Hip & Thigh

What It Is

Osteoporosis causes the bones to become weak and fragile, so they break more easily. Broken bones often happen after a fall or sudden impact, but sometimes even a cough or sneeze can cause a broken rib or the partial collapse of one of the bones of the spine (NHS, 2022a). The most common breaks in people with osteoporosis are in the wrist, hip and spine (NHS, 2022a).

Bones are living tissue, which is constantly being broken down and replaced. Osteoporosis occurs when the creation of new bone cannot keep up with the removal of old bone. Osteoporosis can affect people of all backgrounds, but white and Asian women are at highest risk, especially women who have been through the menopause (NIAMS, 2022). A healthy diet, medicines and weight-bearing exercise can help to prevent bone loss and strengthen bones that are already weak (NHS, 2022a).

Osteoporosis Anatomy

The skeletal system is made up of all the joints and bones in the body. Bones are living tissue made up of cells, protein fibres and minerals, and they are constantly being broken down and rebuilt throughout life (Cleveland Clinic, 2025). The skeleton serves as a scaffold, protecting and supporting the soft tissues that make up the rest of the body, and it provides attachment points that allow the muscles to move the joints.

New blood cells are made by the red bone marrow inside the bones. Calcium is the main mineral found in bone, and the bones act as the body's store of calcium (NHS, 2022b). The skeleton grows throughout childhood and serves as a framework for the rest of the body to grow along with it.

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

Treatment

Self-Care & Treatment

How to Treat Osteoporosis

Alongside the treatment your family doctor or nurse practitioner plans, I can help you build a safe exercise programme for your bones, strength and balance, with gentle hands-on treatment adapted to fragile bones. See the My Approach tab for how I work.

Treatment for osteoporosis is based on treating and preventing broken bones, and on medicines to strengthen your bones. Whether you need treatment depends on your risk of breaking a bone in the future, which is based on factors such as your age, sex and the results of your bone density scan (NHS, 2022a).

1. Supplementation

Calcium and vitamin D are important for bone health. NHS advice is that if you have osteoporosis you may need more calcium, usually as supplements, and that everyone should consider taking a daily vitamin D supplement during the autumn and winter (NHS, 2022b). Ask your family doctor or nurse practitioner for advice about taking calcium supplements. (This medicine information comes from the NHS, not from me. Always check with a pharmacist or your family doctor or nurse practitioner before taking any medicine.) Eating a balanced diet is still key, as most people should be able to get the calcium they need from a varied diet.

2. Exercise

Weight-bearing exercise and resistance exercise are particularly important for improving bone density and helping to prevent osteoporosis (NHS, 2022d). If you have been diagnosed with osteoporosis, I can help you work out which exercises are suitable for you, or you can ask your doctor.

Treatments you may want to discuss with your family doctor or nurse practitioner

These are prescription treatments. There are medicines that slow down the loss of bone and medicines that help build new bone. Discuss with your family doctor or nurse practitioner what is right for you, and always read about the side effects of any medicine you are prescribed (NHS, 2022b).

Options outside my scope

Bisphosphonates: medicines such as alendronic acid, ibandronic acid, risedronate and zoledronic acid that slow the rate at which bone is broken down, which helps maintain bone density and reduce the risk of a broken bone (NHS, 2022b).
Raloxifene: a medicine with a similar effect on bone to the hormone oestrogen, recommended only for women after the menopause. Side effects can include hot flushes, leg cramps and a possible increased risk of blood clots (NHS, 2022b).
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT): HRT can help keep bones strong. Some types slightly increase the risk of breast cancer or blood clots, but for women aged 60 or under with menopause symptoms the benefits usually outweigh the risks (NHS, 2022b).
Parathyroid hormone treatments (such as teriparatide): injections that stimulate new bone to form, used in a small number of people whose bone density is very low (NHS, 2022b).
Biological medicines (denosumab and romosozumab): injections that may be recommended if you cannot take other medicines or have severe osteoporosis (NHS, 2022b).

(This medicine information comes from the NHS, not from me. Always check with a pharmacist or your family doctor or nurse practitioner before taking any medicine.)

