Quote Originally Posted by GumbyGirl View Post
Hey MuttNut!

I feel your pain. I had hip and gluteal bursitis all at the same time in BOTH hips and butt cheeks! It was awful, and also having been a runner I understand how frustrating it can be. But just like KnottedYet said it is a symptom of something else. Your PT should be able to help heaps, but it's not just about stretching.

I'm an exercise physiologist so have experience in treating chronic injuries/conditions and very commonly in women we don't use our butt muscles properly. We often don't have a good connection to activate correctly to work our lower limbs. Worse still in hip bursitis the butt commonly switches off more to protect from pain.

I was also a cyclist (casually at the time) and cycling was really important for my recovery. Your PT should be able to check if your gluteal (butt) muscles activate when you extend through the hip (ie, in the down stroke of a pedal stroke or when planting the foot and toe off in running). You can then practice and ensure these muscles are firing right by putting your bike on an indoor trainer or riding a stationary bike and training with pedal stroke and muscle activation in controlled conditions.

This will all help with hip stabiity and get your pelvis supported so that the hip bursitis is less likely to come back!

Hope you feel better soon
GG
Hey GumbyGirl...I've got a question for ya. I've had gluteal pain (left side) for about 3 months now. It is definitely a limiter when it comes to running...but biking doesn't seem to aggravate it at all. Whenever I do anything that requires a strong gluteal or hamstring contraction, it is pain city! At first I thought this might be piriformis syndrome. Then I started reading up a bit on ischiogluteal bursitis, and am now wondering if this might be my problem. How can I tell if it's a piriformis issue or gluteal bursitis? Would the symptoms be similar? I've tried stretching (which hurts) and foam rolling on a regular basis...but the pain still persists. Any ideas? Thanks!

Linda

ETA - Sorry for the thread hijack!