Posted on January 14, 2016 by Jenny Cromack
Pain In The Butt!!
The hip, pelvis, and lower back can be collectively known as the lumbo-pelvic-hip complex. This is an area that has various muscles acting around it and all it takes is a shortening or weakness of these muscles to cause havoc. Rather than bore you with every possible scenario that could be present in this area this article aims to highlight, more generally, pain and dysfunction during squatting movements.
If you have ever had any issues with squatting, you may have experienced one or more of the following symptoms:
- A catching or nipping pain in the upper, front thigh and hip
- Pain in the outer or font knee
- A feeling of tightness or jamming in this front thigh/hip area
- Lower back pain
When assessing people with these complaints there are several things that usually occur as a combined result of the muscle imbalances that may be present. The common dysfunctions I have seen during a squat analysis with my clients are the following:
- Knees bow or fall inwards
- Excessive forward lean of the upper body
- Lower back arches
- Weight shifts more on to one leg or towards forefoot
There is no one explanation for what may be happening and you should always seek medical advice to rule out any injury or medical condition if self-treatment has no effect. A combination of factors often influences hip pain and complaints when squatting these include joint dysfunction, and muscle lengthening or shortening. So, here is my advice for painful squats
Joint Dysfunctions. . .
This simply means that some of the joints in this area may slightly misaligned or sat in a suboptimal position. An example is that the head of the thigh bone (femur) can sit slightly forward and upwards in its socket. This can cause a nipping of the soft tissues within the hip joint. A second common one is a forward (anterior) rotation of the joint in the pelvis (sacroiliac joint). This can accentuate the nipping caused by the above hip misalignment but also cause excessive arching of the lower back.
Shortened, Overactive Tissues. . .
The dysfunctions often occur through muscular and soft tissue changes such as shortening. Some of the common muscles that I have experienced to be shortened are the piriformis, hip flexors (especially the rectus femoris), adductors, and hip capsule. These muscles may feel tender and restricted when stretched. There are several ways of addressing this such as; stretching, foam rolling, tissue release, or deep tissue massage.
Lengthened, Underactive Tissue. . .
When it comes to the under-active, lengthened, tissues these are often the glutes and the muscles of the core i.e. the rectus abdominis (“abs”) and obliques. A weakness or excessive length in these muscles reduce the ability to maintain proper stability and control of their associate joints. This means the joints will be allowed to slip into suboptimal positions causing the dysfunctions. For example, with weak glutes the pelvis can’t be pulled back and maintained in a neutral position hence the forward rotation. As with any weak muscle, we need to train it to strengthen it and activate it.
My Advised Exercises:
If you perform an internet search for the following exercise it should bring up video demonstrations of these exercises.
Mobilisations and Stretches…
- Spiderman Hip Capsule Mobilisation
- Rocking Squat (Rock left to right in deep squat position)
- Pigeon Pose (Piriformis Stretch)
- Kneeling Hip Flexor Stretch
- Face Down Quad Stretch
- Frog Adductor Stretch
Perform each mobilisation and stretch for 30 seconds 2-3 times daily and especially before and after your training sessions.
Activation and Strengthening Exercises
- Single Leg Glute Bridges
- Glute Clams
- Banded Lateral Monster Walks
- Plank
- Supermen
Perform each of the exercises for 12-15 reps (30-45 seconds for the plank), for 2-3 sets every other day and add it into a warm up before your training sessions.
You can also find some great tips of foam rolling in our foam rolling blog article here. This gives you some great tips on effective foam rolling techniques.
If stretching and strengthen exercises have no effect on your pain and symptoms or the symptoms worsen and translate into other areas of your life stop these immediately and gain medical advice. Long lasting hip complaint that is not relieved with exercise or with time needs further investigation. The above is not an alternative for seeking advice from a medical professional it is merely what I have found to be successful for myself and some of my clients. Give these a go if you have any nipping or nagging hip pain during your squats.
Good Luck!