Groin Strain
Groin strains are common.
Groin strains are painful.
Come learn how to help treat and prevent them!
A hockey player patient once told me that the #1 injury in hockey is the groin strain. This didn’t come as too much of surprise after giving it some thought. When you skate on ice your hips are abducting, or going away from your body. This lengthens the hip adductor muscles (aka the groin muscles; aka the ones that bring your hips back towards the body). When you do this with great exertion and force over and over throughout a game, it is definitely subject to injury! Now, you don’t have to be a hockey player to get a groin strain. This injury is common among many people, young and old.
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So to dive into why you’re really reading this: how do we get rid of it? At Chiro CLE, we tackle it from a few different angles. We find and address potentially joint restrictions in the hip, low back, or even below in the knee or ankle. The soft tissue/muscles are then addressed using various techniques such as using myofascial release with the hands, instrument assisted soft tissue, using the Hypervolt massage gun, or even dry needling. Finally, the exercise portion. In the video below I show you a couple different stretches and exercises to treat the area yourself.
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First is the frog stretch. For this you’re on the ground with the knees as far away as possible from each other. The elbows are on the ground if mobility allows us, and if not we can come up on the hands. Keep that back as neutral as possible.
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We can also just do 1 side at a time with this stretch. Have one bend knee right under your hip, and kick the other one out to the side. Drop your butt back to your heel for about five seconds and feel the stretch.
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Another way to stretch the muscle is to lay on your back and use a band to assist with the stretch. Loop the band around your foot and take the leg out to the side nice and slow.
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Finally, the 4th stretch you can implement is called the Russian baby makers. A weird name, but it will really give these muscles a big stretch. Get into your squat position and drive those elbows into the insides of your thighs. Hold for 15-20 seconds
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Now for the exercise portion. We don’t just stretch injuries because we know that a tight muscle is a weak muscle, therefore we must strengthen it. So if the stretches feel good for you and provide some relief, great! Do them. But don’t stop there. I can’t emphasize this enough! Implementing the strengthening portion is the key to getting rid of and preventing groin strains!
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So the first one turns the frog stretch into an exercise. We get into the same position as the stretch, but now we drive the knees together without the body actually moving. Almost like there’s a towel under you and you’re trying to scrunch the towel together. This is an isometric way of strengthening the groin muscles, meaning we’re working the muscle without making it longer or shorter.
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The next exercise is side-lying leg lifts. This simple and underrated exercise will give a good burn to the inside of those thighs. Add a tempo to make it even more spicy. Laying on your side propped up on your elbow, lift the inside leg and hold for 3 seconds at the top, and descend back to the ground for 3 more seconds.
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Lastly, we show you an exercise called Copenhagen’s. There are beginner and advanced ways to perform this exercise - we show you both in the video below. The beginner way has the top knee resting on the bench, the more advanced way has the ankle resting on the bench. Both ways require us to be in a side plank, lifting the bottom leg off the ground. Focus on getting your hips into the air by driving the top leg into the bench. Focus on keeping the body in a straight line the entire time - this is easier said than done.
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So if you suffer from groin strains currently or have in the past, give these stretches and exercises a try. Getting the hip adductor muscles strong is a very effective way to get rid of and prevent these strains from occurring! And if it’s still being pesky? Come in to Chiro CLE and we can introduce some additional forms of treatment that you learned about above to the area!
