Running? Hip Pain?
I have been reminded this week by a few Runners, both newbies
and experienced runners, that there is nothing better in this spring weather
than being able to put on a pair of trainers and just run out your front
door!
I also recently visited St
Francis Running Club where I was warmly welcomed by a group of committed
and experienced runners. Talking to the
runners it was really interesting to note that a few of the women runners in
the Club all had similar “aches, niggles, tension” (we all have different names
for it) at the side of and back of one hip, amongst the buttock muscles. With my Sports Massage, and own running
experience, this led me to promptly check out the following muscles to see if
they were the culprits:
Piriformis- a small muscle lying deep in the middle of the
buttocks, joining the sacrum and the ball of the thigh bone
Gluteus Medius – which lies underneath and on the side of our
big superficial gluteus maximus
and the Gluteus Maximus itself (generally at the top of the
pelvis)
To understand if it is one of these muscles causing a problem, I
ask my Client to perform a few simple movements and upon this movement I
palpate and ask how these muscles are feeling?
As a Sports Massage Therapist I would then go on to treat the
problem muscles HOWEVER IMPORTANTLY
I continue to consider the surrounding muscles, the position and structure of
the hip and what is happening further down the leg at the knee and the ankle,
in order to start to identify what could be the cause of the tension at the
hip? Put simply and generally tension
means the muscles are overworking, compensating for weaker muscles. Women tend to be more susceptible to hip pain
owing to the wider female pelvis structure and more inward orientated thigh
bones, than males, and hence females tend to have more instability at the knees
and ankles and more force running through the calves, knees, thigh and into the
hips. Another common cause is over-pronation at the feet, so trainers wearing
out more on the outside of the heel, causing more force running through the
outer legs and hips.
So what do I suggest ?
Well, by identifying the causes of tension I aim to educate my
Client, to give them the power and knowledge to do something about it. I can treat the muscles but in order for you
to truly feel great and to continue to do so when running our muscles also need
to be STRONG, so strength training
is really important. Research has proven
that by strengthening hip muscles over-pronation is partially corrected [1]
We discuss the muscles and try out which exercises will help
build improved strength.
Typically the main muscles to focus on strengthening
are the hip abductors, which are the outer hip and thigh muscles, specifically
the gluteus maximus and medius, tensor fasciae latae, piriformis and the hip
flexors at the front of the hip and thigh.
So I am not talking about having to spend hours at the gym, the
type of exercises we can discuss are not time consuming, it just requires
knowledge, a bit of time (whilst watching TV at the end of the day?) your focus
and then it will be great to feel your
over all stamina and fitness improving, and over the spring and
summer months and you can continue to throw on the trainers and run out into
the sunshine!
If you would like to discuss anything in this article, or have
any general questions, please email or give me a call www.nickysportsmassage.com.
[1] University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. Jennifer Earl, Phd., ATC, and colleagues prescribed a hip-strengthening program to a
group of healthy female runners for eight weeks.