You can test hip mobility at home using a handful of simple movements that reveal how well your hips move in every direction. A healthy adult hip typically flexes between 120 and 135 degrees (pulling the knee toward the chest) and extends 13 to 18 degrees behind the body, though these numbers shift with age and sex. Below are the most useful screens you can do on your own, along with clinical tests worth knowing if you’re working with a trainer or therapist.
Start With a Deep Squat Screen
The fastest way to get a general picture of your hip mobility is a deep bodyweight squat. Stand with feet roughly shoulder-width apart, toes pointed slightly outward, and slowly lower yourself as deep as you can go. You’re looking for two things: can you get your hip crease below your knees, and can you do it with your feet relatively straight ahead?
When hip mobility is limited, you’ll typically see one or more compensations. The knees cave inward because the hip can’t rotate externally enough to keep them tracking over the toes. The lower back rounds at the bottom of the squat because the hip can’t flex far enough, so the pelvis tucks under to steal extra range. Or you simply can’t reach full depth at all without lifting your heels off the ground. Any of these patterns suggests that hip mobility is a limiting factor and worth investigating further with the more targeted tests below.
The Thomas Test for Hip Flexor Tightness
Tight hip flexors are one of the most common mobility restrictions, especially if you sit for long stretches. The Thomas test isolates these muscles and tells you whether tightness is coming from the deeper, single-joint hip flexor (the iliopsoas) or the more superficial muscles that cross both the hip and knee (like the rectus femoris, part of your quadriceps).
To do a modified version at home, sit at the very end of a firm bed or sturdy table so your tailbone is right at the edge. Lie back and pull both knees to your chest, flattening your lower back against the surface. Then slowly lower one leg toward the table while keeping the other knee hugged tight to your chest.
Here’s how to read the results:
- Negative test (normal flexibility): The back of your thigh rests flat on the table and your knee bends to about 80 degrees. Your hip flexors have adequate length.
- Thigh floats above the table, knee stays bent: The deeper, single-joint hip flexor (iliopsoas) is tight. This is the muscle that connects your spine to your thigh bone.
- Thigh touches the table, but knee straightens out: The two-joint muscles are tight, most commonly the rectus femoris (front of the thigh). The deeper hip flexor is fine, but the quad is pulling the knee straight.
- Thigh floats AND knee straightens: Both groups are tight.
The most common mistake is letting your lower back arch off the surface. If your back lifts, it tilts your pelvis forward and makes tight hip flexors look normal, giving you a false “pass.” Keep that low back pinned down throughout the test.
Testing Internal and External Rotation
Hip rotation is often the first range of motion people lose, and it matters more than most realize. Limited internal rotation is linked to groin pain, lower back compensation, and difficulty with activities like changing direction while walking or running.
Sit on a chair or the edge of a bed with your knees bent at 90 degrees. To test internal rotation, keep your knee still and swing your foot outward (away from your midline). The shin acts like a pointer: the farther your foot swings out, the more internal rotation you have. Healthy adults typically have about 30 to 40 degrees here. Then swing the foot inward (across your midline) to test external rotation, where 40 to 50 degrees is a common range.
Compare side to side. A significant difference between your left and right hip, say more than 10 to 15 degrees, is more meaningful than hitting an exact number. Asymmetry often shows up before total range loss does, and it’s a useful early signal that one hip needs attention.
The 90/90 Position for Combined Rotation
This test challenges both internal and external rotation at the same time. Sit on the floor with one leg in front of you, bent 90 degrees at both the hip and knee (shin roughly parallel to your shoulders). Your back leg is also bent 90 degrees, positioned out to the side so that knee points away from you. The front hip is in external rotation while the back hip is in internal rotation.
In this position, notice whether you can sit upright with your torso tall, or whether you have to lean heavily onto your hands or tip to one side. Then switch sides. If you can sit comfortably on one side but struggle on the other, the tight side’s internal or external rotation (or both) is restricted. This test is popular in fitness and rehab settings because it gives you a quick, functional snapshot without any equipment.
The FABER Test for Joint Pain
While the tests above focus on range of motion, the FABER test adds a pain component that can flag deeper joint issues. FABER stands for Flexion, ABduction, and External Rotation.
Lie on your back and place the ankle of the leg you’re testing just above the opposite knee, creating a figure-four shape. Let the bent knee fall out to the side while keeping your opposite hip stable (you can have someone press gently on the opposite hip bone to prevent it from rolling). The test is positive if it reproduces your typical hip or groin pain. A pain-free test with good range is a reassuring sign that the joint itself is moving well.
The FADIR Test for Impingement
If you feel a pinching sensation deep in the front of your hip when you squat or bring your knee up high, the FADIR test can help identify whether impingement might be the cause. FADIR stands for Flexion, ADduction, and Internal Rotation.
Lie on your back. Bring one knee up to 90 degrees of flexion (thigh vertical), then move the knee across your body toward the opposite shoulder while rotating the shin outward. This combination compresses the front rim of the hip socket. A sharp or catching pain deep in the groin during this maneuver is a positive finding. Research in Arthroscopy Techniques reported that the FADIR test is 94% to 97% sensitive for detecting structural impingement, making it one of the most reliable physical exam tests for that condition. A negative, pain-free FADIR is strong evidence against impingement.
How Hip Mobility Changes With Age
Your expected range of motion depends on your age and sex. CDC reference data on joint motion shows a clear, gradual decline in hip mobility across the lifespan. Hip extension drops from about 28 degrees in young children to roughly 13 to 17 degrees in adults aged 45 to 69. Hip flexion follows a similar trend, declining from around 131 to 141 degrees in children to 127 to 131 degrees in middle-aged and older adults.
Women tend to maintain slightly more hip flexion than men across all age groups, with differences of about 3 to 4 degrees on average. These numbers matter when you’re interpreting your own test results. A 55-year-old man who can flex his hip to 125 degrees is closer to the population norm than he might think. Comparing yourself to a 20-year-old gymnast’s range is not a useful benchmark.
How to Measure More Precisely
If you want actual degree measurements rather than rough visual estimates, you can use an inexpensive plastic goniometer (available at most pharmacies or online for a few dollars) or a free smartphone inclinometer app. For hip flexion, the pivot point goes on the bony bump on the outside of your hip (the greater trochanter). One arm of the goniometer lines up along the outside of your thigh toward the knee, and the other lines up with the side of your trunk. The angle between those two arms as you flex your hip is your flexion measurement.
Having a friend help makes this much easier. Trying to hold a position, stabilize your pelvis, and read a goniometer simultaneously introduces a lot of error. If you’re tracking mobility over time, consistency matters more than absolute accuracy: use the same method, same surface, and same warm-up status each time you measure.
Warning Signs During Testing
Some findings during hip mobility testing point to problems that go beyond simple tightness. Sharp, catching, or locking sensations inside the joint (as opposed to a stretching feeling in the muscles) can indicate a labral tear or cartilage issue. Pain that shoots down the leg, especially below the knee, suggests nerve involvement rather than a pure mobility limitation. Significant weakness when trying to lift the leg against gravity, rather than just stiffness, is another signal that something more is going on.
Hip or groin pain that wakes you at night, isn’t related to how you’re lying, and doesn’t improve with rest warrants professional evaluation, particularly in adults over 50 or anyone with a history of cancer or unexplained weight loss. Progressive numbness in the groin or inner thigh area, or any new changes in bladder function alongside hip symptoms, are urgent findings that should not be managed with stretching alone.