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Peter L.PRO
Peter L. Sendmail

Hip pain after runs - maybe piriformis syndrome?

posted over 2 years ago | Report

My wife and I are both runners, and she has been feeling hip pain after her runs for quite some time. She doesn't think that it's muscular in origin, and seems to think it started after her second pregnancy, during which she had bad sciatica. Changing shoes has not seemed to make any difference.

My suspicion is piriformis syndrome, and was wondering if any dailymilers have had experience with this. Any thoughts on how to deal with hip pain - physical therapy, chiropractor, massage??? She's been really frustrated with how this has hampered her ability to run, and any suggestions that I could pass along would be much appreciated.

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  • A Rockett K.
    A Rockett K. Sendmail

    I'm having the same issue lately on my right hip and I've informally diagnosed it as hip bursitis since it's symptoms match a friend of mines who is also female. I think I got it from favoring my right side since my left foot has plantar faciitis. I'm not kidding. the body is a moving system and if one thing gets out of wack it throws other stuff out of wack--so to speak. Does your wife have tight calves or any other issues that may be pushing her to favor the side with her hurt hip? These are just my best guesses after about 20 years of running. I'm not an exercise physiologist. Just another frustrated runner dealing with an injury. Good luck. :)

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Genevieve M.
    Genevieve M. Sendmail

    It could be greater tronchateric bursitis as the first commenter suggested. Does the pain feel like a burning sensation and seem to reside right over where her leg inserts into her hip ? There's usually some tell-tale signs like pain when you lay on it, pain going upstairs or uphill etc. I have been dealing with bursitis for over 2 months and I finally had to get a cortisone shot in my hip since taking a break from running, massage, and a chiropractor weren't solving the issue. I would definitely get it looked at by a chiropractor or orthopedist and see if they can make a diagnosis.

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Kim D.
    Kim D. Sendmail

    I am a licensed massage therapist and I have a degree in Exercise Science so I thought I'd throw my 2 cents in. You said that "she doesn't think it's muscular......sciatica" - did you misquote? The reason I ask is because if she believes it is NOT muscular, she needs to go see a medical doctor first. It probably wouldn't be a bad idea to go see an MD before she does anything with it. Get X-Rays and then go see a good massage therapist. Try to find a private LMT as they will spend more time in actually figuring out what her problem is. I have had many runners come to me for the same problem. Quite frequently the problem lies in the glute muscles. I hope this helps! I can help you locate a massage therapist in your area if you don't already know one.

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Charles P.
    Charles P. Sendmail

    Although I have not been diagnosed with piriformas by a doctor, I have had the symptoms off and on for over 6 months. The pain is in deep tissue in the buttocks and stems downward along the leg. I have found that if i massage nightly, the pain goes away. If I run daily, the pain goes away. If i take more than one day off, the pain worsens. Bottom line, for me, RUNNING MORE is the fix..

    posted over 2 years ago | edited over 2 years ago

  • Michelle K.
    Michelle K. Sendmail

    I also tend to suffer from piriformis symptoms and my massage therapist has been my best friend. She has mentioned to me before that she sees alot of women who suffer with this during their pregnancies. It it pretty amazing how she can find a problem spot and work it out, I can totally feel the release sensation. I also see a chiropractor for periodic adjustments. I have made a shoe change during all of this and it seems to have helped alot. She might want to be refitted for shoes as her feet could have changed alot while being pregnant. I don't have firsthand experience with this, but have heard about it from several sources.

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Michelle K.
    Michelle K. Sendmail

    I also forgot to mention that I use a foam roller daily and I try to stretch daily as well. The foam roller is one of the best tools I have run across.

    posted over 2 years ago

  • David H.
    David H. Sendmail

    If it is a piriformis issue, what has assisted me in one way or another:

    - foam roller (thighs, hamstring, IT, bumper area)
    - lay on tennis ball and put deep pressure in that piriformis area (as somehow try to be relaxed while doing it)
    - bumper stretch: lay on back, place ankle on opposite knee, bring up to chest. Perform on both legs. This can put a pretty good stretch in the bumper area.
    - I have also been assisted by a massage therapist and she brought me back to life quickly. An hour and fifteen minutes of pain, but it worked.

    Good luck!

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Tracy L.
    Tracy L. Sendmail

    I have had problems with sciatica, like your wife, since my 2nd pregnancy. My family doc sent me for physical therapy, which included massage therapy. It totally worked, and they sent me home with stretches to do. BUT, it always eventually comes back. In my case, my hips get out of alignment, causing pressure on my sciatic nerve on one side or the other. It's not always the same side. I would start with her regular doc and see what s/he recommends. From reading the responses, it could be a number of things...

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Chio
    Chio Sendmail
    in reply to what David H. said:If it is a piriformis issue, what has assisted me in one way or another: - foam roller (thighs, hamstring, IT, bumper area) - lay on tennis ball and put deep pressure in that piriformis area (as somehow try to be relaxed while doing it) - bumper ... read more

    Get it checked out! I ran with hip pain for a few months until my body finally decided enough was enough. It turns out my hip pain stems from my back, but my PT also gave me a bunch of exercises which include the ones that David suggested. I can foam-roll my butt and hamstrings, but can't put myself through that kind of pain along my IT band. For that, my PT is more than happy to assist!

    I also find that you can get a deeper bumper stretch if you do it sitting up and drop your bellybutton (while keeping a flat back) down towards to your ankle on opposite knee.

    Another stretch that works for me is when you lie on your back and pull your leg towards the opposite shoulder.

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Peter L.PRO
    Peter L. Sendmail

    Thanks all for your responses - based on what you've all posted here, it sounds like it might be hip bursitis and not a sciaticnerve/piriformis issue. I think I've convinced her to go see the doc, and maybe a massage therapist. Thanks again!

