You’d be surprised to see how many people Google “why is one of my legs longer than the other?” It’s actually pretty common. Approximately 90% of the population has a limb length discrepancy of less than 1 cm.
The truth is that while some people are born with a congenital limb difference, it’s more likely that one of your legs is longer than the other due to a functional issue.
In this blog, we’re going to cover the leading cause of what makes one of your legs longer than the other as well as how you can fix it.
WHAT CAUSES UNEVEN LEG LENGTH?
It’s always nice when the root cause isn’t complicated. In the case of uneven leg lengths, there are two possible reasons your legs are different lengths:
- It’s a structural issue - meaning you were born that way or your body has experienced a trauma that is the contributing factor.
- It’s a functional issue - meaning you have misalignments that give your legs the appearance of being uneven lengths, when it’s really an unevenness in the hips.
STRUCTURAL VERSUS FUNCTIONAL: WAYS TO ADDRESS THE DISCREPANCY
How do you know when one of your legs is longer than the other? Some signs that one of your legs is longer than the other might include limping, uneven wear on the bottom of your shoes, back pain (particularly Quadratus Lumborum pain), hip pain, and a hip hike.
If you think one of your legs is longer than the other and you know you weren’t born that way, you most likely fall under the functional category.
If you think this issue is structural, a professional can use a tape measure to assess your leg lengths. Other methods are more costly but are X Ray, MRI, and Ultrasound.
STRUCTURAL ISSUE
While you cannot change a true structural leg length discrepancy without surgery (and sometimes not even then), you can adapt by learning to move and align your body. According to the National Library of Medicine, leg length discrepancy of up to 2 cm can be corrected with heel wedge insoles. However, “with closed shoes, correction of up to 5 cm difference can be achieved by sole lift”.
FUNCTIONAL ISSUE
In this case, your leg length is pretty much the same. The root cause of the leg discrepancy is the function of your body.
One of our goals is to help members find the source of their misalignments, whenever possible. Functional leg length discrepancies can stem from anywhere between the spine and feet and there are often other contributing factors.
We frequently see members with other conditions or symptoms such as:
- Short and tight soft tissues (muscles and ligaments).
- Hypermobility (lax ligaments).
- Uneven hips.
- Scoliosis.
- Inverted knees.
- Poor foot biomechanics (such as excessive ankle pronation).
- One or both thighs internally rotated.
- SI Joint pain.
DOES A LEG LENGTH DISCREPANCY CAUSE SCIATICA?
Having one leg longer than the other can aggravate sciatica but it’s not the sole cause of this condition. Sciatica is a type of nerve pain that occurs when the sciatic nerve is compressed or irritated, which is usually caused by a misalignment in the spine.
WHAT EXERCISES SHOULD I DO IF ONE OF MY LEGS IS LONGER THAN THE OTHER?
We generally don’t recommend that you focus on individual muscles and there’s no single exercise you need to do to fix your body’s misalignments. Instead, focus on proper total body alignment and technique as you live your life - both in and out of the gym.
That said, we do teach our members a high level of body awareness. For example, if your right hip is lower than your left, it will benefit you to be aware and in control of your right foot arch, ankle alignment, knee tracking, and hip rotation. This will help you level your hips over time and with practice.
CAN ONE LEG BEING LONGER THAN THE OTHER CAUSE HIP PAIN?
Absolutely. When one part of the body is misaligned, it causes a domino effect. It’s only a matter of time before pain starts to result in the hip when your spine is misaligned or your legs are different lengths.
HOW TO FIX LEG LENGTH DISCREPANCIES
Can a functional leg length discrepancy be fixed? If you have a functional issue, YES! There is a lot you can do to improve your body!
The MoveU Back & Core program will address your foundation, which is your spinal alignment and the strength of your core. You may find that alone is enough to level your body, but if not, more help can be found in the Hips & Glutes and Knee, Ankle and Foot programs.
If you’ve got imbalances and want to correct the patterns that have led you to uneven hips, poor posture and pain in your back, hips, and knees, we’ve got you covered! Join the MoveU membership today and let’s get to work!
