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If you only have time for one hip exercise, do leg lifts. If you’ve ever felt a little wobbly as you stand up or noticed some stiffness in your hips after a long day, you’re not alone. As we

age, our hips may not seem as flexible or responsive as they used to be. Your hips are supported by a complex group of muscles, including your glutes and hip flexors, that play a unique

role in helping you move and stay balanced, says Karl B. Fields, M.D., a sports medicine and family medicine physician at Cone Health in Greensboro, North Carolina. But there’s one muscle

group that often gets overlooked, Fields says: your hip abductors. Located on the outside of your hips, these muscles help stabilize your pelvis and keep you steady when you walk, stand or

climb stairs. If your hip abductors are weak or aren’t working properly, it can lead to pain in and around your hips, as well as discomfort in your knee, ankle or shin. “It’s the most common

muscle weakness I see in older people,” Fields says. Hip abductors weaken because we don’t often use them in daily activities, Fields explains. Unless you play a sport with side-to-side

movements like soccer, tennis or pickleball, you are probably neglecting your hip abductors. Research shows that strengthening your hip abductors can make a difference in how you feel and

move every day. One 2023 systematic review analyzed 59 studies involving 2,144 adults and found that hip abductor strength is critical for balance and mobility function, regardless of age,

according to the study published in the _Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation._ Another 2022 meta-analysis published in _BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders___ focused specifically on

patients with knee osteoarthritis and showed that hip abductor exercises significantly reduced knee pain and improved overall function. If you only have time for one hip abductor exercise,

Fields recommends leg lifts because they directly target your hip abductor muscles. Start with standing leg lifts and progress to lateral leg lifts, where you do the exercise while lying on

your side, which requires you to work against gravity. Remember to talk to your doctor before beginning any new exercise routine. And if you feel pain with movement, stop and consult with a

health care provider or physical therapist.