As runners, we often get used to the myriad aches and pains we experience. In many cases, it’s simply soreness due to a specific workout or increases in mileage and we adapt well over time.
Other times though, the aches and pain mean something more and we can’t and shouldn’t ignore them and hope they simply go away. Things like knee and hip pain for example may indicate something more serious.
We’ve heard of IT Band pain, tendonitis, arthritis and others, but what if your pain is on the outside of your hips? Well, it may be your TFL.
You’re probably thinking, “Oh geez, more letters to know.” But “T-F-L” is a lot easier to say than the actual name of Tensor Fasciae Latae.
So what is the tensor fasciae latae muscle? Why does it get tight or sore? What can you do to alleviate the pain? I’ll answer all those questions and more. Keep reading!
What is the Tensor Fascia Latae?
Whether you’ve heard of the TFL or not, you still may have no idea where it is or what it does.
The TFL can be found on the top outside of your hip, we often describe it as your jean short pocket muscle. It start there and runs down the leg.
A more scientific explanation of its location is that it starts from the anterior superior iliac spine (ASIS) and the anterior aspect of the iliac crest. It then goes down the leg and is attached to the fascia of the IT Band.
If you’re not up to date on your human anatomy, don’t worry! As long as you have a general idea of its location, you’re good to go.
The TFL is not exceptionally large, but it is tied into other musculature and tendons so when it is unhappy, other things may end up unhappy too.
The TFL works with our glutes, specifically the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, and gluteus minimus, to aid in hip flexion, hip abduction, and hip internal rotation. It also helps the IT band with knee flexion and lateral rotation.
If you’re thinking about how you engage it, think of movements like bringing your knee up toward your chest, lifting your leg out to the side, and turning your foot and leg inward toward your other leg.
In addition, the TFL is also crucial to the stability of our pelvis. Things like standing, walking, and balancing on one leg are all things the TFL helps with.
For us runners, these are all common movements that are part of the act of running, making a healthy and happy TFL important. While it may not be a main movement muscle like our quads, hamstrings, calves, and glutes, it plays a critical role in helping those main movers power our running stride and do so correctly.
It’s a little muscle with a big job!
TFL Tightness Symptoms
Tightness in the Tensor Fasciae Latae (TFL) muscle can cause discomfort and affect a runner’s performance. Being able to identify the symptoms and differentiate them from other conditions is crucial for effective self-care.
Unlike many injuries, the TFL doesn’t always scream with a sharp pain and so we often don’t realize that it’s tight and causes other issues.
- Pain at the Front of the Hip: TFL tightness often manifests as a dull ache or sharp pain at the front of the hip, near the upper thigh. This pain can radiate down the outer part of the thigh.
- Deep Hip Pain: You may feel like it’s a deeper muscle pain or tender when laying on your side.
- Knee Pain: TFL tightness can contribute to knee pain, especially on the outside of the knee. This can occur due to the TFL’s attachment to the iliotibial (IT) band, which crosses the knee joint.
- Hip Tightness and Limited Range of Motion: Individuals with a tight TFL may experience a feeling of tightness or restriction in hip movement. This can affect your stride length and running mechanics.
- Pain When Running: Not only is it sensitive to push on the TFL, but you may notice that it feels really tight and potentially painful when running.
What Does a Tight TFL Feel Like?
Let’s be honest a lot of those symptoms can appear for a variety of reasons, which is why it’s really valuable to go see a physical therapist if you are dealing with pain. They can ensure you are working on the right things to find a resolution.
Here are some ways to know it’s your TFL:
- IT Band Syndrome: While the TFL and IT band are closely related, pain and tightness caused by IT band syndrome usually occur on the outside of the knee. TFL tightness, on the other hand, tends to cause discomfort higher up, near the hip joint.
- Hip Bursitis: Hip bursitis often leads to pain on the outside of the hip. However, TFL tightness might exacerbate hip bursitis symptoms, making it important to address both issues.
- Hip Flexor Strain: Hip flexor strains can cause pain at the front of the hip, but the pain is usually felt deeper within the hip and closer to the groin. TFL tightness typically generates pain higher up on the outer hip.
Diagnosing a Tight TFL
Personally, I know my TFL is tight when my massage therapist pushes on it and I want to leap off the table. It’s my usual reminder that I need to spend more time using my Trigger point ball on my TFL to help release it.
And in fact, that palpation is exactly what your PT will do to help identify the issue.
What Causes a Tight TFL Tightness Running?
If you’re experiencing tensor fasciae latae pain, you might think you just have tight TFL muscles and they need a little stretching. However, stretching is often not what’s needed because your flexibility isn’t the issue.
Overuse From Muscle Weakness
A common cause of TFL pain may be overuse and compensation. This happens when some of the muscles the TFL works with or supports aren’t holding up their end of the bargain.
As a result, no amount of stretching the TFL is going to help, at least not long term, because you’re not tackling the root of the problem. In this case, you have to address the muscle(s) that’s not doing its job.
This may mean putting a focus on strengthening other muscles that may be weak like your glutes, hip abductors, and hip flexors to help them do their job better and let the TFL backoff and focus on its functional role.
Has anyone else noticed that weak glutes contribute to a lot of runner’s issues, or is it just me? But, I digress.
According to one study (Selkoitz, Beneck, & Powers., 2013, p. 54), the main thing we can do to reduce the load on the TFL is to improve our gluteal muscle activation!
