That's one of the reasons people workout — to look better, which includes having a nice rump. But the butt is important for many reasons other than eye candy. A misbehaving tushy actually can cause pain in your back, knees, and even ankles and feet. Most notably, however, is probably the lower back.
Tight glutes can cause as much lower back discomfort as weak glutes can, so overtraining these muscles or working in occupations that requires prolonged sitting can lead to tightness in the lower back area. The piriformis muscle is a muscle that can be found in the buttock area.
Sciatica is one of the most common reasons people have a combination of lower back and buttock pain, and this condition occurs when one of the sciatic nerve roots in the lower back is pinched or irritated.
Sharp pain rather than a dull ache: This could indicate a torn muscle or ligament, or a problem with an internal organ in the back or side. 2. Radiating pain: This pain "moves" or shoots to the glutes or legs, which could indicate a nerve compression condition. Radiating pain could be a sign of nerve damage.
Some common disorders which can mimic chronic low back pain include sciatica, facet arthropathy, osteoporotic compression fractures, infection, tumor, trauma, and inflammatory diseases.
It can be difficult to differentiate between bone and muscle pain, because they affect similar parts of the body. The pain may also be similar in intensity. However, in general, bone pain feels sharper, deeper, and more debilitating than muscle pain.
In many cases lower back pain stops on its own. But if it doesn't, here are some guidelines on when you may want to start seeking professional help: If the pain lasts four weeks or longer. If the pain keeps getting worse as time goes by.
Most back pain will subside after a few days, but if you've been experiencing pain for over a week, then it's time to call a doctor. Your doctor will perform any examinations or tests required to help get to the bottom of your pain before it could become a bigger problem.
Sciatica — The sciatic nerves run from the lower back, through the buttocks and down the back of the legs. Sciatica occurs when one of these nerves is pinched or irritated. The most common symptom of this condition is sharp or shocklike pain.
Strong glutes, on the other hand, support the lower back, reducing the incidence of compression and pain in the lumbar spine.
Your glutes always feel tight
Unless you're recovering from a squat-laden gym session, your glutes probably shouldn't be feeling tight or sore. More often than not, chronic muscle tightness is a sign of weakness.
Place your right ankle on your thigh just above your knee. Allow your right knee to relax out to the side as far as is comfortable. With your hands resting on your shins and your back straight, slowly lean forward from the hips until you feel a gentle stretch in your right glute. Hold there for 10 to 30 seconds.
Acute low back pain is most often caused by a sudden injury to the muscles and ligaments supporting the back. The pain may be caused by muscle spasms or a strain or tear in the muscles and ligaments. Causes of sudden low back pain include: Compression fractures to the spine from osteoporosis.
Morning back pain can stem from a problem with sleeping posture, mattress, or pillows. However, a hurting back in the morning can also indicate a problem, such as degenerative disk disease or fibromyalgia. Waking up with back pain can slow down a person's start on the day.
“Red flags” include pain that lasts more than 6 weeks; pain in persons younger than 18 years or older than 50 years; pain that radiates below the knee; a history of major trauma; constitutional symptoms; atypical pain (eg, that which occurs at night or that is unrelenting); the presence of a severe or rapidly ...
Acute (short-term) back pain lasts a few days to a few weeks. It usually resolves on its own within a few days with self-care and there is no long-term loss of function. Chronic back pain is pain that continues for 12 weeks or longer, even after an initial injury or underlying cause of back pain has been treated.
While some back pain is only mild to moderate, severe back pain is when your pain is constant, intense or gets worse when you're resting or at night. 2. Your pain is persistent. If your back pain lasts longer than three months, it's considered chronic and may require a tailored treatment plan.
Chronic back pain: Long-term pain
Chronic pain is serious because the symptoms are strong enough to impact your health, mobility and quality of life for an extended period of time. While chronic back pain can come on suddenly, it usually builds gradually and lasts more than six weeks.
Chronic back pain is usually age-related, but can also result from a prior injury. The most common causes include: Arthritis of the spine —the gradual thinning of the cartilage inside the spine. Spinal stenosis —narrowing of the spinal canal that may lead to nerve pain.
Nerve pain can feel different from other types of back pain. Nerve pain tends to be sharp. It includes sensations of burning, tingling, and numbness. In contrast, muscular pain typically causes muscles and joints to feel stiff, achy, or tender.
“By far the most common cause of back pain is non-specific muscular pain, which is basically a muscle strain.” Dr. Ashburn explains. One common symptom to look out for is non-specific, intense muscular pain on one or both sides of the lower back.
Going on walks: Initial research suggests that going on a walk or brisk walking (Nordic walking) can help relieve back pain if done regularly – for instance, every two days for 30 to 60 minutes.
In general, osteoarthritis (the most common type of arthritis) and degenerative disk disease (the natural wear and tear of spinal disks) are the underlying cause of many types of chronic lower back pain. However, lower back pain can also be caused by accident-related trauma and acute stress.