Why Does The Outside Of My Hip Hurt When I Run?

The outside of your hip hurts while you run because the muscles and tendons that stabilize your hip can become overworked, making every stride feel sore, tender, or increasingly painful.

You may first notice the pain on the outside of your hip a few minutes into your run instead of right away. It might feel like a dull ache at first, then become sharper during push-off, climbing hills, or whenever your leg supports your body weight. Even after you stop running, the area can stay sore when walking, climbing stairs, or lying on that side.

This often happens because the gluteal muscles and their tendons have been handling repeated impact without enough time to recover. As they become tighter and more sensitive, your hip may not absorb each stride as comfortably, causing the pain to return every time you head out for another run.

The Pain Builds As Your Run Goes On

You may start comfortably, then notice the outside of your hip becoming more painful with each mile.

Repeated impact can gradually fatigue the gluteal muscles that stabilize your pelvis. As they tire, the tendons attached to the outside of the hip have to work harder, making each step feel more uncomfortable than the one before.

The Hip Stays Tender Even After The Run Ends

You might notice the soreness doesn't disappear once you stop running.

The outside of your hip can remain tender when getting out of a chair, climbing stairs, or rolling onto that side in bed. This lingering soreness is a sign that the area is still recovering, so returning to hard running too quickly often brings the same pain back.

Why Your Hip Could Be Taking Longer To Heal

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

You may also find these commonly asked questions helpful.

Why does the outside of my hip only hurt when I run?

Running places repeated demand on the muscles and tendons along the outside of your hip, so pain often appears only during that activity.

Why does the pain get worse the longer I run?

As the supporting muscles become fatigued, they are less able to control your stride, allowing the painful area to become increasingly irritated.

Should I stop running if my outer hip hurts?

If the pain changes your running form, becomes severe, or keeps worsening, it is best to reduce activity until the area improves.

Can tight muscles cause pain on the outside of my hip?

Yes. Tight gluteal muscles and nearby structures can increase stress on the tendons, making the outside of the hip feel sore during running.

How long does outer hip pain from running take to recover?

Mild cases often improve with reduced training, mobility work, and gradual return to running, while persistent pain may take several weeks and should be assessed if it does not improve.

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.