Hip & Thigh

What It Is

Line drawing of the front of the thigh and pelvis, showing the fan of adductor muscles running from the pubic bone down to the inside of the thigh bone. — The adductors fan out from the front of the pelvis to the inner thigh, which is where a groin strain is felt.

The adductor muscles are a group of six muscles that run along the inside of the thigh: adductor longus, adductor brevis, adductor magnus, pectineus, gracilis and obturator externus. Adductor longus is the one most often injured (McHugh, Nicholas and Tyler, 2023). These muscles are skeletal muscles, and they function to pull your leg inwards. This type of movement is used by horse riders, and when kicking a ball with the inside of the foot. They also help to steady your trunk, and help you balance on uneven surfaces and when moving sideways.

Collectively, they are often called the "groin muscles". A groin strain is a common injury that involves tearing in the adductor muscle(s) found on the inside of the thigh, and when the adductors are the cause, health professionals call it an adductor strain. Groin pain can have several other causes too, so it is worth having it assessed by me or checked by your doctor (McHugh, Nicholas and Tyler, 2023).

Adductor strains occur more often in sports that involve kicking, sprinting and quick changes of direction, such as football (soccer), ice hockey and martial arts (McHugh, Nicholas and Tyler, 2023; Nationwide Children's Hospital, 2022).

An adductor strain is the result of a sudden, strong contraction of the adductor muscles while they are in a lengthened or stretched position. If the force going through the muscle is too large, a tear can occur in the muscle fibres, resulting in the muscle strain.

Not a diagnosis — for more information, contact me or another trusted healthcare provider.

Symptoms

How It Feels

Signs & Symptoms

Sudden sharp pain on the upper inside of your leg, or groin area
Groin discomfort described as a 'pulling' sensation
Tender to touch in your groin
Walking may be affected (depends on the severity of the strain)
Pain on running
Swelling or bruising (occasional)
Weakness in your leg

Treatment

Self-Care & Treatment

How to Manage the Groin Pain

A gradual strengthening programme is a key part of recovery, and you should complete your rehabilitation before returning to sport (McHugh, Nicholas and Tyler, 2023; Nationwide Children's Hospital, 2022). I can guide you through this, with hands-on work once the first couple of days have passed. See the My Approach tab for how I work.

For the first 2 to 3 days, follow PRICE: Protection, Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation (NHS, 2024). Wrap an ice pack (or a bag of frozen vegetables) in a tea towel and place it over your groin area, or where the pain is worst, for up to 20 minutes every 2 to 3 hours.
For the first couple of days, try to avoid heat (such as hot baths and heat packs), alcohol and massage, as these can increase swelling (NHS, 2024).
Stop sport and ask your trainer or me for advice. Once you can move the leg without pain stopping you, keep it gently moving so it does not become stiff (NHS, 2024).
Crutches may help at first if walking is painful (Nationwide Children's Hospital, 2022).

Recovery time varies with the position and severity of the tear. Most adductor longus strains settle within 1 to 3 weeks. Injuries where the tendon partly tears away from the pelvic bone take longer, with return to sport usually taking 2 to 3 months, and long-standing groin pain can take longer still (Thorborg, 2023). A home exercise programme, which I can guide you through, is an important part of recovery.

Treatment

My Approach

A groin strain means some fibres in the inner thigh muscles have torn, and how I help depends on how bad it is. My aim is to help the muscle heal well, keep your hip and leg strong and moving, and get you back to sport without it going again.

If it's a mild or moderate strain (you can walk, it's sore but manageable, and the leg isn't badly weakened), I can treat it directly. If it's a severe tear (you felt a pop, can't walk properly, can feel a gap in the muscle, or have heavy bruising or marked weakness), please see your doctor first. Once you've been checked, I provide supportive care alongside their plan.

I start by assessing how your hip, leg, low back and pelvis move, your strength when you squeeze your legs together, and exactly where the pain is.

If It's a Mild Strain

For the first couple of days, I leave the injured spot alone and ease the guarding in your low back, hips and other leg, and show you how to use ice at home
Very gentle, pain-free squeezes without moving the leg
After the first couple of days, lighter hands-on work closer to the injury, then cross-fibre work and stretching only to the start of discomfort
Strength builds from holds to squeezing and lowering exercises, such as side-lying lifts and later the Copenhagen plank
Running, cutting and kicking drills, then a graded return to sport

If It's a Severe Tear

I work within your doctor's or surgeon's plan, and after surgery I need your surgeon's okay before hands-on treatment
Work on the low back, hips and other leg, which take more strain while you protect the injured side
Scar work once any wound has healed, then strength work in step with your team's plan, through to a return to sport

Work near the groin is only done when clinically relevant, with your informed consent and a written consent form. Taping can support the area as you return to sport, and I'll show you how to do it yourself.

What to Expect

Typical Course

Typical course: If it's a mild strain, most people come once or twice a week at first, then weekly until they're back to sport, and most strains settle within 1 to 3 weeks. If it's a severe tear, visits follow your doctor's plan, usually about weekly, and where the tendon has partly torn away from the pelvic bone, return to sport usually takes 2 to 3 months, with complete tears often taking longer.

What I Focus On

Severity Check

Protect Early

Hip & Groin Release

Graded Adductor Strength

Return to Sport

Please read

When to See a Doctor First

When to Get Urgent Help

After an injury, call 911 or go to the emergency room at your nearest hospital if you heard a crack when you were injured, the injured area has changed shape, it is numb, tingling or has pins and needles, or the skin around it has turned blue or grey or feels cold (NHS, 2024). Get medical advice promptly if the pain is very bad or getting worse, the swelling or bruising is large or getting worse, or you cannot put weight on your leg or walk more than a few steps (NHS, 2024).

Sources

References

McHugh, M.P., Nicholas, S.J. and Tyler, T.F. (2023) 'Adductor strains in athletes', International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy, 18(2), pp. 288–292. doi: 10.26603/001c.72626
Thorborg, K. (2023) 'Current clinical concepts: exercise and load management of adductor strains, adductor ruptures, and long-standing adductor-related groin pain', Journal of Athletic Training, 58(7–8), pp. 589–601. doi: 10.4085/1062-6050-0496.21
Nationwide Children's Hospital (2022) Sports medicine: adductor muscle strain. Available at: https://www.nationwidechildrens.org/conditions/sports-medicine-adductor-muscle-strain (Accessed: 7 October 2026).
NHS (2024) Sprains and strains. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/sprains-and-strains/ (Accessed: 7 October 2026).

Massage therapy · Kitchener–WaterlooGroin Strain

What It Is

How It Feels

Signs & Symptoms

Self-Care & Treatment

How to Manage the Groin Pain

My Approach

If It's a Mild Strain

If It's a Severe Tear

Typical Course

When to See a Doctor First

When to Get Urgent Help

References

Related Conditions

Book a session

Massage therapy · Kitchener–WaterlooGroin Strain

What It Is

How It Feels

Signs & Symptoms

Self-Care & Treatment

How to Manage the Groin Pain

My Approach

If It's a Mild Strain

If It's a Severe Tear

Typical Course

When to See a Doctor First

When to Get Urgent Help

References

Related Conditions

Hamstring Muscle Strain

Greater Trochanteric Bursitis

Adductor Tear

Book a session