posted
First a disclaimer - this work is not for those whose muscles / joints are too inflamed. May make it worse. Been there, done that.
But...you may not know you will respond until you try it.
Working on your own muscles in your back + gluts (rear) may give you some relief from pain in those areas.
First thing is to google the words gluteal + illustration. Check out some of the sites that come up and look at the pics.
Seeing pics of what muscles are there, where they start (origin), where they end (insertion) + what moves when the muscle is tightened (contracted) helps you to work with them.
Important point - they usually don't work individually. Often other muscles in the area will "stabilize" - reduce movement - so another muscle can move a joint or a bone.
Working on these muscles to reduce tightness + pain is not difficult. Some patience may be needed to understand how to work on them. Mid term exam will be 2 weeks from today... (satire)
We will be using a firm tennis ball (especially not the one the dog chewed as it is too soft), a firm wall and your weight.
1. Stand facing away from the wall with your feet 6 to 10 inches away from the wall.
2. lean back against the wall, allowing your entire spine to touch the wall. Entire = bottom of neck to butt
3. After the ball is in place (get to that in a minute) you will really X 3 s-l-o-w-l-y slide your spine down the wall
4. When you find a tight or painful area you you stay in that position and RELAX into it. No pushing as we want muscles to relax, not contract + get tighter
5. Then you stay in that position for 10 or 20 seconds letting it relax even more
6. Slowly slide down further searching for more tender spots and do the same for them.
You can do your entire spine this way. You may need to change your angle and / or amount of pressure.
When you get to your lower spine you can flatten the curve in your back to put that part of your spine flat against the wall.
Ball placement - we want to be off the side of the spine, NOT ON the bone. We will use the ball + pressure on the muscles, not on the bone.
After checking on + working on the tight spots right next to the spine, slide the ball away about 1.5 inches away from the spine + search + relax up + down the entire spine. Both sides !
If you want more pressure on spots, move your feet further away from the wall. This puts more weight on the ball.
If the area is uncomfortable use less pressure. And do not do that oh so manly thing and "tough it out" with more pressure. That will make it worse.
Time for my break so will add butt muscles and sacrioiliac later. And use enough pressure so the ball does not squirt out. It may try to escape.
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AliG
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posted
Thanks! Sounds good
I'll have to remember this the next time I get one of those stubborn trigger point pains that I just can't seem to work out on my own.
(The ones that make me think to myself, "If only I could find a way to push on them really really hard...", but can't reach them myself & no amount of stretching seems to loosen them.)
I wish you'd posted this last week because I just finally got rid of a real doozy!
I might go get a tennis ball & try this anyway....It sounds like fun!
It might help to drink some cocoa before doing this too. It's a natural anti-inflammatory, you know. (I just read that one in "First" Magazine )
-------------------- Note: I'm NOT a medical professional. The information I share is from my own personal research and experience. Please do not construe anything I share as medical advice, which should only be obtained from a licensed medical practitioner. Posts: 4881 | From Middlesex County, NJ | Registered: Jul 2006
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Tincup
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posted
For those who have trouble bending at the knees to do this exercise.... like me....
And it is SO nice to see this posted here.. thanks mass!
You might consider a thera-cane.
I call mine, Rick-the-Stick. Actually, Rick-the-Stick II.
I LOST my first Rick while traveling in Costa Rica!
Anyhow... I can't live without my Rick-the-Stick, so I got another one. If you don't lose them... they should last forever.
AliG
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posted
TC - Go eat some CHOCOLATE!!!!
-------------------- Note: I'm NOT a medical professional. The information I share is from my own personal research and experience. Please do not construe anything I share as medical advice, which should only be obtained from a licensed medical practitioner. Posts: 4881 | From Middlesex County, NJ | Registered: Jul 2006
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AliG
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posted
.....or put some on your butt!
-------------------- Note: I'm NOT a medical professional. The information I share is from my own personal research and experience. Please do not construe anything I share as medical advice, which should only be obtained from a licensed medical practitioner. Posts: 4881 | From Middlesex County, NJ | Registered: Jul 2006
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Tincup
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posted
Hey AliG...
Chocolate on MY butt won't look as silly as you trying to balance a tennis ball against the wall with yours!
My bet is you'll get cardio exercise too trying to do this.. just by having to chase that tennis ball around the room when it pops out!
AliG
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
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posted
HEY!!!!!
What makes you think I can't balance a tennis ball?!!!!
OK - This statement:
"Chocolate on MY butt won't look as silly as you trying to balance a tennis ball against the wall with yours!"
makes me wonder what PART of your butt you were thinking you should balance it with because I didn't picture this as being an awkward task!!
-------------------- Note: I'm NOT a medical professional. The information I share is from my own personal research and experience. Please do not construe anything I share as medical advice, which should only be obtained from a licensed medical practitioner. Posts: 4881 | From Middlesex County, NJ | Registered: Jul 2006
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Tincup
Honored Contributor (10K+ posts)
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posted
"What makes you think I can't balance a tennis ball?!!!!"
Last time I checked, you were a human.. not a seal in a circus!
"...what PART of your butt you were thinking you should balance it with ..."
Well, the big part, of course.
Now quit picking on me. And besides...
There is some ice cream downstairs calling my name and I have to go now!
AliG
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
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posted
roflmBUTTo!!!
Didn't even see that one coming!
I hope that's CHOCOLATE ice cream!!!!!! That'll help your BUTT, I'm SURE!!!
