Why training your inner thighs matters more than you think

By Dana Santas, CNN

(CNN) — When most people think of training their legs, they focus on quads, hamstrings and calves. The inner thighs rarely get the same attention. Yet your adductors — the muscles along your inner thighs — are crucial to pelvic stability, hip mobility and balance. Neglecting them can set you up for instability, pain and even injury.

This article is the third in a five-part series on the power of strength training to relieve pain and create ease in movement.

After looking at how training the whole body can help your nervous system feel safe and how your obliques stabilize posture and protect your spine, we’re focusing on another overlooked area: your adductors.

Anatomy of your adductors

The adductors are a group of five muscles: adductor longus, adductor brevis, adductor magnus, gracilis and pectineus. They run from your pelvis down to various points along your inner thigh and knee. While their primary job is adduction, pulling your legs toward the midline of your body — think squeezing your knees together — their overall function is far more expansive.

Your adductors stabilize your pelvis when you walk, run or shift weight from side to side. They help control hip rotation and provide dynamic support during squatting, lunging and climbing stairs. These muscles also act as synergists, working with your glutes and core to maintain alignment through everyday activities.

How inner thighs can cause outer problems

Adductor dysfunction — whether from weakness or tightness — can create problems that extend far beyond your inner thighs. Weak adductors often lead to poor pelvic control, which can manifest as lower back pain, hip discomfort or even knee problems.

Athletes commonly experience groin strains when their adductors can’t handle the demands placed on them during sports that involve cutting, pivoting or making any sudden direction changes. But you don’t need to be an athlete to experience adductor-related issues. Desk workers who sit for long periods often develop tight, weak adductors that contribute to hip stiffness, postural problems and back strains.

Your adductors don’t work in isolation — they are part of an integrated system that ties into your core and pelvic floor. When your adductors can’t adequately support your pelvis, this entire system becomes compromised, leading to compensations that can create lower back tension and reduced movement efficiency.

How breathing ties into adductor function

Your diaphragm, deep core muscles and pelvic floor work synergistically during breathing and postural tasks, research has shown. During proper diaphragmatic breathing, on exhalation, as the diaphragm rises and the pelvic floor contracts, the adductors can be trained to co-contract to help maintain pelvic stability.

This means your breathing patterns can support adductor function. When you coordinate intentional, deep exhalation with adductor activation, you’re teaching these stabilizing muscles to work together more effectively.

For example, in a simple bridge exercise (explained below), placing a yoga block or pillow between your knees and squeezing as you exhale engages your adductors, along with your core and pelvic floor. As we covered in the first article of this series, coordinating breath with strengthening movements reinforces stability and teaches your nervous system that the position is safe.

Simple exercises for stronger, healthier adductors

Important note: Before starting this or any exercise program, consult your doctor or physical therapist. Stop immediately if you experience pain.

While many traditional inner-thigh exercises focus solely on squeezing motions, more effective adductor training also incorporates movements in multiple planes and challenges the muscles to work as stabilizers rather than just prime movers. This approach better prepares your body for real-world demands while building the kind of strength that translates to better function and reduced pain.

The following three exercises progress from basic activation to more dynamic movement.

Bridge with squeeze: Lie on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Place a yoga block or pillow between your knees.

As you exhale, gently squeeze the block or pillow while lifting your hips into a bridge position. Keep your shoulders relaxed and engage your core to avoid arching your back.

Hold for three to five seconds, breathing steadily, then return to the starting position with control. This exercise combines adductor activation with integrated core engagement and hip strengthening.

Side-lying leg lift: Lie on your side with your bottom leg straight and top leg bent, foot flat on the floor in front of your bottom thigh. Rest your head on your bottom arm and place your top hand on the floor in front of your chest for support.

Exhale as you lift your bottom leg toward the ceiling, focusing on using your inner-thigh muscles. Return to the starting position with control. This movement targets the adductors in a gravity-resisted position for muscle strengthening and enhanced hip stability.

Lateral lunge: From standing, take a wide step out to one side. Bend the knee of that leg to 90 degrees while sitting back and feeling your weight primarily in the hip of your stepping leg side. Keep the other leg straight with your chest up.

Exhale as you push off the stepping leg to return to standing. This movement combines adductor strengthening on one side with stretching on the other.

Do two to three sets of eight to 12 repetitions of each exercise, focusing on smooth, controlled movement coordinated with steady breathing. As lunging becomes easier, you can progress by increasing range of motion or holding positions longer.

Your adductors are more than “spot-tone” muscles. Like your obliques, your adductors highlight a simple truth: Overlooked muscles often hold the key to pain-free, confident movement.

Training them isn’t about aesthetics — it’s about building the kind of stable foundation for movement that makes walking, climbing stairs or changing direction in sport feel natural and safe.

By giving your inner-thigh muscles the attention they deserve, you’re investing in better pelvic stability, improved balance and reduced risk of lower back and hip problems.

In the next article in this series, we’ll move upward to the shoulder blades, another commonly neglected area with big implications for posture, mobility and pain relief.

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