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Groin Strain
A groin strain is a tear in the adductor muscles of the inner thigh, usually from a sharp change of direction, a kick, or a sudden stretch. It is common across football codes and is notorious for recurring — chiefly because people return to sport when the pain has gone rather than when the strength has come back. Getting the return criteria right is most of the work.
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Does this sound like you?
Most people have several of these, not all of them.
- Sudden sharp pain in the inner thigh or groin
- Pain squeezing the knees together
- Bruising down the inner thigh in more significant tears
- Difficulty sprinting, changing direction or kicking
- Aching that lingers for weeks after the sharp pain settles
Why it happens
- A sudden change of direction or a sprint start
- Kicking, particularly across the body
- A slip where the leg is forced outwards
- Returning to sport before strength has fully recovered
- A rapid increase in training load after a break
What we would do about it
Roughly in this order — each step waits for the one before it.
- Early protection and gentle range work in the first days
- Progressive adductor strengthening — the key to not doing it again
- Hip and trunk strengthening around it
- Graded return to running, then changing direction, then kicking
- Objective strength testing before the return to sport rather than going on feel
- Assessing for hip joint involvement where it is not settling
See a doctor first if
- Your pain followed a significant injury
- It is getting worse rather than settling
- It comes with numbness, weakness or unexplained weight loss
This page is general information, not a diagnosis. Symptoms overlap between conditions, so the right treatment depends on an assessment.
Groin strains recur when the return is rushed
Pain settling is not the same as being ready. We test the strength properly and give you criteria to return on, rather than a date. Ask a question first, or call us on 0403 907 587.
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Related reading: hip joint pain in the groin, groin pain from joint wear and the equivalent at the back of the thigh.
General information only, not advice about your own problem — nothing here replaces an assessment. Source: Groin Strain on Physiopedia.
