What? You don’t see them?
There we go! Now they’re peaking out a bit!
I’m a little over a week into my Green Giant Veg Pledge mission and, after a veggie-filled morning snack (red pepper + hummus), I wanted to keep the momentum going this afternoon. I prepared a batch of roasted Brussels sprouts and roasted green beans by tossing the vegetables in olive oil and roasting them at 450 for about 15 minutes (higher heat than normal because I was impatient).
On top of the vegetables, I placed two dippy eggs which I enjoyed along with a whole wheat waffle topped with muenster cheese.
If you love dippy eggs and roasted vegetables, I have a feeling this combination will be right up your alley. The yolks act as a pseudo-sauce over the vegetables and taste fantastic!
I rounded out the meal with a little unsweetened applesauce.
Now let’s discuss pain and stretching.
Doesn’t that sound like fun?
Hip Stretches
Every time I mention that I previously struggled with some intense hip pain in the form of hip bursitis on the blog, I inevitably receive comments and emails asking me about the stretches I now do to try to proactively prevent hip pain.
Apparently the hips give a lot of us issues, huh!?
I first experienced hip pain in college and saw a doctor on campus. I was prescribed steroids and told not to run or walk a lot (if I could help it) or do any kind of exercise that involved my hips for months. After about a month I was so, so unhappy. The pain was still very much there. I couldn’t even go for a walk without pain and made an appointment to see a different doctor – one who specialized in sports medicine and is the doctor for a bunch of the players from the Tampa Bay Bucs football team.
He took me off the steroids and taught me a ton of different hip stretches. Stretching made a huge difference for me. I never really knew how to target my hips and deeply stretch them out, so taking care to do this really improved my pain.
(Side note: If you’re currently struggling with an injury or roadblock in your fitness routine, you may enjoy this previous post: Staying Positive Through an Exercise Setback.)
I still get a dull pain in my hips when I run longer distances (or lay on my side all night in bed), but it’s not every time and it’s not really that bad. I take a lot of care to stretch my hips and give them a lot of attention on days when I run.
I also stretch my hips randomly when I’m hanging out at home watching TV or when I feel a little tight. Hip stretches feel so good to me and I always feel better after taking the time to give my hips a little extra love.
Since some of you seemed interested in my favorite hip stretches, I compiled a bunch of my favorites below. Each stretch is hyperlinked above the picture so you may click on the link for a more detailed description of the stretch.
For those of you who couldn’t care less about hip stretches, I inserted one faux-stretch so you can play a rousing game of “Can You Spot the Imposter?”
- Spread Eagle
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Um…this is too creepy because i was just diagnosed with hip bursitis in both of my hips today! How did I not know that you had experienced this before?? I would have emailed you! Needless to say I have to start doing lots of icing to help reduce the inflammation and see a PT a few times. The doc didn’t tell me to stop working out though, but I’m wondering if I should take it down a notch?
This couldn’t have come at a better time! I’ve been debating running a half marathon but after running 7 miles Monday my hip has been so sore! No issues with 6 miles last week which really got me excited to take this serious. I am missing half of those stretches from my current hip stretch routine though, so hopefully they will be the answer! Thank you!
Perfect timing with this post! I have been having some hip pain for the first time ever, and I am training for my second half marathon, so I can not get injured now! Today was my first pain free run in over a week (after I did your recommended stretches). Thank you Julie!
I am always so envious of your dippy eggs! They look so perfect! I love ordering “over easy” when I have breakfast out but can’t seem to manage making them on my own no matter how hard I try. Have any secrets you would care to share?
I love Pigeon pose! Spread Eagle comes in a close second, though I don’t do it with quite as much finesse as Sadie. 🙂
Funny that you posted this because I had hip surgery 4 weeks ago! I had a labral tear in my hip. Similar to a meniscus tear in the knee. After seeing several doctors and physical therapist, nine months later they finally figured it out. I’m now onto recovery! Come to find out it’s a really common injury.
man did I need this today! I have issues with long runs and hips, and can get lazy about stretching…thanks for the motivation 🙂
and for the idea of eggs for dinner!
Sadie really has no shame, huh? My Stella doesn’t either. She is quite the neighborhood flirt!
