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Mike L.PRO
Mike L. Sendmail

Sciatica...

posted about 3 years ago | Report

Has anyone else had issues with their sciatic nerve in their legs? It's kind of a dull pain that starts in your lower back and can cause a numb feeling going down the back of your leg. From what I've read, the nerve gets irritated or is pinched in some way. I was just curious if anyone else had experience with this condition and what they did to alleviate it.

Thanks everyone!

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17 posts

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  • Jane D.
    Jane D. Sendmail

    There are 6 deep lateral rotators beneath your glutes. They attach from the top of your leg (femur) to your pelvis and are resposible for rotating your leg outward. The largest of these, the piriformis, when it gets tight (as it can do with runners) impinges the sciatic nerve (which is about the size of your thumb). Chiropractic, massage and stretching can do wonders-especially stretching.
    Good luck!

    posted about 3 years ago

  • Sarah H.
    Sarah H. Sendmail

    I agree with Jane, I've had issues with sciatica off and on since college and have also found that a heating pad is great for loosening things up enough for me to actually be able to stretch when I'm having a particularly bad day :)

    posted about 3 years ago

  • Mike L.PRO
    Mike L. Sendmail

    Thanks for the advice! Guess I have to stretch out that piriformis a little more beforehand, huh?

    posted about 3 years ago

  • Jane D.
    Jane D. Sendmail
    in reply to what Mike L. said:Thanks for the advice! Guess I have to stretch out that piriformis a little more beforehand, huh?

    Don't stretch until you've warmed up a bit, but really focus on the most stretching at the END of your run

    posted about 3 years ago

  • Mike L.PRO
    Mike L. Sendmail

    Sounds good. I need all the stretching advice I can get. I'm horribly inflexible in my legs, actually. I can't ever seem to get effective stretches for the hammys and glutes.

    posted about 3 years ago

  • Kristen F.PRO
    Kristen F. Sendmail

    I have had sciatica for a few years and although it never bothers me when I am running, it is EXTREMELY painful after driving for more then 2 hours OR if I have an injury in the area that it originates. I have found a series of stretches that target the lower back and the IT band area, always play a big roll in helping the pain subside with it's at it's prime. As mentioned below, a heating pad is always very helpful as well. You may also want to look into strength training your lower back and upper legs if you're not doing so already. I believe this has helped my sciatica a great deal.

    posted about 3 years ago

  • Mike L.PRO
    Mike L. Sendmail
    in reply to what Kristen F. said:I have had sciatica for a few years and although it never bothers me when I am running, it is EXTREMELY painful after driving for more then 2 hours OR if I have an injury in the area that it originates. I have found a series of stretches that targ... read more

    Thanks Kristen. This is my first time ever having a problem with it. I would consider it "mild" at worst, but definitely noticeable. Probably moreso now that I've picked up my mileage in 2009. I think the main problem is the stretching though. Do you know any good ones? I know the "crossing legs" stretch to stretchout the piriformis but that's really about it.

    Thanks again :)

    posted about 3 years ago

  • Jay P.PRO
    Jay P. Sendmail

    I actually had surgery 6 years ago for a herniated disc that caused a lot of sciatica pain. Since then, I've focused on strengthening my lower back and stretching a lot, and no problems since then...

    posted about 3 years ago

  • Kristen F.PRO
    Kristen F. Sendmail

    Mike - I routinely do several stretches that are illustrated here:
    http://www.spine-health.com/wellness/exercise/overview-sciatica-exercises When I first started utilizing these I did them all until I found the ones that I felt truly help with my pain. And for the IT Band - I do these when it acts up which isn't too often these days: http://www.howtostretch.com/iliotibi.htm . My IT band usually aggravates my sciatica when it does rear it's ugly head so this is why I often do a variation of both stretch sets.

    posted about 3 years ago

  • Jessica R.
    Jessica R. Sendmail

    I have!! Went to a Chiropractor and got it taken care of with just a few visits!

