Stretches for hips

[michelle303]

I keep feeling a pull in my left hip when doing certain exercises like squats.

I've been using some YouTube videos for stretching out my hips properly but I was wondering if anyone here has struggled with this and has any stretches/tips to recommend?

Where is the pull?

My hips are the tightest muscles I have! Closely followed by hamstrings.

I do hip flexor stretches before/during/after certain weight lifting exercises (but not squats) and after running.

Two forms:

1. One knee on floor, other leg in front of you with foot flat on floor. Push through your bum to feel your hip stretch. You can extend the stretch by raising your back knee off the floor onto a thick book etc.
2. Face down, one leg bent with foot to bottom, held by same side hand. Again, do this with a thick book under your knee to really extend the stretch.

Ha, we're doing loads of hip opening in yoga at the moment, it's agony!

Is yoga an option? Look at pigeon /swan, frog, butterfly. We've been holding these poses (and variations) for (what feels like) a long time, concentrating on breathing to get deeper into them).

Hip flexor stretches good as mentioned above.

I'd make sure you're well warmed up as well.

Also the fire logs pose in yoga is ace - it has worked wonders for my awful tight hips...

The pull is in the left hip, and I can feel it when I'm doing leg exercises like squats.

They do have a yoga class at my gym which I can never make in time, hence the YouTube videos! Thank you for the tips guys, I'll give these a try.

Sounds like weak glutes and a posture in balance which isn't uncommon and is mostly how an injury will start to happen if this goes undressed for too long.
However you've got to a point where you're noticing it probably started with when you went heavier in your squats. To balance it out and help develop a more equal balance you need to be doing unilateral leg work for a while.

We did a good one today in yoga, a variation of pigeon pose for those with tight hips.
So you get into pigeon pose. Let's say your left leg is foreword and right leg straight behind you. Now line your left calf up so it's parallel with the top of your mat and perpendicular to your body. Let your left bum cheek/sit bones come down onto the floor. Bring your right knee out the the right hand side with the knee 90 degrees. Then lean forward like a proper pigeon stretch.