Hip Dips: What They Are & Do Workouts Actually Fix Them?

“Hip dips” or “violin hips” refer to the inward curve below the hip bone where the side of the glutes meets the upper thigh. Roughly half of all adults have visible ones — they’re a function of pelvic-bone shape and where your femoral attachment sits relative to your iliac crest. They’re not a sign of poor fitness, weight or health. The wellness internet sells a lot of “hip dip workouts” that overpromise. Here’s the honest version.

What hip dips actually are

Anatomically, hip dips are the natural depression where the iliac crest meets the greater trochanter of the femur. They’re shaped primarily by pelvic width, the angle of the femoral neck, and the distribution of subcutaneous fat in the upper thigh and hip.

You can’t change pelvic-bone geometry with exercise. What you can change: the muscle volume above and below the depression (gluteus medius and tensor fasciae latae lateral, and the vastus lateralis below) and how much fat sits in the trochanteric depot.

What workouts actually do (and don’t)

Building gluteus medius and minimus (the upper-side glutes) can fill in the area immediately above the dip, making it less visually pronounced. This is the “hip dip workout” effect — it’s real, but modest, and takes 3–6 months of consistent loaded training.

Spot-reducing fat is not possible — the trochanteric fat depot is genetically determined and responds to overall body-composition change, not localised exercise. If hip dips are more pronounced when you have lower body fat, that’s the reverse of what most people assume; visible dips often become more obvious as you lean out.

No exercise can change the underlying pelvic geometry. A 2018 review in Journal of Anatomy estimated that 40–60% of the visual prominence of trochanteric depressions is bone-shape determined.

A sensible 4-day-per-week program for hip-area development

Day 1 — heavy compound: barbell hip thrust 4×6, Bulgarian split squat 3×8/leg, lateral cable raise (gluteus medius) 3×12.

Day 2 — volume + activation: banded crab walks 3×15 each direction, single-leg glute bridge 3×12/leg, side-lying hip abduction 3×15/leg.

Day 3 — rest or full-body conditioning.

Day 4 — mixed strength: sumo deadlift 4×6, step-up 3×10/leg, fire hydrants 3×12/leg.

Progression: add 2.5–5 lb per session on the compounds when you complete all sets at clean form. Track weight and reps in a notes app or training log.

The honest expectation

After 12–16 weeks of consistent training, expect: visible upper-glute fullness, slightly reduced visual prominence of the dip, stronger hips overall (better squat and deadlift numbers, fewer knee issues). Don’t expect: complete elimination. Anyone telling you that needs scrutiny.

The bottom line

Hip dips are a normal feature, not a problem. Train your hips for strength, glute development and athletic capacity — the visual change is a side effect of that, not the goal. Programs that promise to “eliminate” hip dips are over-selling.

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