You may have heard of the term hip dips, or even turned around in front of the mirror wondering if you have them. Let’s clarify what exactly “hip dips” refers to, and why some people have them in the first place.Hip dips are indents on the lateral region of the hips between the superior aspect of the hipbone (iliac crest) and a bony protrusion known as greater trochanter, and are due to the structural anatomy of the pelvic bones. If you look at a diagram of a pelvis, you will notice that, between the ilium and the femur, there is an inward concave; from the outside, this can appear as either a shallow or relatively deep dent. Anatomically, this hip dent is an empty space bounded by muscles and fascia and the severity of the hip dip is determined by the way gluteal muscles wrap around the ilium and femur. Gluteus maximus is more posterior muscles and is behind the greater trochanter. Gluteus medius is anterior and above the trochanter. Tensor fascia latae is dense connective tissue anterior and superior to the greater trochanter. As you can see from the diagram if there’s little overlap between the muscle groups you will have a more profound hip dip. All pelvic bones and the associated muscles are structured this way, but because of varying amounts and distributions of fat, some individuals appear to have rounder hips. Less volume in the hips can be due to an overall lack of fat, minimal muscle mass, or simply because you tend to accumulate fat in other areas.Hip dips is the anatomic space between greater trochanter of the femur and the superior iliac cresthip dips are anatomically defined as the indent between gluteal muscles of the buttoks – gluteus maximus, gluteus medius and tensor fascia lataeWhat largely determines the appearance of hip dips is your genetics, which affects your skeletal structure, muscle position and fat distribution. Your genes play a role in how big the space between the greater trochanter, the ilium, and the hip socket is. It also impacts the size and angle of your greater trochanter (located at the top of your femur) and the length of your femoral neck. Wider distance between these bones can make hip dips more conspicuous.While hip dips largely have to do with your skeleton, certain pockets of fat can either reduce or exaggerate their appearance; love handles, for example, those bands of fat that sit laterally to the abdomen can make hip dips look more pronounced. Others carry fat around their hips in such a way that allows them to look rounded; this kind of fat storage is inherent to your genetics and hormones, and not something you can control.While it doesn’t indicate anything about your health or level of fitness, many people are bothered by the appearance of their hip dips. This inward slope can interrupt the hourglass figure look that so many of us strive for. Fortunately, cosmetic procedures like Sculptra can supply that extra volume you crave.