In this video I talk about running and back pain.  I treat a lot of runners.  Unfortunately runners will often suffer from hip pain, back pain, knee pain, foot pain.  You name it and a runner can probably have a problem with it.  Now everyone will present differently, but what I find in many cases is that the pelvis can be tipped forward and rotated.  The most common thing I see is the left side of the pelvis is tipped forward and rotated to the right.  This can cause back pain, sciatica, hip pain, and knee pain to name a few problems.

“I was told I need to strengthen my gluts”

I hear this quite often.  The other one I hear a lot is, “I need to strengthen my core.” I would agree with both of these statements.  Many people do need to strengthen their glut muscles and get their core stronger for various reasons, but there are good and not so good ways to go about doing this.  Often times people will start in on an exercise program without giving any thought to the underlying dysfunction (in this example it would be a poorly positioned pelvis).  When this happens a few things can occur.  The exercises won’t be as effective, in many cases just a waste of time, and in some cases it can actually make a problem worse.  The runner may have to decrease the amount they are running or stop running altogether if it gets bad enough (and we know how much runner’s love to do that!)

Where Do I Go From Here? 

The majority of these things can be taken care of with conservative treatment.  What you want is to find someone who can get your pelvis in a good position, and keep it in a good position!  I tell people the easy part is getting your pelvis in the correct position, the hard part is keeping it that way.  How do we do that?  By addressing the underlying cause of the problem and not just treating a symptom.  When we correct the underlying muscle imbalance that is causing your pelvis to be tipped and rotated then you will start to see lasting results that can get you back to running without issue.  Better yet, you won’t have to spend a lifetime seeing a practitioner who continues to tell you your hips are constantly off or “going out.”

If you have any questions about any of these things feel free to check out the website www.advancedpts.com or give me a call at 720-357-4079.  I’ll see you out on the trails!