Hip Dips are completely normal indentations. You’ll find them on the sides of your upper thighs, just below your hip bones. So don’t listen to the media trends. You have nothing to be worried about.
Here’s everything you need to know.
If you’ve been spending time on Instagram and TikTok, you may have stumbled across media about ‘Hip Dips’. And you’ll already have a firm grasp of what it’s all about.
If you haven’t yet encountered the latest body-positivity trend, then stick with us. You’ll thank us later – especially if you’ve been negatively affected by the incorrect information certain influencers have touted.
So. Hip Dips….
‘Hip Dips’ may sound like a new dance craze, but it’s something far more natural than that.
Also referred to as ‘Violin Hips’, the term refers to the gentle inward indentations in a woman’s hips; found below your hips and above your thighs. Contrary to what you may hear, it has nothing to do with weight – it’s all about body structure.
After all, the segment of the body ‘Hip Dips’ refers to is the Gluteus Medius (the glute muscles), and these muscles aren’t ‘meaty’ by definition. It couldn’t build-up to create a dip.
Healthcare experts have expressed that, while excess fat can cause dips elsewhere, fat storage can be genetic. Your Hip Dip is largely down to ‘high wide hips’.
So what’s the deal with the sudden increase in attention to this body shape? An average of 40,000 people searching for this term per month must be driven by something, right?
It probably won’t come as a surprise to learn that social media is behind the new craze.
As women are repeatedly bombarded with media-driven stories about ‘the perfect hourglass figure’, and presented with ‘flawless women’ on the screen – whether that be cinema, television, or the internet, many have tried to get rid of their hip dips.
However, you can’t. You can certainly fight excess fat, but hip dips are completely natural. Some go as far as to utilize adhesive silicone hip pads, in order to hide their hips.
However, while fashion brands and certain reality TV shows promote unrealistic visions of womanhood, some have decided to counterattack all this nonsense about ‘imperfections’ with dedicated Tumblr and Reddit threads about ‘Hip Dip Appreciation’.
Not to mention the Instagram activity celebrating Hip Dips as a way to spread messages of body positivity.
So, What Exactly Are Hip Dips?
As already mentioned, Hip Dips are the naturally occurring indents that characterize the outer part of your upper leg. It’s just below your hip bone.
For some women, the appearance of the dip is larger. Now, this isn’t because of anything other than a tighter connection to the greater trochanter of the femur. For others, the dip is less noticeable.
How prevalent these dips are depends on the bone structure of your femur and pelvis. Appearance can also be determined by the muscle mass of your structure, and how your body stores fat.
What Causes These Hip Dips?
Contrary to what you may have read online, Hip Dips are not caused by lifestyle habits. The dips are largely the result of your skeletal anatomy.
Rather than coming from unhealthy eating choices or aging, this comes from your genetics. You can thank your parents for that.
The visibility of your dips depends on a variety of factors, including the width of your hips, the size of the top of your femur, and the length of your ‘femoral neck’. Not to mention the dimensions of your ilium, hip socket, and great trochanter.
These aspects don’t just outline and define the shape of your hips, but also your buttocks.
In a nutshell: your hip dips are far more noticeable should you have wider hip bones and a larger distance between the hip socket and the ilium.
The angle, size, and positioning of attributes such as your greater trochanter and head of the femur also directly influence the visibility of your hips. Don’t try to counteract these aspects, you won’t get anywhere. In fact, you may cause yourself damage.
So, It’s Not Because I’m Out Of Shape?
There are loads of factors that point to an unhealthy lifestyle. And only you can truly answer that question with honesty. However, contrary to social media’s trend, hip dips do not mean that you are ‘fat’, ‘obese’ or anything else like that.
Where your body stores fat is down to your genetics, and is also largely dependent on hormones, pushing fat-storing ability/location out of your control.
You can build muscle mass in your glutes, combining a slight gain in body fat, which can slightly reduce the visibility of your hip dips. Yet, you will remain unlikely to completely get rid of the dips.
And that’s because hip dips are completely normal!
Before even considering attempts to mask the dips, you need to think about your overall health. Don’t put yourself at risk in terms of diet, especially if you have underlying health conditions.
So, Hip Dips Are Normal?
Absolutely! They are completely normal. You should certainly not be concerned about it. They are part of your unique structure, and should not be used as any form of indication of your health.
Hip Dips do not necessarily reflect the overall percentage of body fat in your system, either. So don’t go making yourself depressed just because one of the Kardashians, or a thrift-shop imitator, makes a career from body shaming real-life people.
Thankfully, there’s an ever-growing trend that removes body shaming. As with anything, real-life eventually prevails, and there’s a host of celebrities and influencers that are celebrating hip dips for what they are: a beautiful part of the normal human body.
Can You Get Rid Of Hip Dips?
Although certain exercises will aid a reduction in appearance, you can’t completely get rid of them. And who would want to, in all honesty? It’s a part of what makes you the person you are. Celebrate the female form, don’t hide from it!
Don’t fall for those clickbait articles, or those so-called influencers who claim to have the “secret to ditching hip dips”. It’s all nonsense. No diet, or exercise, can adjust the shape of your skeleton.
My advice? Come to terms with the normality of the human form. You have ‘hip dips’. Celebrate them, and commit your focus to what makes your body healthier and stronger.
Your hips are hugely important for a healthy existence. From aiding sex life, to preventing issues in later life, you should focus on keeping your surrounding structure strong and stable. After all, the hip remains one of the most important weight-bearing areas of your body.
Keeping your hips in good condition helps to keep age-related pains at bay, undertake daily activities, and remain active in sports. Damaging your hips can actually lead to pain in your knees and legs, alongside a whole range of other problems.
So there we have it. Don’t concern yourself about Hip Dips. They are normal. You are normal. It’s a part of being human.
Celebrate who you are, and focus on making yourself stronger and healthier. And, the next time you stumble across some nonsense about Hip Dips from someone masquerading as a healthcare professional on social media, point them in the direction of this article.
We’ll get them told.
Still got questions? Reach out to us anytime.
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