I picked up running a few months ago as my main form of cardio. I've been doing HIIT twice a week plus a day of easier running and for the most part it's been going great. Only problem is that the area around the joint where my left leg meets my hip has been getting sore after my runs. I don't think I have terrible running form so I'm not sure what exactly is causing it, but it's starting to interfere with other things like ab workouts. I can't really do any lower ab exercises since most of those require lifting the legs and rotating around that joint. I tried doing reverse crunches instead of things like scissors and leg lifts since it doesn't involve as much rotation, but instead of pain and popping in the joint I get a bad muscle cramp in the same area when I try to do these.

Does anyone have any ideas? I'm really enjoying the running and don't want to give it up, but I don't want it to continue to interfere with other things or develop into something worse.

hey, i've taken up a bit of running myself, and from what i've read here and there, it could simply just be either-

1) you have tight hip flexors, or a tight Iliotibal Band (ITB ), which is normal for runners. the ITB is the area on the outside of your thigh. you can try stretching either. for the hip- you can do "runner's stretch" from yoga. and for the ITB- cross one foot in front of the other while standing, flex the glute of the back foot side, and lean toward the front foot side (hope that made sense!).

2) the other thing i've read is that it could be that your hips are weak (i think mine are). which they say can lead to pains in your knees and ankles as well. try moves like miliary march (from plyo) and lifts to the sides to strengthen the hips.

3) one last thing that gets overlooked, is the terrain you're actually running on. if you're running on a treadmill, igonre this...haha. but if you're running on a road or trail, be careful of the camber of the surface (if it slopes to the left or right at all). that could cause you to unevenly shift your gait as you run, and cause imbalances in your muslces- and eventually lead to aches/pains.

i've found runner's world to have a plethora of useful information. thats where i got most of my info.

good luck!

Thanks Ben.

The problem is more toward the inside of the very top of my thigh. When I do leg raises with legs straight it causes the area to pop and hurt a bit. When flexing the upper legs toward the torso with knees bent (like with reverse crunches) the area gets cramped up almost immediately and I have to stop. I don't have any problems on the outside of the thigh so it's probably not affecting the ITB.

Also, I stopped running outside for the most part because the uneven terrain wasn't feeling too good on my legs, so now I'm doing mostly treadmill.

The IT band runs from the hip to the knee, so pain at either insert point is certainly possible. After my hike on Vermont's Long Trail last year, both my left hip and knee were extremely irritated. I've found the Yoga X routine to be pretty helpful in improving/relieving the symptoms. Another thing to try is a foam roller. Available at most sporting goods stores (or even Target or Walmart), you lay that foam tube down and roll the outside of your thigh on it - from hip to knee. Hurts! But it seems to work. I use my roller as part of my pre-workout routine now...loosen up those ligaments.