

Have you wondered if your snapping hip will cause you problems in the future?

Read on, and I will answer the main reasons why you have a snapping hip and show you 5 exercises to help.

3 Causes of Snapping Hip

#1 Iliotibial band

A tiny muscle that starts in the pelvis turns into a band running down the side of the thigh called the iliotibial band (ITB) which is the main problem. The ITB gets too tight with excessive movement of the hips. With enough tightness, the ITB starts to snap over the hip instead of smoothly gliding over it.

This is the cause of the vast majority of people’s snapping hips.   Most of you with iliotibial band tightness causing snapping hip will have tightness or pain over the hip bone on side of the upper thigh. The hip is not at the waist when we talk about anatomy.

If you are a runner, dancer, football player (soccer), American football player or involved with a lot of running you likely have a tight iliotibial band.  With overuse the muscle gets irritated, develops scar tissue and the scar tissue and muscle gets larger than it should. You could be prone to a tight iliotibial band if your hip bone is larger than it should be, or the angle of your hip is wrong, or if you had previous knee surgery for an unstable knee.[1]

Another cause of a tight and scarred  ITB is flat feet. For this problem simply wearing orthotics will help.

#2 Psoas Muscle & Iliacus Muscle

The Psoas and Iliacus muscles allow your hip to bend at the waist ie hip flexion.  The two muscles can get irritated from overuse as it moves over the pelvic bone. When irritated and scarred enough the muscles will snap deep inside and feel like it’s in your groin area.

#3 Hip Joint Cartilage Tear

An accident or trauma to your hip is the main cause of the tearing of the cartilage that covers the hip socket. The tearing of the cartilage causes a flap or little piece of floating cartilage in the hip. When you move your hip the flap or the little piece of cartilage acts like a wedge and causes your hip to lock up.

You might feel pain in your groin, side of the hip or in the buttock area.  

Exercises For Your Snapping Hip[1-4]

#1 Stretch Your Iliotibial Band (3 different stretches)

  • Standing ITB stretch
  • While standing cross the band leg behind the other leg.
  • Lean sideways away from the bad leg as far as you can go.
  • Foam Roll the ITB 
  • Go on your side roll the foam roll from your hip down to your knee (stay above your knee joint).
ITB Iliotibial band Foam Rolling- Toronto Downtown chiropractor
  • Seated figure 4 stretch
  • Sit down and cross the injured leg over the other leg.
  • Lean forward and you will feel it in the back and sides of the hip.

#2 Stretch Your Hip Flexors

How to Improve Posture- stretch Psoas: Toronto Chiropractic Clinic

#3 Stretch the Piriformis

  • Cross your bad side leg over the other knee.
  • Get a tennis ball, basketball or a medicine ball and sit on it with your buttock.
  • To treat the piriformis go lean at about a 45-degree angle.
  • Stop at each tender point and hold until each one is ironed out or feels less tender.

#4 Stretch the Gluteus Maximus

  • Do the same as stretch #3 the piriformis stretch except you don’t cross your leg.

#5 Stretch Gluteus medius and TFL

ITB Iliotibial band Foam Rolling- Toronto Downtown chiropractor
  • Lie on on your side- For your Gluteus medius stay in the hip area, For your ITB which you already did go lower down to your knee. (stay above your knee).
  • Put a tennis ball, medicine ball or foam roll underneath your waistbone. Start at belt level.
  • Stop at each tender point and hold until each one is ironed out or feels less tender.

#6 Stretch Your Adductors

Snapping Hip Syndrome-Foam Roll Adductors: Toronto Downtown Chiropractor
  • Bring out your bad leg.
  • Bend your other leg.
  • Put the foam roll just above the knee and put your weight on.
  • Stop at each tender point and hold until each one is ironed out or feels less tender.

#7  Strengthen Your Gluteus Medius

Snapping Hip Syndrome-Strentghtening gluteus medius: Toronto Downtown Chiropractor

Part I

  • Raise your leg up slightly behind your bottom leg
  • Slowly lower your leg down with a count of seven.
  • Do it 3 sets of 10

Part II

  • Raise your leg up slightly in front of your bottom leg
  • Slowly lower your leg down with a count of seven.
  • Do it 3 sets of 10

Will Snapping Hip Syndrome cause you problems in the future? If left for decades the abnormally tight muscles will cause changes in the movements of the hip eventually leading to earlier osteoarthritis. It’s time to prevent pain and stiffness now! Why don’t you do the exercises until the snapping goes away.

