Why Your Hips Feel Tight — And Why It’s Not Actually a Flexibility Problem
(Plus what to do about it, according to mobility experts)
If your hips constantly feel tight, even after stretching, you’re not alone.
Most people assume tight hips come from “not being flexible enough.”
But experts in mobility and physical therapy say something different:
Tight hips are usually a problem, not a flexibility problem.
And the real culprit is how much time we spend sitting.
Let’s break down what’s actually happening inside your hip joint — and why more stretching isn’t always the answer.
What Sitting Does to Your Hips
Long hours in a chair affect your body in four important ways:
- Your hip flexors stay shortened
Your hips sit in a 90° angle for hours. The muscles in the front of the hips adapt to this shortened position and begin to feel chronically tight.
- Your glutes shut off
Because you’re sitting on your hamstrings and thighs instead of your sit bones, your glute muscles stop doing their stabilizing job. Over time, the body “forgets” to engage them naturally.
- Your pelvis loses a neutral, stable base
Sitting encourages the pelvis to tip forward or tuck under, disrupting hip mechanics and forcing other muscles to compensate.
- Your hip joint moves less and gets stiff
Chairs restrict natural rotation in the hip capsule. Without movement, the deep tissues around the joint stiffen and mobility decreases.
Together, these changes create the familiar sensation of tight hips.
Mobility expert Dr. Kelly Starrett notes that tight hips often reflect a stability issue rather than a lack of flexibility.
Your body tightens as a way to brace and keep you upright.
Callout:
Tight hips aren’t telling you “stretch more.”
They’re telling you “move differently.”
Why Stretching Alone Doesn’t Fix Tight Hips
This is the frustrating part:
You stretch.
You foam roll.
You sit in pigeon pose.
And your hips still feel tight the next morning.
Why?
Because stretching only affects the surface muscles.
If the deeper stability system — pelvis → femur → glutes — isn’t working, your body will keep tightening the same areas to compensate.
That's why people often feel relief during a stretch but tighten right back up afterward.
So… What Actually Helps?
To relieve tight hips, you need position changes, loading, and natural rotation.
This is where floor sitting comes in.
How Floor Sitting Frees Tight Hips
When you sit on the floor:
- Your hips open into natural angles
Cross-leg, side-sit, kneeling, squat --these positions rotate your femurs more deeply in the hip socket than chairs allow.
- Your glutes re-engage
Because your weight is on your sit bones instead of your thighs, the glutes wake back up and support the pelvis.
- Your pelvis finds a more neutral base
Floor sitting encourages a grounded, stable pelvis --something chairs disrupt.
- You move more
When the floor gets uncomfortable, you instinctively shift. Dr. Starrett actually calls this “built-in movement medicine.”
- You load your joints naturally
Unlike on chairs, your bones support you.
This gentle pressure keeps tissues healthy and mobile.
- You have to get up and down
This alone builds hip mobility, strength, and balance — the perfect antidote to tightness.
In short:
Floor sitting restores the hip mechanics that chair sitting takes away.
Simple Floor Sitting Positions to Try Today
Start with 2–5 minutes of each:
- Cross-leg (easy pose)
- Kneeling (seiza or tall kneel)
- 90/90 (legs folded to one side)
- Supported squat
And don't forget to shift your weight, change sides, and move often. Your hips don’t need intensity — they need consistency.
How the Flow Desk Helps
Floor sitting is great for your body and the right workspace makes it simple to incorporate into everyday life.
That’s why we designed the Flow Desk -- A floor-sitting–to-standing desk that lets you move naturally through your day without forcing your hips back into rigid chair positions.
From 14.9’’ to 47’’
Seamlessly transition between cross-leg, kneeling, squatting, and standing
Adjust the desk to fit your position, not the other way around.
It’s the kind of movement-rich workspace your hips have been missing.