Love the one of the dog! That is so cute! Great stretches! I always have a hard time getting a good hip stretch! And that egg topped veggie bowl looks delicious! I’m going to have to try that some time!
I love the pigeon pose! It hurts so good!
This post could not have come at a better time! I’m upping my running for a race (I’m a boxer, not a runner, and while I can run, I have to train to cover any real distance) and whenever I train, I irritate my hip bursitis! I’m going to try these stretches, thank you SO MUCH!
i am a #1 believer in pigeon pose.. it is THE BEST stretch for my thighs and hips, especially after hard cardio workouts. PS: loving that spread eagle pose sadie!
Pigeon saved me when I started having out of the blue hip and ITB pain 3 weeks before my half marathon last winter. I’m a believer!
Ugh, I’m such a bad stretcher. I hate stretching, it’s so boring but yeah… when I feel like a stiff piece of wood I do regret not making the time to stretch enough…
Love the spread eagle btw, seems simple enough… haha!
I love Sadie’s strech pose. I mean this made my day. Thank you Julie! 🙂
I was diagnosed with bursitis in my right hip a month ago. It has really freaked me out and I have reduced my workouts. However, sometimes I am even more sore when I don’t workout. My doctor told me to continue working out. I have started adding stretching and icing after every run. It is feeling better. Thank you so much for this post. I really needed it!
That lunch looks delish.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!’n
I have some hip issues too… and I really should stretch more than I do! (I hate stretching! ugh!)
But I have never felt pain like I felt the first time I foam rolled my hips! Ahhhhh!
Julie,
Have you ever tried foam rolling? My boyfriend is a personal trainer and he swears by using a foam roller. You can use it before and after your work outs and it really helps with working your muscles out in order to relieve, alleviate and help get rid of pain all together!
First, thanks for linking one of the stretches to my blog. I had horrible hip issues and ended up having some pretty major hip surgery that I talk about on my blog. It’s an important topic for runners for sure!
Your dog Sadie is adorable, love the hilarious pic. And, I LOVE dippy eggs but have never tried them with veggies, thanks!
I hope you heal quickly and stay healthy!
You really should have a talk with Sadie about proper lady-like behavior! I mean…really! HA 🙂
Spread Eagle stretch.. man, I’ve been missing out! 😛
HAHA! Saddie’s spread eagle made me pee in my pants a little. So finny and I was not expecting it.
Your breakfast looks so good I just wrote myself a not to get ingredients to so I can make some tomorrow.
For those having hip pain, keep an eye on the level and type of pain! I thought I had bursitis for a year, and went to chiropractors and physiotherapists who agreed with me or had countless other theories.
I’m currently recovering from spinal surgery, since an MRI showed a schwannoma tumor in my spinal canal, which was pushing all my nerves in the cauda equina region to the side, making my left lower half very painful! Obviously, they’re rare, but it can happen!!
If you ever get increasing pain from which you can’t pinpoint its origin, please talk to a doctor about an MRI – I was too shy about pressing for one until it was really bad and I was in emerg. Surgery instantly got rid of my mystery pain!!
this is great because I barely got out of bed this morning. my hip is killing me after 3 long days of throwing darts. I think my professional darting career is flying out the window. maybe these stretches will help!!
Hi there superb blog! Does running a crack blog like this take a great deal of work?
I’ve no knowledge of programming however I had been hoping to start my own blog in the near future. Anyways, if you have any ideas or techniques for new blog owners please share. I know this is off subject but I simply wanted to ask. Many thanks!
Thank you so much for these. I stumbled across a few of your hip-themed posts via pinterest, and I’m so so glad I did. I was diagnosed last year with mild defects in both hips (I have something like a bone spur on the outside of each hip which restricts movement, rotation especially. Trying to rotate the hip causes sharp pain at first, then dull achy pain later- not good, since I’m a ballerina and literally live off of my ability to rotate my hips.) and spent 2 months in physical therapy to build up my rotator muscles. I was doing a lot better, even able to dance again, but I worked too much this summer and lost time on my workouts, so I regressed a lot and now I’m in pain again. But these feel so fantastic, and I can feel them helping already!!