Man, that's a great resource. Thanks for the link.

I've been having what started with knee issues, went to PT, they started manipulating my leg to identify hip issues. That led to piriformis which I've been trying to stretch away. Glute medeus weakness too.
Had an MRI last week and doctor ruled out meniscal tear so concludes is runner's knee. Got a shot and doctor cleared me to run. Limited by pain.


So, am pretty uncertain about how to return to running, timing, mileage, etc.

I took a rest day Monday and tried to run Tuesday but I got one mile in then my lower glute/side of hip tightened up to the point I had to stop. I felt fine afterwards and all day...no symptoms. I tried again this morning and made it about 1.5 miles before my glute/lower hip got really tight and uncomfortable. I could feel it affecting my stride. I stopped at mile 4. I noticed it worse going up hills. I could feel it after I was dose and my whole upper leg was tight. It feels more tight when I do the pigeon stretch than they other leg. But can pirformis really just show up when running to the point it makes you stop? I don't have sharp pain or shooting pain down my leg. Any more thoughts?

i went to a really good chiro/pt and he found a leg length difference of 7mm. put a lift in my heal. feels great! i have felt for a long time that that leg was a bit shorter. i was compensating, making all kinds of problems for me.

I'm seeing PT Friday....I will ask about this.

I guess its time to shut the running down. I have been taking a few days off here and there and trying to run. But everytime I get to the 1.5 mile mark it comes back. I even took 3 days off and I was able to get 2 miles in but it came back. Do I assume the worst (such as a stress fracture) and stop running 6 weeks? If its tendonitis, I would assume this will take 3-4 weeks anyway. At this point, I keep delaying my return when I keep trying to run even if it is only 1-2 miles....correct?

Well after some minimal running (less than 3-4 mi per week) since mid-March I decided to run again. I ran 10 miles the week of April 14, 15 miles the week of April 21, and I have run 10 miles this week in the hopes of 17-20 miles. I feel great after any run less than 3 miles. But I am noticing the glute tightening when I ran 4 miles the other day.

Do I continue to keep the runs short? I am running everyday now or should I run every other day with trying to go longer on the runs?

Also, a sports ortho doc thinks its high hamstring tendonitis. But my PT thinks my glute is not firing correctly and throwing everything off. But you think by now this stuff would have healed? I am doing a lot better than I was in March when the glue would like up after 1.5 miles but I don't know if this is because I rested so long and the minute I continue to increase my mileage it will come right back.

Sorry to read you are still suffering with this.

From your description of the location you gave in your original post, it seems to correlate with the glut med origin, or gluteal aponeurosis. To me it sounds like a tendinosis. Strange that your sports doc and PT cannot agree on the location.

I didn't read anywhere that you had an MRI? Even if you did the gluteal origin is often outside the field of view. Centering is on the hip joint, quite a bit lower

Anyway, if it is tendinosis, I don't think you can expect it to have healed in this length of time. I know of a number of athletes who deal with this kind of problem for many months if not years, and it becomes a matter of managing the problem, by determining appropriate activity thresholds, regarding volume and intensity.

In other words, take it very slowly. Try to work out what you can do without symptoms, and do that for a while. No more than that. Over time, hopefully the threshold will rise, or even disappear. Might just take a while, and probably longer than you think.