What are the 3 steps to fix hip pinching in a squat?

The 3 steps are: 1) Assess - figure out what movements are painful and what has changed recently in your training. 2) Calm it down - modify your squat temporarily using variations like box squats or heel elevation that require less hip flexion. 3) Build it up - target the hip flexors with progressive loading exercises and address any underlying deficits in mobility or strength.

What squat variations are safe when I have hip pain?

Box squats and heel-elevated squats are great options because they require less hip flexion, which reduces stress on the irritated tissues. If any squat variation causes pain, a split squat or other single leg movement may be a better starting point.

What hip flexor exercises help with hip pinching?

Exercises that help build hip flexor capacity include banded hip flexion, hip hurdles, incline bench hip flexor raises, KB hip flexor lifts to a box, and eccentric hip flexor sit-ups. The specific approach should be personalized based on your symptoms, history, and goals.

Should I stop squatting if my hips hurt?

No - completely stopping is usually not the answer. The goal is to find squat variations that keep symptoms below threshold, maintain training, and gradually build back up. Modifying rather than stopping is almost always the better approach.

How to Fix Hip Pinching in a Squat: 3 Steps That Actually Work (Part 2)

Mendelssohn Angelo Casanas
4 days ago
5 min read

About the Author: Hannah Breal, PT, DPT is the co-owner of Made 2 Move Physical Therapy in Charleston and Charlotte. She helps athletes and active adults rebuild strength, mobility, and confidence so they can move pain-free for life.

Made 2 Move Physical Therapy – Charleston | Daniel Island | Mount Pleasant | Charlotte

Hips feel pinchy in the bottom of a squat?

In last week's blog, I explained why constantly stretching your hip flexors might not be the answer to that tight, pinchy feeling in the front of your hips in the bottom of a squat.

Today, I'll outline the 3 things you SHOULD do instead of stretching your hips into oblivion, and I'll give you some exercises that have helped our patients!

Painful or pinchy hips can be scary and frustrating, but this pain often isn't a sign of something mega-serious.

It's also usually not because something is actually "tight" or shortened or permanently injured.

It's most likely due to irritated or relatively-overloaded tissues.

So instead of freaking out, scheduling an MRI, and swearing to never squat again, here's what we're going to do:

Step 1: Assess

There's a lot of factors that lead to angry or sensitive hips.

Pain is just the sign of a problem.

Heel elevated squat variation to reduce hip flexion and decrease hip pinching symptoms

A sign that something needs to change.

We have to figure out what that is so we can solve it for good.

This is the part where I tell you it's going to look different for everyone, because I wouldn't be a good physical therapist if I sat here and gave you a one-size-fits-all solution.

Your pain, body, anatomy, and goals are unique, so while the overall approach might look similar patient-to-patient, the way we do things needs to be very personalized to you.

If you're trying to self-assess, start by asking yourself these questions:

What movements are painful? Are these movements related to position, load, or both? (for example, experiencing pain with an air squat vs pain with a 135# barbell squat)
What has your workout routine looked like in the last 3-4 weeks? Have there been any recent changes? Are you doing anything more than usual?
Are there any lower body movements that you can do without pain?

Step 2: Calm It Down

A huge part of solving this problem involves offloading angry tissues and decreasing symptoms.

The key is that it's temporary and relative - we DON'T want to take all the stress or load away forever.

We need to lower the dose right now.

Don't take a complete break from squats, running, or all lower body movements.

Find ways to train that keep symptoms sub-threshold.

For a Squat - Change Your Stance or Adjust Depth:

box squat
elevating your heels
you can do both of those with dumbbells, a barbell, KB, your dog, etc

THIS IS LOW KEY SLEPT ON.

The reason this works? These squat variations require LESS hip flexion, so you can still squat and load your legs, without getting into those irritated parts of the movement. If any squat is too much right now, we can look at a split squat or other single leg movement.

For a Deadlift:

try an RDL
a block pull
or a trap bar deadlift

I also like to include some non-irritating hip mobility work, like a posterior capsule stretch, to open up more room in the joint. This usually isn't the full solution, but it's a helpful addition to the overall plan.

TBH, I'm not a huge fan of banded hip mobilizations - not because I think they're bad for you, but because personally they just don't do much for me. If doing those helps you squat with less pain, by all means.

This phase is all about:

decreasing symptoms
offloading hips from stress (slightly lowering the dose - not stopping all hip movements)
making small adjustments and modifications

Step 3: Build It Up

I'm going to break this into a Part A & Part B:

A. Improve Deficits

Remember that full assessment we did? That's going to come in handy now.

The real underlying problem may be overload, weakness, lack of hip, knee, or ankle mobility, or something else. We don't know unless we do a full assessment.

It also might simply be a workout or running plan that ramped up too fast (this is very common). A huge part of this is guiding your workouts/running week to week to make sure you fully return to activities without pain.

B. Target the Hip Flexors

If you're getting front-of-hip pinchy symptoms in the bottom of a squat, it's highly likely that your hips are irritated from too much load.

If we want to solve it, we need our hips to be able to handle that load.

I like adding in specific hip-flexor exercises here - here are some super simple examples we've used with patients:

Banded Hip Flexion
Hip Hurdles
Incline Bench Hip Flexor Raise
KB Hip Flexor Lifts to Box
Eccentric Hip Flexor Sit Up

Disclaimer: the way you do these will depend on YOUR symptoms, experience, body, goals... etc. We personalize these for each patient!

Summary

Hip pain doesn't always mean something is torn or even that you have "tight" hip flexors, so next time your hip feels tight, pinchy, or cranky, don't just default to stretching, spending hours on a foam roller, or spiraling into worst-case scenarios.

aaand if you've got a friend who always complains about their tight hips, send this their way.

They'll thank you later when their squats feel like butter again!

Still dealing with hip pain and not sure where to start? Our team at Made 2 Move Physical Therapy works one-on-one with active adults and athletes across Daniel Island, Downtown Charleston, and Charlotte to figure out what's actually going on - and build a plan that gets you back to squatting without pain.

Learn how we work or hear from our patients who've been exactly where you are.

If You’re in Charleston, Daniel Island, Charlotte, or Mount Pleasant…

At Made 2 Move Physical Therapy, we help active adults and athletes and recreational athletes get out of pain and keep doing what they love.

We have three convenient locations:

Our team of DPTs can help you move, play, and live without limitations.

👉 Schedule an Evaluation

👉 Read Our Success Stories

👉 Learn more about physical therapy for runners

Book Your Appointment

Want to understand your body better, move with confidence, and stay active for life?

I write a weekly letter on pain, movement, and health — sharing how I actually think about injuries, training, and taking care of your body (without the fear-based nonsense).

If this sounds helpful, you can sign up to get the letters here.

Written by Hannah Breal, PT, DPT, Co-Owner of Made 2 Move Physical Therapy, helping Charleston and Charlotte move pain-free for life.