I Have Hip Pain After Increasing My Mileage

Hip pain that starts mild when you run but gets worse the longer you run can develop as repeated running strains and fatigues the muscles and tendons around your hip.

When your hip feels relatively comfortable at the beginning of a run but gradually becomes more painful, the timing of the pain is an important part of the pattern. Running repeatedly asks your hip flexors, glutes, and other muscles around the hip to work with every stride, and continued activity can irritate an area that is already being stressed.

As the muscles around your hip fatigue, they may not move as comfortably through each stride. The tendons and other tissues around the hip can also become increasingly irritated when the same activity continues, which helps explain why you may start with only mild pain and finish your run with a much more noticeable ache.

The Longer You Run, The More Your Hip Has To Work

Every stride adds another repetition for the muscles and tendons around your hip to handle.

Your hip flexors help bring your leg forward while your glutes help control and drive your stride. When you keep running despite an already irritated or tired hip, those tissues continue working through thousands of repeated movements, making the pain more noticeable as the run goes on.

Fatigue Makes The Pain Build During Your Run

As your hip tires, the same running motion can become harder for the area to handle comfortably.

Early in your run, the muscles around your hip may still feel capable of handling each stride without much trouble. As fatigue builds, the area has less reserve for repeated activity, so the discomfort can gradually increase rather than appearing all at once.

Why Your Hip Pain Keeps Building During Runs

Your hip has a hard time healing when blood flow and circulation are limited.

Tendons, ligaments, and other soft tissues naturally receive less blood supply than many other parts of the body. Because of this, they often take longer to heal after repeated stress or injury, leaving you more vulnerable to lingering pain and a cycle of reinjury.

When circulation through the area remains limited, injured tissues have a harder time receiving the vital oxygen and nutrients they need to repair and heal. This can leave your hip feeling stiff, tight, weak, or painful during everyday movement and activity.

What Can Help Your Hip Feel Better

Your hip starts feeling better when blood flow and circulation improve.

Chinese herbs have been used for centuries to promote healthy blood flow and circulation. Their medicinal properties help break up stagnant blood and fluids that remain trapped around injured tissues, interfering with circulation. As circulation improves, blood flows more freely through the area, allowing those tissues to receive the oxygen and nutrients they need to heal properly.

Topical herbal remedies made with these Chinese herbs can help relieve pain while improving blood flow and circulation to injured tissues. The right product depends on your symptoms and whether you're in the acute or chronic stage of recovery.

If you have pain, swelling, inflammation, or bruising, Acute Sinew Liniment helps relieve these symptoms by increasing circulation and dispersing stagnant blood and fluids around the injured area to speed recovery. During the acute stage of healing, getting circulation moving early allows injured tissues to receive the fresh blood, oxygen, and nutrients they need to repair and heal.

If your injured area is especially swollen, red, or warm to the touch after a recent injury or flare-up, Sinew Herbal Ice is also used to reduce swelling and inflammation while restoring normal circulation so you can quickly regain range of motion. While traditional ice is commonly used to reduce swelling, Sinew Herbal Ice acts as an ice alternative to reduce swelling and inflammation while also dispersing accumulated blood and fluids to speed the healing process.

If you no longer have swelling or inflammation, but still have pain, stiffness, weakness, or sensitivity in cold and damp weather, Chronic Sinew Liniment helps relieve these symptoms by strongly stimulating circulation and increasing blood supply to injured tendons and ligaments to promote their healing. This is especially important because tendons and ligaments naturally receive less blood supply, which is why chronic injuries can take longer to heal.

If you have residual pain and stiffness, or the area becomes more painful in cold weather, Sinew Injury Poultice is also used to significantly stimulate circulation to injured tendons and ligaments to further promote their healing. By strongly increasing circulation, it counteracts the reduced blood flow caused by cold weather that commonly aggravates chronic tendon and ligament injuries.

If you exercise, play sports, or do other strenuous activities, Sinew Sports Massage Oil warms and stimulates muscles for exertion and relieves muscle tightness and soreness after activity. Warming and preparing your muscles before activity can improve flexibility, enhance performance, and reduce the risk of injury.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my hip pain get worse the longer I run?

Your hip pain can build as repeated running fatigues and stresses the muscles and tendons around your hip.

Why does my hip feel better at the start of a run?

Your hip may feel better initially because the area has not yet accumulated the fatigue and repeated stress that develop as you continue running.

Should I keep running when my hip pain gets worse?

If your hip pain is steadily worsening during a run, stopping or reducing the activity can help avoid putting more stress on the painful area.

Can tight hip muscles make running pain worse?

Yes. Tight or fatigued hip muscles can make repeated running movements harder for the area to handle comfortably.

When should I have hip pain checked?

Persistent, severe, or worsening hip pain should be evaluated by a qualified healthcare professional, especially if it affects normal movement.

The information provided here is intended to help you better understand your symptoms and recovery, but it is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

Persistent, severe, or worsening symptoms should be evaluated by a qualified healthcare professional.