Flexibility Easy Physical Therapy Thigh Muscle Stretches By Laura Inverarity, DO Laura Inverarity, PT, DO, is a current board-certified anesthesiologist and former physical therapist. Learn about our editorial process Laura Inverarity, DO Reviewed by Reviewed by Michael Lau, PT, DPT on August 19, 2019 facebook twitter linkedin instagram Michael Lau, PT, DPT, CSCS, is a licensed physical therapist, strength and conditioning coach, and co-founder of The Prehab Guys. Learn about our Review Board Michael Lau, PT, DPT Updated on August 05, 2020 Print The thigh describes the area of your leg above the knee joint and below the hip. These muscles help support your knee and hip joints and help move your femur (thigh bone) and tibia (shin bone). Sometimes, these muscles become tight after injury or a period of inactivity and immobilization. Five large muscle groups make up the thigh region: Abductors: (like your gluteal muscles) Move the legs apart Adductors: Bring the legs together Hamstrings: Bend the knee and extend the hip backward Hip flexors: Raise the leg or knee toward the torso Quadriceps: Straighten the knee and bend the hip up 1:19 Watch Now: 3 Easy Ways to Stretch Your Thighs The muscles of the thigh may become tight due to the extended amount of time most people spend in the seated position during the workday. For this reason, it is important to stretch the thigh muscles frequently. A few sessions with a physical therapist can help you determine which exercises are best for stretching your thighs. Let's review three easy stretches that target the hip flexor, hamstring, and adductor muscle groups. Your local physical therapist may have you perform these stretches a few times a day as part of your home exercise program. Before starting this or any other exercise program, you should check with your doctor to be sure that exercising is safe for you to do. 1 Hip Flexor Stretch Verywell / Ben Goldstein The hip flexors connect your hip bones to your leg bones. Tightness here may be one cause of pelvic or lower back pain. Here's how you stretch your hip flexors: Stand upright. Step forward with your right leg. Slowly bend your right knee keeping your left leg straight. Continue to bend your right knee until a gentle stretch is felt on top of the thigh. Avoid arching the back as you bend into your front leg. Hold for five seconds. Return to the start position. Repeat steps 1 to 7 five more times. Perform with left leg forward. Remember to stop the stretch if it causes increased pain. Exercises to Balance Hip Flexors and Abdominal Muscles 2 Standing Hamstring Stretch Verywell / Ben Goldstein Your hamstrings run down the back of your thigh from you hip to the back of your knee. Here is how to stretch them: Stand upright. Bend over and attempt to touch your toes while keeping your knees straight. Continue until a gentle stretch is felt behind the knees. Hold for 15 to 30 seconds. Return to the start position. Repeat steps 1 to 5 five more times. Stop this stretch if you feel any low back pain or increasd pain in your hamstrings. 5 Simple Stretches for Tight Hamstrings 3 Adductor Stretch Verywell / Ben Goldstein Your adductor muscles run from the inner side of your hip to the inner side of your knee. They help to pull your thighs together. Here is how you stretch them: Stand upright. Spread your legs shoulder-distance apart. Slowly lean to your right while bending your right knee. Keep your left leg straight. Continue until a gentle stretch is felt in your inner left thigh. Hold for five seconds. Return to the start position. Repeat steps 1 to 6 five more times. Perform this again, leaning to the left. When stretching, a comfortable pull should be felt. Stop if you feel any pain. By stretching your muscles a bit each day, you can have a positive effect on your overall mobility. How to Get the Most Benefits From Stretching Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Get exercise tips to make your workouts less work and more fun. Sign Up You're in! Thank you, {{form.email}}, for signing up. There was an error. Please try again. What are your concerns? Other Inaccurate Hard to Understand Submit Article Sources Verywell Fit uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Mackenzie K, Such E, Norman P, Goyder E. Sitting less at work: A qualitative study of barriers and enablers in organisations of different size and sector. BMC Public Health. 2019;19(1):884. doi:10.1186/s12889-019-7148-8