This One Simple Move Can Help Release Tight Hips

Do you love or loathe leg day at the gym? If it’s the latter, tight hips may be why. Luckily, there’s an easy way to release tight hips, which can help you feel better while also improving your performance in the gym.

According to Charlee Atkins, C.S.C.S, the answer to all of your lower-body woes can be found in your hips. “The glutes are responsible for all movements at the hip and thigh,” Atkins says. “We’re talking standing up and sitting down, walking, going up steps — actions we do every day, all day.”

Grab a myofascial release ball and get ready to (rock and) roll

To release tight hips, you’ll need a myofascial release ball, but a lacrosse or tennis ball will work too. The ball helps mobilize the muscles in your hips and prepare them for action by warming them up. In doing so, the muscles send a message to the fibers to reset and realign.

Here’s how:

1. Find an open spot to stretch. A carpeted area in your home or a matt at the gym will work.
2. Lay down on your back and bend your knees.
3. Place the ball in your glute. This area is located in the top right and left corners of your “jean pockets.”
4. Roll your hips slowly side to side, moving over the ball. Make sure to avoid rolling over your tailbone.
5. Roll side to side until the ball in the at the edge of your hip. During this movement, open your knees so you are in clamshell position.
6. Roll for two to three minutes per side.