    posted almost 3 years ago

  • Michelle K.
    Michelle K. Sendmail

    I have been dealing with this for about 6 weeks now--it took a while to finally figure out what was causing the pain. My chiropractor confirmed that it was probably related to the piriformis and he sent me to the massage therapist. The massages were pretty intense and not at all like the "foo foo" massages that you might imagine. I haven't been out for a run yet, but I can tell a big difference just walking around. Apparently my piriformis, hamstrings, and adductors were all tight. I also use a foam roller 2-3 times a day and do some stretching.

    posted almost 3 years ago

  • Phil G.
    Phil G. Sendmail

    If you see an osteopathic physician especially one that specializes in manipulation, they can do you wonders.

    posted almost 3 years ago

  • Shannon M.
    Shannon M. Sendmail

    I have had issues with my lower back and nerve pain for like 15 years now, and it comes and goes. Usually when it does bother me I try to make sure that I sleep on my back with my knees elevated and if I sleep on my side, I place a big pillow between my knees to reduce the pressure on my back. Also sleeping on your stomach can aggravate it.

    Question: running is new to me, but if I feel some pain my my lower back (mild) and have some mild nerve pain, is it irresponsible to run, or is it better to wait a day or two and see what happens? I'm due to run with a group for the first time tonight and I feel so disappointed that this is happening today of all days.

    posted almost 3 years ago

  • Malea R.
    Malea R. Sendmail

    Hi,
    There is a free podcast from Yogamazing that is just for Sciatica. It works wonders! They are easy beginner moves but the relief is instant.
    Malea

    posted over 2 years ago

  • Alicia
    Alicia Sendmail

    I first "got" sciatica back in October. After a 3 mile run, my, well, butt, was sore, as it sometimes had been after runs. I stretched it out as I normally did, but it still hurt, enough to make me walk funny. By the time I got home from the gym, I could barely get out of the car. I'll spare you the entire story, but I could not MOVE for the next 2 days. Managed to get to the dr and found out it was sciatica.

    I finally ended up going to physical therapy through the winter and basically there were some pelvic alignment issues, amongst other things, causing the muscle to compress the sciatic nerve. They had me doing tons of core strengthening exercises, so if you do a search for those and do them, they'll be helpful. I also use a balance ball and do exercises on there.

    The pain tends to come back (not as bad as that first time, luckily) when I do a lot of walking, walk with a long stride (which unfortunately is natural for me), or sit for long periods of time (again, unfortunate due to having a desk job). I admit I slacked off on my exercises prior to my half marathon because I'd been feeling good, and during the race, the sciatic pain came back in full force. It's proof enough to me to know that the exercises help. My PT also recommended yoga, btw.

    posted almost 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. 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 you are interested, my boss has an article from his book up on the website - http://www.advtherapy.net/html/articles.html.

    People usually get this from sitting on hard surfaces for too long. After we treat them using electric stimulation, soft-tissue manipulation/mobilization, ultrasound using topical ibuprofen, and seated vibrator, 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 from this syndrome!

    I'm really not the 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, PLEASE give us a call (or check out the web article). We can usually "fix" it in 1-2 sessions =)

    posted almost 2 years ago

  • Dave
    Dave Sendmail

    Got over something very similar just recently.

    Pain radiating from mid-glutes on right side, up to lower back and down to calf. Went to doctor and PTs (2), who did not help. In retrospect, as they themselves were not runners (doctor looked like he had not exercised in about 30 years - which should have been a red light from the start) - in my case - they did not know what to look for.

    Running on pain killers one day, realized that the pain was minimal as I ran uphill and then sky-rocketed the moment I started the descent. Did some modifications to posture and this has stopped the problem for me. Although post-hoc remedies like stretching and MF release (especially piriformis) helped, the posture was clearly the issue. Although some residual inflammation seems to exist, this gets better each day, and pain killers are no longer needed.

    I have since focused on keeping back straight, head up, and shoulders back. I realized that an imbalance of strength between front (pectoral and abdominal) and back (lower back and rear deltoids) was the most likely culprit and was pulling my body forward during runs; started strengthening exercises to remedy this.

    Can't be sure it's the same problem, but if any of those postural issues ring a bell for you, it might be worth working on.

    posted almost 2 years ago

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