Here are 6 exercises, activities, and daily chores to avoid or limit if you're dealing with a mild hip labral tear and the useful alternatives to consider.
Repetitive hip joint movements tend to stress the labrum and further aggravate a labral tear.
These are general guidelines, and the specific activities to avoid and necessary treatments will depend on the severity of your tear and your doctor's or treating clinician’s recommendations.
1. Avoid high-impact activities and sports
Several high-impact sports increase stress on the hip labrum due to repetitive pounding movements and rapid directional changes.
Sports that increase stress on the hip labrum include basketball, soccer, running, tennis, and squash.
What to do instead: Engage in low-impact aerobic activities that place minimal stress on the hip joint and labrum. Low-impact options include walking, stationary biking, swimming, water therapy, and the elliptical machine.
2. Avoid strengthening exercises that require deep hip bends
Strengthening exercises that involve deep flexion (forward bending) of the hips while in a standing or squatting position place significant strain on the labrum. Examples of these exercises include:
- Deep or full squats with or without weights
- Lunge exercise with weights
- Specific yoga poses, like the garland pose or plow pose (inverted yoga pose to open and stretch the mid and upper back)
What to do instead: Strengthen the muscles around your hip without stressing the labrum by performing the exercise in a neutral (lying down) position, such as the bridge exercise or single leg bridge or doing the horizontal squat stretch.
3. Avoid activities with repetitive hip rotation
Repetitive twisting motions at the hip’s ball and socket joint increase friction on the labrum, further irritating the labral tear and increasing inflammation.
- Hip-twisting sports to avoid include:
- Ballet
- Certain golf swings (especially with a driver)
- Martial arts techniques that involve hip rotation while punching or blocking
- Hip-twisting everyday activities to minimize or avoid include:
- Getting in and out of a car
- Reaching for something behind you by twisting your spine and hip
What to do instead: Modify your technique to reduce hip movements, use lesser force, or temporarily switch to activities without hip rotation until your labrum heals.
4. Avoid deep stretching
Certain types of deep stretching routines force the hip into extreme positions and put excessive pressure on the labrum. Examples of deep stretches to avoid include:
- Bending at the waist to touch your toes
- Yoga poses that achieve maximum hip joint opening, such as the lizard and frog poses
- Bending the knees and bringing them toward the chest in a lying down position
What to do instead: Focus on gentle, controlled stretches, such as the standing hip flexor stretch or the standing inner thigh stretch. These stretches promote mobility and flexibility without exacerbating labral pain or injury.
See 5 Best Stretches and Exercises for Hip Labral Tears
5. Avoid prolonged sitting
When you sit for extended periods, your hip joints are in a continuously flexed (forward bent) position, leading to increased pressure on the labrum and surrounding structures.
In addition to avoiding sitting for prolonged periods, a few other things to limit or avoid when sitting include:
- Avoid slouching forward (bending your spine and bringing your head and shoulders in front)
- Avoid crossing your legs
- Avoid sitting on the floor by bending the knees and crossing the ankles close to the body in the “tailor’s position”
- Avoid sitting on hard surfaces
What to do instead:
Sit with supported posture: Sit in an ergonomic chair with both feet flat on the floor, and keep your knees bent at a 90-degree angle. Have your spine pushed up against the back of the chair, with the lower back (lumbar) curve supported with a lumbar roll or rolled-up towel, and your shoulders and head lined up straight above your spine.
Take movement breaks: Stand up and walk around every 20 to 30 minutes. Do a few gentle stretches to promote nourishing blood flow through your hips. Two easy stretches to do are a standing hip flexor stretch and standing hip abduction.
See What Causes Hip Pain While Sitting and How to Relieve It
6. Limit or avoid household chores and activities that stress the hip joint
Household activities that involve repetitive motions or awkward positions can cause or exacerbate labral pain in the hip. Common examples of such activities include:
- Vacuuming
- Lifting heavy laundry baskets
- Deep squatting while scrubbing floors or gardening
What to do instead: Here are a few ways to protect your hip labrum while still getting the work done:
- How to vacuum: Explore lighter vacuum cleaner options like a stick vacuum or a robotic vacuum. For a traditional-style vacuum, consider a central system where you only need to maneuver a lightweight hose.
- How to manage heavy loads of laundry: Delegate or break down heavy loads into smaller, more manageable ones.
- How to scrub floors or bathtubs: Use a microfiber mop with a long handle to limit bending and twisting. A bathtub scrubber with an extendable handle helps reach for tough spots.
- How to keep up with gardening chores: Invest in raised garden beds to eliminate the need for deep squatting. Use lightweight tools and consider a gardening stool with handles for easy kneeling and rising.
Whenever possible, split chores with a family member or hire cleaning services. Trade tasks that aggravate your hips for ones that are easier on your joints, like dusting or organizing shelves.
The ability to return to these activities and exercises depends on the severity of your labral tear and how well your hip responds to treatment and rehabilitation efforts.
Mild labral tears or inflamed labrums may heal with a combination of rest, non-surgical treatments, and activity modification. If a particular activity increases your hip labral pain, stop it immediately. Pushing through pain risks further aggravating the tear and delaying healing.
For concerning symptoms or worsening labral tear pain, consult a healthcare professional trained in musculoskeletal conditions for a full rehabilitation program that includes activities and postures to avoid. These specialists include physical therapists, physiatrists, chiropractors, orthopedic surgeons, and sports medicine doctors.
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