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How flexible are your hips? Here are the stats on the normal range of motion

Improving the flexibility of your hips can lower your risk of injury

By Steph Green Sep 30, 2025 11:26 AM

Man stretching his hip flexors — Prostock-studio / Adobe Stock

During the Cirque Du Soleil show, the graceful, dancing acrobats command the stage, and they’re especially skilled, flexible, and athletic. When joints aren’t limited by tight tendons and ligaments, and when people remain dedicated to their hard work and training over time, joints become more flexible with a greater range of motion.

More flexibility and a greater range of motion in your joints can lower your chance of injuries and improve your balance and physical performance. Ace Fitness reports that regularly stretching your body can also induce feelings of relaxation.

What is the range of motion?

Range of motion refers to the extent to which you can move your joint without experiencing pain. This can mean rotating your joint inward or outward, moving it away from your body, or flexing or straightening your joint.

How do you measure range of motion?

Much like the little protractor device you might have used in your school math or geometry class, physical therapists measure range of motion with a similar-looking device called a goniometer. Manual and digital goniometers are available. The two arms of the goniometer align with specific landmarks of the joint or measure the full degree of rotation. Inclinometers are devices often used to measure the spine.

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While some joints, like your knee or elbow, are hinge joints that only move in one direction, other ball-and-socket joints, like your hips and shoulders, can move around in different directions.

Recently, I came across info on the normal range of motion of the hip joints for healthy adults. I’ve been practicing yoga to improve my flexibility for several years now, and I was curious about what’s considered normal. Let’s check out the stats.

The stats on the normal range of motion for the hip joint

According to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, here are the stats on what’s considered a normal range of motion for healthy adults:

Hip	Flexion	110-130°	Bend your knee and bring your thigh toward your chest
	Extension	30°	While standing, bring your leg back behind you
	Abduction	45-50°	Bring your leg out to the side.
	Adduction	20-30°	Bring your leg inward and across your body
	Medial rotation	40°	Bend your knee and bring your lower leg away from your midline.
	Lateral rotation	45°	Bend your knee and bring your lower leg closer to your midline.

Steph Green (Steph Zee) is a singer-songwriter and professional writer with over 12 years of experience in healthcare and… Read Full Bio

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