Repetitive Motion Overuse
Running long distances without proper recovery can lead to overuse of the TFL muscle, causing it to tighten over time. Basically, don’t increase your volume too quickly and absolutely don’t skip your rest days.
Additionally, uphill and downhill running can increase the load on the TFL muscle due to changes in stride mechanics. So if you’ve recently started to add more trail running or simply changing your routes, there could be some unintended overuse.
Skipping the Warm Up
Everyone who follows me on Instagram is laughing because I talk about doing the dang dynamic warm up at least once a week. And here we go again with yet another reason it’s worth the 5 minutes.
This is another instance where your muscles may not be fully warmed up and prepared to move through the range of motion, which leads to tightness and potential strains.
Poor Running Form
In general, I have runners only focus on a few simple running form tips. And they apply here as well to prevent a tight TFL running.
The first is to stop overstriding. Landing with your foot too far in front of your body can increase the load on the TFL and lead to tightness.
Second is to ensure that your arms aren’t cross the mid-line of the body. Running with excessive hip adduction (crossing one leg over the midline) can strain the TFL.
Sitting
Yup, sitting for a long time at your desk, sitting for a long time on the bike while cycling, sitting for a long time with your legs crossed in meditation. All of that can cause your TFL to tighten as well, which is a great reminder to take movement breaks or do some of the things listed below!
7 Ways to Loosen a TFL
As I’ve already mentioned, if your TFL feels tight and it’s because it’s overworked from doing the jobs of other muscles, no amount of stretching, massage, self myofascial release, etc. is going to fix the problem long term. It may provide temporary relief, but ultimately the pain will return.
So what can you do? Below I’ve included a few exercises that target the muscles around the TFL. These exercises serve to engage and strengthen those muscles to help them do their jobs better and take the pressure off the TFL.
While I obviously want to focus on things that will help long term, I’m also going to touch on some of those short term relief modalities because they can be helpful along with the long term fixes. Those will be the last few items on this list.
#1 Side Leg Raises
The side leg raise is a great exercise to start with. Depending on how you perform it impacts the muscles that are engaged.
For example, if you lay on your side with one leg on top of the other and lift your top leg leading with your heel, you’ll engage your glutes. If you perform the same exercise but lead with your toe externally rotating your leg, you’ll target the TFL more.
You can advance this exercise by performing it in a plank position or with ankle weights.
Do 2-3 sets of 10 reps per side.
#2 Glute Bridges
This exercise is one of the best for strengthening the glutes. You can do it flat on the floor with just your bodyweight, with a dumbbell or with your upper back on a bench with a dumbbell or barbell.
With this exercise, it’s important to actively try to engage your glutes before beginning the movement. This will help the mind/muscle connection and ensure your lower back or other muscles aren’t taking over.
Perform 2-3 sets of 10 reps.
#3 Lateral Side Steps with a Band
This is another great exercise that targets muscles in and around the hip area.
Take a small band and place it around your ankles. Bend your knees and do a slight hip hinge so you’re in a half squat position. Keeping tension on the bend, take 10-15 steps in one direction and reverse.
Try to always keep tension on the band, never stepping your feet fully together.
#4 Adductor Leg Lifts
Unlike our side leg raises, adductor leg lifts focus on the…you guessed it..the adductors, which help with internal rotation of the leg. This is something the TFL does too, but it shouldn’t be the prime mover.
To perform this move, lay on your side with your top leg crossed over and bent in front of the bottom leg. Using your adductors, try to lift your bottom leg a few inches off the ground. Repeat for 2×3 sets per side with 8-10 reps.
#5 Trigger Point Therapy
This is a more short term relief option, but can still be beneficial in treatment and general self-care. It’s the thing I try to do most frequently after long runs.
Using a ball like a massage ball, yoga ball, or tennis ball, lay on your side and place the ball under the painful area (remember think jeans pocket). Gently roll around on the ball.
It is best to hold the ball in one spot for a period of time, 15-30 seconds, rather than just continuously rolling around. While this may be uncomfortable at times, the holds are what works the best.
Here is Phsyiotherapist Rayner Smale showing using a spikey ball to get in there. She definitely notes this is one step, but a big piece is all the strength work.
#6 Self-Myofascial Release
While similar to using a massage ball, in this case you’ll use a foam roller.
To foam roll the TFL, you want to be on one hip and bring the foam roller under the side of your hip. You’ll support your upper body with either your hand or your forearm.
Again, like with using a ball, you don’t want to just roll all over the place. You want to hold in place for several seconds and move along the muscle in small increments.
AND remember you want to roll the quads, the glutes and the calves. All of our muscles are connected and can pull on each other if tight.
#7 TFL Stretch
This is a unique stretch done in a standing position.
For this stretch you’re going to place your right foot back to put that hip in extension. Your left foot should stay facing forward. Next you want to turn out the right foot and slide your right leg slightly to the left so it’s almost in line with the forward left leg.
From there, keeping your hips square to the front you want to bend the left knee forward while keeping a tall posture. This stretch appears very subtle but you can feel it in the TFL.
To wrap things up, I want to stress that ultimately the issue may not be with your TFL but actually in the muscles around your hip joint. If they’re not doing their job effectively, your TFL will take over and be overworked.
It’s important to get to the root cause and not just temporarily band aid the issue. If these options do not seem to be providing the help you need, it may be time to look into a physical therapist who specializes in working with runners.
Looking for more running injury help?
- Best Hip Stretches for Runners
- 13 Must Do Hip Strengthening Moves for Runners
- 30 Day Core Program (10 minutes a day to hit it all)
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