What You Need to Know About Hip Bursitis

If you’ve worked in the fitness & health industry for some time there’s no doubt you’ll encounter someone with a body related ailment. It’s become far too common these days to meet someone who has lower back, neck, or even shoulder problems. You may even get someone who has a hip related problem. One of the most common hip related problems is hip bursitis.

If you have a client who has, or develops, hip bursitis just know that they’ll be feeling pain while moving around.  They may require medication, rehab sessions, or surgery if symptoms become unbearable. It all stems from the bursae; small, jelly-like sacs that contain liquid that are located throughout your body. They’re positioned between bones and soft tissue, and act like cushions to help reduce friction.

The problem arises when “bursitis”, think inflammation, affects the bursae. Here are some examples of areas in your body that have bursae that could become inflamed:

1. Shoulders
2. Elbows
3. Hips
4. Knees
5. Heels.

The two major bursae in the hip area can be become irritated and inflamed. The two areas that can be affected are as follows: the bony point of the hip bone called the greater trochanter, which when inflamed is called the tronchanteric bursitis, and the bursa located at the illopsoas, think groin area, of the hip. Bursitis of the illopsoas is less common than the former area, but both would be treated in a similar fashion.

This may seem like some heavy stuff, so let me express this before we continue: Every hip pain is not bursitis. So, that pain in the hip isn’t necessarily related to this problem.  If, however, you start feeling achiness and stiffness, swelling and color change, and it feels painful when you move or press on it, then you definitely need to see someone about it. If it gets worse or feels disabling and remains for more than a few weeks then it may be past due you see your doctor. Don’t wait till this happens.

If you’re concerned about yourself or a client seek a physician but don’t self-diagnose yourself and freak out later. If you notice there’s a fever, sharp and shooting pain particularly when exercising then stop and schedule some time with your physician at once. You’re never too fit to be afflicted by hip bursitis, but it’s most common in middle aged to elderly people and women.

Let’s say you can’t see a physician right away but you need to handle the pain, what do you do? The best ways to treat inflammation are to use antibiotics for inflammation and the R.I.C.E principle (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation). Let’s emphasize the rest part, whoever has it need to take it easy. This is serious stuff and it isn’t something to take lightly. If there’s suspicion of a problem, take time off and get it checked out before it becomes worse, don’t keep training until you see symptoms or it’ll be too late.

You’re probably wondering how to prevent this issue in the first place, right? If you want to prevent inflammation or decrease the chances of it happening, exercise regularly in proper form and body alignment. You’ll also want to consider strengthening the muscles around the joints and give up activities that cause pain in the areas. Lastly, watch for prolonged bouts of sitting and if you’re job requires this or other strenuous activities make the necessary changes to ensure your safety.

When it boils down to it, it’s all about your lifestyle; your habits and your body alignment. The only way you can care against this is by changing things up. Do you shuffle your feet? Sit for hours a day? Exercise in poor form or perform dangerous techniques? Consider changing these activities, or the way you perform them, for safer ones, your hips will love you for it.

If you’re an NPI-Certified Posture Specialist™ you already know about body alignment, how to adjust exercises to protect your body, and so much more. If you need to learn more about similar problems to the one mentioned above or you’re now interested in body alignment, check out our Free posture e-book: “Beginner's Guide to Posture Analysis and Correction”. This resource will help you get started on assessing and fixing body alignment.

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