Tell us what you think in the comments below and like us on Facebook. This Toronto Downtown Chiropractor will answer all questions in the comments section.

References

 1.  Byrd JW. Snapping Hip. Oper Tech Sports Med. 2005: 13:46-54 2.  Jacobson T, Allen WC. Surgical correction of the snapping iliopsoas tendon. Am J Sports Med 1990; 18 (5): 470-4 3.  Gose JC, Schweizer P. Iliotibial Band Tightness. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 10(10):399-40 4.  Andres BM, Murrell GA. Treatment of Tendinopathy. What Works, What Does Not, and What is on the Horizon. Clin Orthop Relat Res. (2008) 466:1539-1554

 2. Jacobson T, Allen WC. Surgical correction of the snapping iliopsoas tendon. Am J Sports Med 1990; 18 (5): 470-4

3. Gose JC, Schweizer P. Iliotibial Band Tightness. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 10(10):399-407

4.Andres BM, Murrell GA. Treatment of Tendinopathy. What Works, What Does Not, and What is on the Horizon. Clin Orthop Relat Res. (2008) 466:1539-1554

Leave a Reply

  • Thanks for these exercises. The symptoms of hip snapping seems to be what I am experiencing. All of the above exercises are helping and Im hoping the snap will go away completely.

  • Hi Dr. Ken, This is a great article which helps me to identify the problem I am having. Popping is being felt deep within the buttock over top of the femur, as well as in the outer knee on same side of body. No pain, just popping with certain movements. When I lie on my back and raise my right leg it pops (hip), yet just rotating the leg inward will stop the popping when I raise and lower the leg. I have a 65 year old flexible body, and I thought I was over stretching the hips to cause the popping, but the knee pops as well. I was told that there is extra movement in the knee as well from an old injury so I have ordered a knee brace. IT band is very tight when I attempt to roll it. Any direction you can point me in would be helpful, as well as if I should try these exercises that you suggest. Thank you for your time and expertise. I did not know that chiropractors could help with knee or hip problems!

    • Post
      Author

      Thanks for your question, Karen. I appreciate your interest. Yes, a chiropractor can help with knee, hip, ankle or any other joint, muscle, ligament and nerve problems. I would say that you should try the exercises first without the brace and strengthen up the knee as well unless the knee is considered unstable. Simply a little looser is something you can make up for with strength and stability exercises for your knee. If on the other hand, you are doing sports like volleyball basketball, skiing where there is twisting of the knee wearing the brace in those sports to prevent injury and only during the sport would be appropriate from experience. However, I don’t have your history and exam results. Always get the recommendation of someone that can examine you.

      Hope that helps. The above is an opinion and not a recommendation. If you have any more questions I will do my best for you.

  • Hi dr Nakamura. I have a consistent problem with my snapping hip. Im 30 year old, and when I was 17 I had a knee surgery. I have noticed that something is clicking in my hip, but there was no pain. I quit football, and started with running. For past 3-4 years Im all into running, but lately the pain in my hip is getting worse. It’s there all over the day. I take 4-5 days without running, but when I walk, or after stairs, bicycling, the pain is just coming back. Now i feel pain and numbness in hip area, and down the leg. Also, Im working at desk, including 8 hours of sitting in chair. I have visited orthopedic and he told me to avoid activities that triggers it, but its only when Im in bed. And he mentioned even a surgery including grinding my hip, to make space for my ITD. Please, any advice.

    • Post
      Author

      Thanks for your question Nermin. Since you have numbness the problem is more likely nerve related which usually comes from the lower back. You need to see the best physiotherapist or best chiropractor in your area. This way they can diagnose the problem and give you the appropriate treatment. I am not so concerned about the clicking as I am the pain and numbness, which is more important from my point of view.

      Hope that helps your hip pain.