How I can help (see the My Approach tab)

Gentle hands-on treatment adapted to fragile bones

A safe weight-bearing and strength programme

Balance work to help prevent falls

Posture work for a rounded upper back

Tips

For most healthy adults, the recommended amount of calcium is 700mg a day, which most people can get from a varied diet. If you have osteoporosis, you may need more (NHS, 2022b).
Vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium. From about late March or early April to the end of September, most people can get the vitamin D they need from sunlight on their skin, but it is difficult to get enough from food alone (NHS, 2022b).
Exercise helps you to slow down bone loss and build strong bones.
Slender, thin-boned people are at increased risk of developing osteoporosis because they have less bone to lose as they get older (NIAMS, 2022).
In men, osteoporosis has been linked with low levels of the hormone testosterone (NHS, 2022c).
If you have a family history of osteoporosis, particularly a parent who broke a hip, your risk is increased (NHS, 2022c).

Treatment

My Approach

With osteoporosis, your family doctor or nurse practitioner leads on bone density checks and any medicine. My part is to keep you comfortable, strong and moving, with hands-on treatment adapted to fragile bones and a safe exercise programme. If you've broken a bone that was treated with surgery, or that stops your normal daily activities, I need your medical team's okay before hands-on treatment.

Please bring any X-ray or bone density scan reports and notes from your medical team to your first visit. They're an important part of planning safe treatment for you.

I assess your posture, balance, strength and how you move, and ask about any falls or broken bones.

Hands-On Treatment

Comfortable pressure for tight, tired muscles, with pillows to support a rounded upper back
No forceful joint work, rib springing or pressing joints hard at the end of their range
After a fracture, work on compensating areas, gentle lymphatic drainage for swelling, and scar work once any wound has healed

Exercise

Weight-bearing activity, such as walking, built up gradually
Strength work with bands or light weights two or three days a week: sit-to-stands, heel raises, step-ups and back strengthening
Balance training, holding a counter or chair if you're unsteady
Avoiding sit-ups, bending forward against resistance, twisting while bending, high-impact activity and very heavy lifting

Sudden, severe back pain after a minor bump or bend should be checked by your doctor promptly.

What to Expect

Typical Course

Typical course: Your medical team's plan for your bones sets the pace. Most people come once or twice a week at first, then weekly, then less often as you manage on your own, with a reassessment at about 4 to 6 weeks. Strength and balance usually improve within a few months; bone changes slowly, so the exercise needs to keep going long term.

What I Focus On

Safe Positioning

Gentle Pressure

Weight-Bearing & Strength Exercise

Balance & Falls

Movements to Avoid

Sources

References

NHS (2022a) Osteoporosis. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/osteoporosis/ (Accessed: 7 October 2026).
NHS (2022b) Osteoporosis – treatment. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/osteoporosis/treatment/ (Accessed: 7 October 2026).
NHS (2022c) Osteoporosis – causes. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/osteoporosis/causes/ (Accessed: 7 October 2026).
NHS (2022d) Osteoporosis – prevention. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/osteoporosis/prevention/ (Accessed: 7 October 2026).
National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) (2022) Osteoporosis: causes, risk factors and symptoms. Available at: https://www.niams.nih.gov/health-topics/osteoporosis (Accessed: 7 October 2026).
Cleveland Clinic (2025) Osteopenia. Available at: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21855-osteopenia (Accessed: 7 October 2026).

Massage therapy · Kitchener–WaterlooOsteoporosis

What It Is

Osteoporosis Anatomy

Self-Care & Treatment

How to Treat Osteoporosis

1. Supplementation

2. Exercise

Treatments you may want to discuss with your family doctor or nurse practitioner

Tips

My Approach

Hands-On Treatment

Exercise

Typical Course

References

Related Conditions

Book a session

Massage therapy · Kitchener–WaterlooOsteoporosis

What It Is

Osteoporosis Anatomy

Self-Care & Treatment

How to Treat Osteoporosis

1. Supplementation

2. Exercise

Treatments you may want to discuss with your family doctor or nurse practitioner

Tips

My Approach

Hands-On Treatment

Exercise

Typical Course

References

Related Conditions

Compartment Syndrome – Thigh/Buttocks

Developmental Dislocation (Dysplasia) of the Hip (DDH)

Femoral Anteversion

Femoral Fracture

Book a session