How To Find The Single BEST Strengthening Exercise For Your Piriformis Syndrome

[@drcharliejohnson]

Thanks for watching! Want back/butt/sciatica pain relief & to get back to normal naturally using movement as medicine? Click here to set up a time to chat & submit your case for review to see if/how we can help you- www.drcharliejohnsonpt.com/apply

[@lornaodonoghue5925]

I watched with interest. Thanks. I used your diagnostic sheet and am pretty confident my flare ups are SI joint related. I have been doing bridges, clams and side leg raises as instructed by my PT but I still get flareups ...often after doing these as part of a yoga routine.I try to include stretch and strengthen for all muscle groups in my yoga practice. I enjoy fig 4 so I do it every day sitting on my bed before getting up. The clam definitely feels yukky to do but bridge stabilising w yoga block between knees feels nice. Leg raises are ok if I don't lift too high. So should I lay off clams for now? I am trying to better understand your methodolgy. I like to understand what I am doing and why. I thought that stretching and strengthening would resolve my issues permanently but I thing SI joint may need constant maintenance, right?

[@drcharliejohnson]

Hey Lorna! thx for watching, SI Joint issues should not require constant maintenance. Symptoms should be able to fully resolve with the right approach. If the clam is yucky- absolutely lay off it. Lots to unpack here in order to find the best approach for you. No pressure, but if you're interested, I'd be happy to review your case personally to see if/how I can help. If you'd like, just visit www.drcharliejohnsonpt.com/apply - select a time to chat, then follow instructions to submit details of your specific case. Okay? Hang in there! Dr. Charlie

[@dspage13]

Great breakdown of the process!

[@drcharliejohnson]

Thanks for watching Dallin 👊🏼

[@nadiaamrani7838]

Thx for the video! Very well explained:)

[@drcharliejohnson]

You're welcome! Let me know if you have any questions.

[@sophieb.8852]

Hi Charlie! Love your videos thank you so much. I was wondering what exercises you recommend to do/ avoid at the gym with piriformis syndrome? I had chronic pain then it went away for a while.. did a gym program for 3 weeks and out of nowhere the pain flared up again after lower body exercises like Bulgarian splits, and now it’s throbbing everyday! Thank you so much!

[@drcharliejohnson]

Hey Sophie! thanks for watching- sorry to hear. Did you feel pain while doing the bulgarian splits? If not, are you sure that your gym routine is the source of symptoms... I'd hate for you to blame + avoid the gym if you don't have any hard evidence (pain while doing the exercise) to suggest that they are the cause of the flare? Let me know. No pressure, but if you're interested in some specific help solving this- feel free to set up a time to chat and submit your case for review... just visit www.drcharliejohnsonpt.com/apply Sound good? Hang in there Sophie!

[@tomopoole]

Clams with a band and side leg raises til failure cause instant relief.

[@Fiola_M]

Reps do work better..but pain relief is taking forever..what do u do when walking for more than 30 minutes causes pain?

[@DiegoSagastume97]

how much time do you think it will be for a full recovery ?

[@drcharliejohnson]

@@DiegoSagastume97 hard to say without knowing specifics of your case. But general healing times for a muscular issue would be somewhere between 1-3 months. This assumes you’re taking the right approach and aren’t keeping yourself from healing. Perhaps you have a plan you feel confident in- if so, great! If not, I’d be happy to review your case personally to see if/how I can best help (I work with folks worldwide). No pressure, but if you’re interested, just visit www.drcharliejohnsonpt.com/apply- select a time to chat, then follow instructions to submit a formal case review. Sound good?

[@MichaelBaran-b8v]

Is it common to have delayed pain 24 hours after these motions?

[@drcharliejohnson]

It is common Mike. Not sure how much of these you did or what this process looked like for you. Delayed pain or delayed muscle soreness from working things out? Either way, some muscle soreness may be expected as you work these muscles the next day... it should resolve rather quickly. Increase in PAIN or symptoms that are delayed are inconsistent with a structural source of pain and point to a sensitive central nervous system (brain) that may be driving the symptoms one experiences. If pain is caused by structural damage/injury... it hurts now and later... not just later. Make sense?

[@starriderstudios]

For me, bridges 10 times for 10 sec and donkey kicks, 50 each leg.. I also do flutter kicks, 100 and side leg raises, 50 each side

[@drcharliejohnson]

Is this working for you? If so, awesome… if not- sounds like it’s going to be hard to tell what’s working (many different inputs at once).

[@fiestacranberry]

None of those motions make my pain worse. Are there any other test motions?

[@drcharliejohnson]

For sure- could be any motion that reproduces your pain/symptoms. Lunges, squat, jump, stairs, side bend… I just show some common motions that are often yucky. However- if none of these motions reproduce your pain, this essentially rules out disc, piriformis, hip, or sciatic nerve issue 👍

[@fiestacranberry]

@@drcharliejohnson ok, I tried the motions again. Some of them hurt, but they don't make my _back_ hurt, they just hurt in and of themselves. The only one that makes my _back_ hurt is the side leg raise. Most of my pain is central lower back out to right hip, sometimes going down the right leg. The right hip is actually quite painful to lay on, and wakes me up at night. The leg raise on the left (good) side hurts a bit in itself. The leg raise on the right (bad) side makes my lower LEFT back and buttocks hurt! I have a history of disc trouble, and had a micro discectomy on the left side in 2009, which cured the left sided pain.

[@drcharliejohnson]

@@fiestacranberry hey! Okay got it... so, I'd pick the side leg raise as your yucky motion (so long as it's tolerable to retest... but likely means that the lying right and left side leg raises are NOT options to help you... meaning if they are yucky- don't treat using a yucky motion). If it's not tolerable to perform/or use as your yucky motion to test and retest... then pick the LEFT good sided side leg raise that's still a bit yucky and see if any of these motions begin improving that. Make sense? No pressure, but if you need more direction I'd be happy to review your case to see how I may be able to help. Just visit www.drcharliejohnsonpt.com/apply if you'd like to set up a chat with us- then follow instructions to submit your "Case Review." Okay? Dr. Charlie PT

[@fiestacranberry]

@@drcharliejohnson thanks!

[@drcharliejohnson]

@@fiestacranberry you’re welcome 👊🏼