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Alison R.
    Alison R. Sendmail
    in reply to what Peter L. said:Thanks all for your responses - based on what you've all posted here, it sounds like it might be hip bursitis and not a sciaticnerve/piriformis issue. I think I've convinced her to go see the doc, and maybe a massage therapist. Thanks again!

    When I finished my first half-marathon, I had hip pain in the weeks afterward and was diagnosed with hip bursitis. I laid off running and took anti-inflammatories. Fast-forward 4 years--I just finished the same half-marathon, with no injuries. The difference? I use a foam roller and "the stick" on my calves (a trainer said I had very tight calves, which is common among runners and those who spend time at computers--i.e., almost all of us) and my glutes every time before I run or exercise (weights, crosstrain, etc.). It has made a huge difference, and I suspect I didn't have bursitis the first time--just some bad body mechanics that caused other problems.

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Erin M.
    Erin M. Sendmail

    I'm currently battling a hip problem as well, I've had it since October and finally saw the doc. Got a mri, its bad inflammation--but extremely painful. He told me to stop running when it hurts, but I can't do any further damage. I went to physical therapy for about a month and the doc prescribed me some anti-inflammatory medicine. PT and the meds has worked wonders, I am pain free as long as I do the exercises my therapist gave me.

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Stephanie M.
    Stephanie M. Sendmail

    Everyone who has responded has agreed pretty much that massage therapy is an excellent treatment, as I do, too! Also stretching many times a day is an excellent treatment. Just getting up from your desk and doing the runners stretch(one leg over the other and trying to touch your toes) for 20 seconds does wonders! That one stretch has helped my hip pain more than any other stretch. I've got an s-curve scoliosis and have gone to chiropractors all my life. But now that my husband and I are daily walker/runners, new pains have cropped up. Hip/knee being mine and plantar fasciitis being his. After spending WAY TO MUCH money with regular docs/orthopedics/the wrong chiropractor with zero help and my husband limping across the room for a couple of months, we finally found the solution. We relocated our old chiropractor in Atlanta and found that he'd stepped up his treatments a huge notch. He has learned and now treats the Atlanta Braves, the Atlanta Thrashers and Hawks and many other major league baseball players, olympic swimmers, the list goes on, with a procedure called "active release". It is very specific movement/massage therapy. There is a book called "Athletic Body In Balance" by Gray Cook which explains the body's balance in conjunction to our ailments and injuries and describes the active release stretches and workouts. Our doctor only performs adjusts when necessary now, but in the "active release" treatments, the body tends to adjust itself. My husband had such bad plantar, that all other doctors told him he'd have to stop running. But after only two active release treatments, he was able to run again pain free!!! We now both stretch very often, which of course, is prescribed by any ortho or PT, but it has really, really helped both of us as well. I doubt you live in Atlanta, so Google "active release doctors" in your area, and I'm sure it will help her a lot!

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Juliette C.
    Juliette C. Sendmail

    check out runner's world website-they have a video called Myrtl Workout for hips. i've been dealing with hip pain for years. It got really bad during pregnancy! Then i found this and running is finally pain free...

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Kimberly P.
    Kimberly P. Sendmail

    I had hip pain for over a month. When I couldn't get into a sports med doc for two more months, I made an appointment with a chiropractor who I knew would be supportive of running. (I didn't want a regular doc who would give me a bunch of pills or a chiro who would tell me I'm too old and to stop running!)

    As it turns out, I have a whole slew of alignment issues that were contributing to the hip pain. After just two weeks, I'm running completely pain-free. Seeing a chiropractor (and using the foam roller regularly) is the one piece of running advice I wish someone had given me when I first started. I would have never guessed the pain started due to issues with my spine and pelvis!

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Joanna S.
    Joanna S. Sendmail

    I work as a PT aide at a (non-traditional) physical therapy office in Los Angeles where we use an instrument that measures inflammation in soft tissues objectively, so we don't have to guess where the source of your pain is coming from. We get a lot of patients coming in with the "sciatica" symptoms, only to find that it is not true sciatica but "small sciatica - or piriformis syndrome."

    If anyone is interested, my boss has an article from his book up on the website - http://www.advtherapy.net/html/articles.html. It's under the Syndrome section.

    People usually get this from sitting on hard surfaces for too long. After we treat them using our method of estim, soft-tissue manipulation/mobilization, ultrasound using topical ibuprofen, and seated vibration, the suggestion is to avoid sitting on hard surfaces for AT LEAST two weeks. Carrying a cushion for your tush for 2 weeks doesn't sound all that fun, but neither is the pain associated with this syndrome!

    I'm really not one for self-promotion but I've seen way too many people being misdiagnosed by doctors & not getting better after months of "shake & bake" physical therapy. If anyone is suffering from this kind of problem & is in the LA area (or willing to drive there), PLEASE give us a call (or check out the web article). We can usually "fix" it in 1-2 sessions. We don't want you to be coming back for months! On a side note, we mostly specialize in treating musicians, but we've treated several adventurer-racers, Iron Man competitors, and top athletes.

    If anyone has any questions, feel free to shoot me a message! I'll do my best to respond =)

    posted almost 2 years ago

  • John H.
    John H. Sendmail

    I had been suffering for 5 years. I had been given muscle relaxers, pains killers and physical therapy. I tried shots, massages and over the counter pain relievers. All of this to no avail. When I saw an ad in a local paper and the story about shoulder pain, I was amazed that
    Sandy Springs GA Chiropractor knew exactly what I was suffering from. I cant thank him enough for giving me my life back.I have never gone to a Doctor's office where I felt more comfortable, more important and at ease.

    posted 11 months ago | edited 11 months ago

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