Squatting is one of the most natural movements the human body performs. Yet for a lot of people, dropping into a squat brings on a sharp pinch, a dull ache, or a deep stiffness right at the hip. If that’s happening to you, you’re not alone, and it’s worth understanding what might be going on before you push through the pain. Some common possibilities include:
1. Hip Impingement
One of the usual suspects behind hip pain during squats is something called femoroacetabular impingement, or FAI for short. In FAI, extra bone develops on the ball or socket of the hip joint, preventing the joint from moving as smoothly as it should.
When you squat deep, the front of your hip can literally bump into itself, causing a pinching sensation in the groin or front of the hip. FAI doesn’t always cause pain during everyday walking or standing.
It tends to show up specifically during deep flexion, which is exactly what a squat demands. If your pain feels like a sharp pinch at the bottom of your squat rather than a dull ache throughout, impingement is worth considering.
2. Tight Hip Flexors
Modern life involves a lot of sitting, which can contribute to tightness in the muscles at the front of your hip. When those hip flexors are tight, your body compensates during a squat by changing how your pelvis and lower back move.
This can create pain that feels like it’s coming from the hip joint itself, even though the root cause is muscular tightness rather than joint damage. This type of pain often improves with movement and stretching, whereas joint-related pain typically doesn’t respond as well to stretching alone.
3. Weak Glutes
When you squat, your glutes should be doing a lot of the work, stabilizing your hip and controlling how your femur moves in the socket. When those muscles are underactive or weak, other structures around the hip pick up the slack, including tendons and connective tissue that aren’t meant to handle that kind of load.
Over time, this can lead to irritation around the hip, particularly the outer hip and the tendons that attach near the greater trochanter, the bony point you can feel on the side of your hip.
4. Squat Depth and Technique
Not every hip is built to squat to the same depth. Hip socket depth, the angle of the femoral neck, and overall joint anatomy vary quite a bit from person to person. Someone with a naturally shallower hip socket may feel pinching or discomfort at a squat depth that feels fine to someone else.
Foot position also plays a role. If the stance is too narrow or the feet are pointed too far forward, the hip may be forced into a position that makes deep flexion uncomfortable. Sometimes, simply turning the toes out a little bit can relieve the pain immediately.
When to See a Professional
Occasional mild discomfort that improves with a warm-up isn’t usually cause for alarm. But a few signs mean it’s worth getting looked at, not just toughing it out:
- Sharp pain that keeps hitting the exact same spot in your squat
- Soreness that sticks around way longer than it should after your workout
- Clicking, catching, or locking feelings in the joint
- Any swelling around the hip
- Pain that’s been quietly getting worse over weeks or months
If any of that sounds familiar, a physical therapist or sports medicine doctor can take a real look, checking your range of motion, strength, and how you’re actually moving through the squat. From there, treatment could mean anything from mobility drills to glute strengthening, and sometimes imaging, if there’s a chance something structural like FAI or a labral tear is behind it.
The Bottom Line
Hip pain during squats can develop for several different reasons. Paying attention to when and how the pain occurs is the first step toward identifying the underlying cause. If the pain persists or worsens, getting a professional opinion beats guessing.
Consult our board-certified orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Mufaddal Gombera, MD, for chronic hip pain. Call us today to book your appointment.