  • Hello Dr. Nakamura .Thank you so much for answering. My pain got litter but I just realize my right hip is tilted and the leg from the knee is not straight. It’s bent it bc of my condition job. I can’t straight it or stretch it. The bones from the lowest back right side is more outside and has a bump, which is from the tilted hip. So the problem with sciatica happened from sitting long time and using only the right leg pushing a pedal machine. Please any advise will be appreciated,what to do what doctor to see. Thank you so much Dr.Nakamura.

    • Post
      Author

      Thanks for your question Connie. Sounds like you have a structural imbalance with the joints and possibly some muscles related to your work. I recommend you see a chiropractor to address this as well as giving you specific exercises based on your history and exam.

      Hope that helps your snapping hip.

  • Dr. Ken,
    I’ve been lifting weights for two years and ever since then my hip began snapping and feeling pain. I was diagnosed with hip snapping syndrome. I’ve been visiting a PT once a week for follow up. I would do the exercises they instructed me to do every day. Although the pain is gone the snapping is still there. I have seen not much of an improvement of the snapping. Any advice??

    • Post
      Author

      Thanks for your question Yoshiko. You can try the exercises here as they will likely be different. Keep in mind I haven’t had a chance to examine you so I am giving you an opinion and not a recommendation.

      Hope that helps your snapping hip syndrome.

  • I was diagnosed with sciatica. Did PT. it was working a little for pain but still My top thigh is snapping , shorter leg and pain. Plseeeee any advise

    • Post
      Author

      Thanks for your question Connie. Your biggest concern is sciatica and not the snapping hip I believe. You need to tell me a lot more about your sciatica, what makes it worse and what makes it better.

      Good luck for now with your sciatica and snapping hip.

  • I am trying to improve my snapping hip syndrome. There is a lot of pain in the pelvic area. I want to
    achieve a pain free feeling without having surgery.

    • Post
      Author

      Thanks for your question Carnelia. While your problem may be snapping hip, keep in mind self diagnosis may lead you down the wrong path. It can be coming from a loose sacroiliac joint or a labral tear. All will cause clicking. If the snapping is due to a “snapping hip syndrome” the exercises will likely help if you are consistent. If not you need to have someone examine you. This is an opinion not a recommendation.

      Hope that helps your snapping hip syndrome.

  • Dr. Ken,
    Thank you for sharing the information. Your blog is very helpful.
    I have a couple of questions regarding this article.
    Do we just stretch and do muscle strenthening on the bad side and leave out the normal side?
    Secondly, my bad leg is slightly shorter than the other leg when I sit with both leg in front; and the bad side’s foot turn more outside than the other when laying down (as you mentioned in the Periformis article). Should I do all exercises from both articles, or is it enough just following exercises above?
    Thanks again, Olivia.

  • I’m not sure if what I have is hip snapping. I have the majority of hip snapping while sitting down in an office chair with wheels. I slide the chair between 2 separate computers (left and right) at work. When I get up I feel sudden weakness in my hip and this happens for both from getting up from a seated position or sometimes from walking. I spent 13 years in the army. Thanks!!

    • Post
      Author

      Thanks for your question Erica. Sounds like you have snapping hip. You also might have wear and tear in the hip joint or the sacroiliac joints looseness. Try the exercises for a month. If that helps great. If it doesn’t help you likely have hip joint wear and tear or sacroiliac joint problems.

      So try the exercises for a month first.

      Hope that helps your snapping hip syndrome.

    • Post
      Author

      Thanks for your comment Imamaniim. Doing any exercises 2-3 times will not get you better. Why don’t try and do it consistently everyday for a month than let me know how you are feeling.

      Hope that helps your snapping hip.

    • Post
      Author

      Thanks for your comment Imamaniim. You can do these exercises without a warm up. They are pretty gentle and not so dynamic so no warm is necessary. If you are a little hesitant though you can do 10 squats to get things moving and warmed up.

      Hope that helps your snapping hip.

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img 9195 4 depositphotos bgremover
Dr. Ken is an award-winning chiropractor in downtown Toronto, serving a diverse clientele. He is an avid athlete, representing Ontario in the Canadian Judo Championships, and has completed the Toronto Marathon twice. Dr. Ken specializes in in treating his patients using the C3 Program.