Not the ankle, but the thigh muscles are the weak point in hurdling. Why that is, and how to protect your hips and groin properly.
Which body part is most likely to break down in hurdling? Honest answer: not the ankle, as many assume, but the thigh. In sprinting, hurdling and jumping events, acute, sudden thigh muscle injuries clearly dominate the injury picture — unlike distance running, where overuse damage predominates instead. That's no coincidence: the explosive, constantly repeated knee drive and hip opening in hurdle clearance loads exactly this muscle group maximally.
Concretely, data from US college sport shows: hip flexor strains occur at a rate of 1.60 per 10,000 training and competition exposures, hip adductor (groin) strains at 1.29 per 10,000 — both movements maximally demanded exactly during the trail-leg pull-through over the hurdle. The general injury rate in track and field sits at around 3.99 per 1,000 exposures — a figure that has barely changed across five seasons.
For beginners still tripping on training hurdles, the picture looks a bit different: among recorded hurdle accidents in US emergency departments, fractures dominate at 29%, sprains at 26% and contusions at 10% — the most commonly affected body parts are the ankle (19%), knee (16%) and wrist (9%), mostly from uncontrolled falls after catching a hurdle.
Dedicate at least half your warm-up time to dynamic exercises for hip flexors and hip adductors — rotating lunges, dynamic forward and lateral leg swings, controlled hurdle-mount drills. These are exactly the muscles most commonly involved in strains.
Regular hip-opening exercises — such as the lateral trail-leg drill done without a hurdle at all — make the scissor movement noticeably more relaxed over weeks and reduce the load at end range.
If you catch a hurdle: turn your head to the side, bend your arms instead of extending them, and roll sideways if possible. Most beginner injuries are bruises and sprains from uncontrolled catching — a trained fall response directly reduces this risk.
A slight pull in the hip flexor or groin after an intense session is a warning sign, not a "niggle to run off." Strains in this region are among the most common injuries in the discipline — pausing early often prevents a mild irritation from becoming a real setback.
The data shows: serious injuries cluster more in competition than in training — likely because pace and risk tolerance are higher there. A clean, technically focused warm-up right before the start matters even more in competition than usual.
Treat any pulling in the hip flexor or groin as a genuine signal, not a minor detail — these two muscle groups together account for a substantial share of documented hurdling injuries. Build in deliberate recovery days during high-volume training phases, especially after intense rhythm or technique sessions.
For beginners, an additional rule applies: never practice new movement elements while fatigued. Most falls carrying fracture or sprain risk happen when concentration and leg strength are already fading but repetitions continue anyway.
Keep a short mobility diary: after every session, note on a scale of 1–10 how free the hip and groin felt during the trail-leg drill. A clear downward trend across several sessions is often the earliest, most reliable warning sign — well before any real pain shows up.
Acute thigh muscle injuries dominate, especially hip flexor and hip adductor strains — unlike distance runners, where overuse damage predominates. Beginners who are still falling additionally face bruises, sprains and occasional fractures.
Because the scissor movement over the hurdle demands a fast, repeated combination of hip flexion and hip opening — exactly the movement patterns where hip flexor and adductor strains occur most often. A cold or stiff joint clearly raises the risk.
Serious injuries tend to occur more often in competition than in training — likely due to higher pace and lower caution. That's exactly why the warm-up before a race should never be shortened, even under time pressure.
Bend your arms instead of extending them stiffly, turn your head to the side, and roll sideways if possible. Most fall injuries are bruises, sprains and occasional wrist fractures from uncontrolled catching — a trained fall response noticeably lowers this risk.
Hurdles: The 400m Hurdles and the Mid-Race Rhythm Switch