Top 5 Ways to Strengthen Your Adductors
Clifton Physical Therapy
What Are the Adductors and Why Do They Matter?
Your adductors are a group of five muscles on the inner thigh that attach to the pelvis and femur. They include the adductor longus, brevis, magnus, gracilis, and pectineus. Their main job is to bring the leg inward, but that is only part of the story.
In daily life, adductors work quietly in the background. They help stabilize your pelvis when you walk, climb stairs, get out of a car, or stand on one leg. In sports and exercise, their role becomes much more demanding. They control side-to-side movement, help transfer force through the hips, and protect the groin during cutting, sprinting, and rapid changes in direction.
When adductors are weak or poorly conditioned, other structures step in to compensate. That is often when people start noticing hip pain, groin tightness, or recurring strains that never fully settle down.
Why Adductor Strength Is More Important Than You Think
Adductors are often treated as “small” muscles that only need stretching. That approach misses a key point. These muscles play a major role in hip stability and force control.
Research on athletic populations has shown that reduced adductor strength is associated with a higher risk of groin and hamstring injuries, especially in sports that involve sprinting and lateral movement. One well-known study found that athletes with weaker adductors compared to abductors were significantly more likely to suffer groin strains during the season.
Even outside of sports, poor adductor strength can contribute to:
Hip and pelvic instability
Knee pain during squats or lunges
Feeling unsteady with side-to-side movement
Recurrent groin tightness despite frequent stretching
For real patients, this often shows up as pain that keeps coming back. Strengthening the adductors helps them tolerate load, control movement, and protect the hip and groin during everyday tasks and exercise.
Common Adductor Injuries and What Leads to Them
Adductor strains are among the most common groin injuries seen in both recreational and competitive athletes. They are especially frequent in sports like soccer, basketball, hockey, and running-based field sports. That said, non-athletes can develop adductor problems too, particularly after sudden movements, slips, or poorly planned workouts.
Typical symptoms include:
Inner thigh or groin pain
Discomfort when lifting the leg or changing direction
Pain during side lunges, running, or getting out of a car
Tenderness near the pubic bone
More persistent conditions such as adductor tendinopathy or osteitis pubis develop when the tissue is repeatedly overloaded without enough strength or recovery. These cases often require structured rehabilitation rather than rest alone.
One of the biggest contributors to these injuries is a gap between flexibility and strength. Stretching without strengthening may improve short-term comfort, but it does not prepare the muscle to handle real-world forces.
How Strengthening Your Adductors Helps Prevent Pain and Improve Function
Strong adductors do more than just pull the leg inward. They help absorb force, slow down movement, and stabilize the pelvis during dynamic tasks. This is especially important during eccentric loading, when the muscle is lengthening under tension.
When adductor strength improves, many patients notice:
Better hip control during walking and exercise
Reduced groin and inner-thigh pain
Improved balance and single-leg stability
Less strain on the hamstrings and lower back
From a rehabilitation perspective, targeted adductor strengthening is often a missing piece. Exercises like controlled adduction, lateral lunges, and Copenhagen variations help rebuild strength where it matters most. These movements train the muscles in positions that closely match daily activities and sports demands.
In the next sections, we will break down the most effective exercises to strengthen your adductors safely and progressively, focusing on movements that deliver real results rather than quick fixes.
Copenhagen Adductor Exercise
One of the most researched and effective exercises for adductor strength is the Copenhagen adductor. It directly targets the inner thigh muscles while also challenging your core and pelvic control.
To perform it, lie on your side and support your upper body on your elbow. Place your top leg on a bench or sturdy chair so the inside of your ankle or knee is supported. Lift your hips off the ground while keeping your body in a straight line. Your bottom leg should hover under the top leg. Hold this position or slowly lower and raise the bottom leg for added difficulty.
Studies in sports medicine have shown that Copenhagen exercises can significantly improve eccentric adductor strength, which is critical for injury prevention. This makes it especially useful for people with a history of groin pain or athletes returning to sport.
If you are new to this movement, start with your knee on the bench instead of your ankle and keep the holds short. Quality matters more than duration.
Lateral Lunges
Lateral lunges train the adductors in a functional, real-world way. Unlike forward lunges, this movement loads the inner thigh of the straight leg while also strengthening the hips and glutes.
Stand tall with your feet together. Step out to the side and sit your hips back into the stepping leg while keeping the opposite leg straight. Push through the bent leg to return to the starting position.
This exercise improves side-to-side strength, balance, and control. It is particularly helpful for people who feel unstable when stepping sideways, getting in and out of a car, or changing direction during activity.
To progress the exercise, you can add a dumbbell or kettlebell in a goblet position. Move slowly and stay within a pain-free range, especially if you have a history of groin strain.
Banded or Cable Hip Adduction
Isolated strengthening still has an important role, especially during rehabilitation or when one side is weaker than the other.
For banded adduction, secure a resistance band around your ankle and anchor the other end to a stable object. Stand tall and move your straight leg across your body against the resistance. Control the movement on the way back.
This exercise allows you to target the adductors without overloading the joint. It is ideal for early-stage strengthening, warm-ups, or patients returning from injury.
Use slow, controlled repetitions and avoid swinging the leg. You should feel the effort on the inner thigh, not the lower back or hip flexors.
Side-Lying Adductor Leg Raises
This is a simple but surprisingly challenging exercise that directly targets the inner thigh.
Lie on your side and place your top foot flat on the floor in front of your bottom leg. Keep your bottom leg straight and lift it upward toward the ceiling. Lower it slowly and repeat.
Side-lying adduction helps improve muscle activation and endurance. It is often used in physical therapy settings because it is easy to adjust and does not require equipment.
This exercise works well for people who experience groin discomfort during walking or standing on one leg, as it builds foundational strength without excessive load.
Squeeze-Based Adductor Strengthening
Squeeze exercises are excellent for early strengthening and muscle activation.
Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Place a ball, pillow, or magic circle between your knees. Gently squeeze and hold for five to ten seconds, then relax.
While simple, this exercise helps restore neuromuscular control and improves awareness of the adductor muscles. It is often used as part of a warm-up or during recovery from groin pain.
For patients who are hesitant to move due to discomfort, squeeze-based exercises provide a safe way to begin strengthening without aggravation.
Final Thoughts on Adductor Strengthening
Strong adductors support healthy hips, stable knees, and efficient movement. Stretching alone is rarely enough. Strength is what allows these muscles to handle real-life demands, whether that is walking, lifting, running, or playing sports.
If inner thigh or groin pain is limiting your movement, a personalized physical therapy plan can help you regain strength and confidence. Call Clifton Physical Therapy at (973) 241-1338 to schedule an evaluation and get expert care tailored to your needs.
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Clifton Physical Therapy
✆ Phone (appointments): (973)-241-1338
Address: 1059 Bloomfield Ave, Clifton, NJ 07012
