If you’ve hit perimenopause or menopause and suddenly your hips feel louder, tighter, crankier, or straight-up unreliable, you’re not imagining it. And you’re definitely not “just getting old.” What you’re feeling is a real physiological shift that changes how your joints absorb force, how your tissues repair, and how your muscles fire.
Hip labral tears are becoming increasingly common in active women navigating this phase of life, not because you’re doing something wrong, but because your body is moving through a transition that most training advice never accounts for.
Let’s break down what’s actually happening — and more importantly, how to support your hips so you can keep running, lifting, hiking, and moving the way you want to.
Why Menopause Changes the Way Your Hips Feel
Estrogen doesn’t just run your reproductive system. It supports connective tissue quality, collagen structure, cartilage integrity, bone density, hydration, and neuromuscular coordination. When estrogen fluctuates or declines, everything from your gait pattern to your pelvic stability can shift with it.
The labrum — that small ring of cartilage cushioning your hip socket — is especially sensitive to these changes. Lower estrogen reduces elasticity in connective tissue, making the labrum less forgiving when it’s repeatedly stressed through running, strength work, or even daily movement patterns. It doesn’t “bounce back” the way it did in your twenties and thirties. Micro-irritations that once healed quickly now linger.
Combine that with age-related changes in muscle mass (especially if strength training hasn’t been a consistent part of your routine), and your hips start absorbing forces your glutes and core were meant to handle. Over time, that uneven load can push the labrum past its threshold.
Your movement patterns shift too. When stabilizers like the glute med, deep core, and hip rotators aren’t firing well, smaller muscles compensate. Those compensations change how the femur tracks, how your pelvis rotates, and how pressure distributes inside the joint. Suddenly that “mysterious pinch” in the front of your hip has a much clearer story.
And if you add small changes in body composition, stress levels, sleep, or recovery — all common in peri/menopause — it amplifies everything.
What You Can Do to Protect (and Strengthen) Your Hips
The empowering piece? Your hips are responsive. They adapt beautifully when you give them the right combination of strength, mobility, and recovery. Menopause may change the rules, but you still hold the pen.
Strength training becomes non-negotiable
Building strength isn’t about aesthetics — it’s about joint preservation. Strong glutes stabilize the pelvis, strong hips distribute load, and a stable core keeps your stride efficient. Movements like deadlifts, step-ups, split squats, lateral work, and single-leg strength build the scaffolding that makes your hips feel supported again.
Mobility keeps the joint moving well
When things feel tight or sticky, it’s often a sign that the joint is being stabilized by tension instead of strength. Controlled mobility drills, CARs, and dynamic hip openers help keep the labrum from getting pinned or irritated by inefficient movement patterns.
Impact doesn’t need to disappear — it needs to be managed
You don’t have to quit running. You don’t have to avoid load. You simply need smarter progression and intentional rest. Runners do well mixing surfaces, adjusting intensity, and pairing run cycles with strength cycles so the hips stay resilient rather than overwhelmed.
Recovery matters more than it ever has
Your tissues heal slower now. That doesn’t mean you’re fragile — it means you need to give your body the time and resources to repair. Sleep, hydration, protein, electrolytes, and smart spacing between hard efforts all influence hip health. Supplements like creatine and collagen can help, but they only shine when paired with strength work and consistent recovery habits.
Getting Support That Fits This Stage of Life
Hip pain during or after menopause isn’t “normal.” It’s common — but that’s because women are rarely given tools to support their changing physiology. When you understand the mechanics, the hormones, and the training variables, everything becomes workable again. Strong hips are absolutely possible in this chapter. So is pain-free movement.
If you’re noticing pinching, deep joint ache, stiffness, or instability, don’t wait until it becomes a full-blown injury. You can rebuild function now and protect your hips for years to come.
And if you want a clear, supportive plan to follow, my Hip Health Blueprint was designed exactly for this season. It helps peri- and post-menopausal athletes rebuild strength, stability, mobility, and confidence inside their hips — without guesswork.
You don’t have to feel fragile. You don’t have to lose momentum. Your hips just need better support for the body you have today.
If your hips have been talking back lately, start with the Hip Health Blueprint, built specifically for peri- and menopausal athletes who want strong, stable, pain-free movement.