OK, been dealing with sore lumbar in back for months now, which bothers me most while sitting in chair.
Finally saw a PT and while going over stretches/excersies, she did a massage or really applied pressure on psoas by going into front of abdomen just to side of navel area.
I get almost instant back relief now, but doesnt last. Now when i massage it i notice the right side is much sorer to pressure at first but i can still get quick relief while sitting.
Is there another muscle group that is pulling on the upper psoas that is causing it to be tight?
OK, been dealing with sore lumbar in back for months now, which bothers me most while sitting in chair.
Finally saw a PT and while going over stretches/excersies, she did a massage or really applied pressure on psoas by going into front of abdomen just to side of navel area.
I get almost instant back relief now, but doesnt last. Now when i massage it i notice the right side is much sorer to pressure at first but i can still get quick relief while sitting.
Is there another muscle group that is pulling on the upper psoas that is causing it to be tight?
DFW, any luck with this? I’m struggling with the same issue. Stretching the psoas relieves the hip and lumbar pain (brought on by sitting) but I have a constant feeling of tension in my gut, like the psoas is pulling my chest down. See a chiro for deep tissue message and stretch multiple times a day, everyday from the calves to the glutes, but it just won’t resolve.
OK, been dealing with sore lumbar in back for months now, which bothers me most while sitting in chair.
Finally saw a PT and while going over stretches/excersies, she did a massage or really applied pressure on psoas by going into front of abdomen just to side of navel area.
I get almost instant back relief now, but doesnt last. Now when i massage it i notice the right side is much sorer to pressure at first but i can still get quick relief while sitting.
Is there another muscle group that is pulling on the upper psoas that is causing it to be tight?
DFW, any luck with this? I’m struggling with the same issue. Stretching the psoas relieves the hip and lumbar pain (brought on by sitting) but I have a constant feeling of tension in my gut, like the psoas is pulling my chest down. See a chiro for deep tissue message and stretch multiple times a day, everyday from the calves to the glutes, but it just won’t resolve.
M
along with stretching your tight psoas, you might also want to strengthen you lower back. your psoas is probably pulling at the insertion point right along the spine, giving that sensation. strengthen lower back, and glutes…
Of course, a muscle imbalance! Stretch the tight muscle and strengthen the opposing one. Any strengthening recommendations, supermans and bridges? I have been doing these to manage backlit and knee issues, apparently not enough though.
Did a Google search on stretching. Runners World once mentioned Lengthen before Strengthen. Doing sit ups or seated hill repeats will put you in that crunching position that is engaging the psoas, so a good yoga stretch( amongst other techniques) is needed to lengthen it.
Of course, a muscle imbalance! Stretch the tight muscle and strengthen the opposing one. Any strengthening recommendations, supermans and bridges? I have been doing these to manage backlit and knee issues, apparently not enough though.
M
Sustained holds. When I do bridges, I do 3x at least 60 seconds worth alternating single leg raise. Supermans are also 3x 60 seconds with the first 45 seconds in a T position, and the last 15 in full straight armed superman.
Posture is also a big deal, do pay attention to how you are sitting. Also a good yoga pose would be anything in the warrior series.
between amount of time seated, doing bike in aero, sleeping with legs not fully extended adds up. 3 sets of 45 secs to stretch psoas not really enough.
i lie on edge of bed (it is up high enough for me) and let one leg hang over edge/side of bed at end of day and watch tv. to get a little more stretch i put light leg weight on. i do contract the glute as well.
your psoas did not get tight overnite, it may take some time. even with massage on muscle or art you need to lengthen.
No real progress, going dedicate 6weeks after IMCoz to just rebalancing the hip region, I think it’s next to impossible to see a real difference in middle of IM training. Going to hit it with joga, strength and stretch and more myotherapy. Basically all the above.
I am responding to you but this applies to anyone who has asked something regarding strengthening vs. stretching. Although i would tend to agree that it is better to lengthen before strengthen in a running context (hamstring, calves, and general muscle related to running), i disagree when dealing with pain in complex anatomical region like the lower back and hip (the foot is another region that comes to mind). The goal is to provide some stability (now i won’t go into dynamic stability but let’s just say that in the short to mid-term you would much rather have lower back stability in case of an injury or a musculoskeletal problem).
Also there was an advice given earlier to stretch the hamstring on the affected side and i would STRONGLY disagree with that advice as the hamstring is an antagonist muscle of the psoas and it keeps it stretch. By stretching the hamstring, you are basically allowing the psoas to contract further and further. I would advise you (to the OP) to look into trigger points in the opposite quadratus lumborum as well as it probably is pretty tight from trying to keep your spine from translating to the affected side (psoas). It is not a simple matter but as a general rule of thumb you (the OP) i would suggest stretching the affected psoas, trigger points in the opposite quadratus lumborum (seek help from a professional for this one) and quickly trying to strenghten the same side quadratus lumborum though posture exercise. Just to confirm you should try to some side-bridge an see which side is weaker, i would tend to believe that balancing on the shoulder of the affected side should be way harder to maintain than the other side.
Good luck and feel free to ask questions.
P.S. just a quick wrap-up as some of what i said might sound contradictory even though it’s not. Trigger points and stretching are for instant relief of pain but you don’t want instability in a complex anatomical region like the lower back.
i did lot of damage to my low back doing im…too tired, too busy to do proper stretching at day’s end. think a lot of my back problem beside tigh psoas was relying on aero bar and letting my hips/low back cave as the fellow on mobility wod suggested. i neglected my ab work and paid the price. if your low back hurting no situps…google stuart mcgill for back routine. my routine consists of pelvic tilts (get rid of anterior tilt), mcgill situps, planks & glute bridge. also use rumble roller as better than traditional foam rollers. good luck