-------------------- Note: I'm NOT a medical professional. The information I share is from my own personal research and experience. Please do not construe anything I share as medical advice, which should only be obtained from a licensed medical practitioner. Posts: 4881 | From Middlesex County, NJ | Registered: Jul 2006
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AliG
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posted
All of TC's silliness just made me think of something.
In the Pet stores they have dog toys that are like two tennis balls connected by a strip, so they're kind of like a bone.
I found a picture of one:
I'll bet they'd be great for people like TC who have to worry about a ball popping out because the can't control their laughter when they think about the things she's said to me while they're trying to do this!
-------------------- Note: I'm NOT a medical professional. The information I share is from my own personal research and experience. Please do not construe anything I share as medical advice, which should only be obtained from a licensed medical practitioner. Posts: 4881 | From Middlesex County, NJ | Registered: Jul 2006
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AliG
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posted
OOH! OOH! or take a couple of tennis balls & tie them in a tube sock!!!!
-------------------- Note: I'm NOT a medical professional. The information I share is from my own personal research and experience. Please do not construe anything I share as medical advice, which should only be obtained from a licensed medical practitioner. Posts: 4881 | From Middlesex County, NJ | Registered: Jul 2006
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posted
I am in training to teach Pilates and only wish I had discovered it sooner. The reformer is a great tool to help people who have any kind of limitation exercise. It keeps the spine flexible.
The problem I'm having right now is that my thoracic spine gets locked up and has tight muscles surrounding it. My chiropractor works on it, and pilates helps, but it sounds like this tennis ball approach might help. I've also been doing some floor exercises with a roller.
Thanks for the post Massman.
-------------------- sixgoofykids.blogspot.com Posts: 13449 | From Ohio | Registered: Feb 2007
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posted
Good post, massman, but I would also suggest that when you find the tender spot or trigger point and it relaxes somewhat, you should then gently iron it out with short strokes and in one direction only, like the author describes in the Trigger Point Therapy Workbook.
A tennis ball in a tube sock thrown over your shoulder makes it easy to adjust the ball and put it in the area you want to work. The sock also keeps the ball from bouncing away from you.
Sometimes the tennis ball or the sock slides around on the wall and makes it hard to work an area, so I have found that a racquetball sticks better and does just as well, if not better than, a tennis ball. The racquetball sort of spreads out when you lean into it and feels like someone is using their thumbs to massage the area.
Also, if I really want to dig into an area I am working, I will switch to a lacrosse ball. It is the same size as a tennis ball and sticks to the wall like a racquetball but is very firm, like a child's hard rubber high-bounce ball. But be careful because you can bruise yourself easily with the lacrosse ball.
posted
Alot of my tightness and spasums went away when i started taking Magnesium!! I felt relief within 2 hours after the first time I took it. I'm taking 500 mg. from GNC.
JJG
-------------------- JJG Posts: 33 | From Scranton, PA | Registered: Sep 2009
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sammy
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posted
Thank you massman:)
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daystar1952
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posted
Could someone explain a little more what trigger point therapy does? Is it basically to break down...or would you say to relax muscle knots? If this is what it does...are muscle knots what pull you out of wack? Massman also recommended excercises from the book "Be A Loser" which I ordered but haven't gotten yet.
Is it weak muscles that allow more pressure on discs which then cause pain when hitting a nerve and then causes your muscles to knot up...which then causes poor posture and more problems?
Posts: 1176 | Registered: Oct 2002
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Here's a previous post in which I briefly explained about trigger points:
"In my non-medical (but well-read) opinion, I think that if you have had LD for a while (at least 8 years in my case) the toxins being pumped into your body by the bacteria cause systemic inflamation. If the muscles are chronically inflamed, you can develop knots of scar tissue in the damaged muscles, i.e., trigger points (TPs), or adhesions between the adjoining muscles or between the muscle and the fascia.
Although the abx may help reduce or eliminate the bacteria, they do not do anything to heal the muscles. The muscles may stop actively hurting but are easily aggravated by certain activities because the scar tissue/adhesions/trigger points are still there acting like a splinter.
You have to "remove the splinter" so the muscles can heal. You have to try to break up the trigger points and adhesions so they are no longer irritating the muscles and so blood can get to the damaged area and the body can go to work healing itself.
The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook explains this in more detail. As far as finding the right specialist, I emailed the author's daughter, Amber Davies, who helped him with the book. She gave me the name of someone who had trained with them.
I understand your arm and shoulder pain since I had the same thing. I think exercise is good for you but keep it light for now and try to stay away from anything too repetitive.
Pain in the forearms and elbows can come from lots of different muscles so I would get the TP Workbook and follow the instructions. The book can be a little intimidating at first, but it is actually very easy to use.
HOWEVER, don't jump right in and go directly to the section that deals with your problem. Take the time to read the foreword, the introduction, and the first 3 chapters. It won't take that long, but it will give you a good idea of what you are trying to do.
I also had clicking in the front of my right shoulder. I'm pretty sure that it was being caused by trigger points in my supraspinatus muscle because once I worked the knots out of the supraspinatus, the clicking went away."
Regarding your disc question, it has been known for years that injured muscles make it more likely for someone to develop arthritis in the injured area. The muscles do not work properly and pull on the tendons, which in turn pull on the bones.
The bones start to grow in the direction of the tendon to try to keep it from tearing and, voila, you get bone spurs or other joint degeneration. The same thing can happen with the spine, but if you have true degenerative disc disease, I don't know that trigger point therapy will help.
HOWEVER, don't assume the doctors are right about the cause of your pain. They did surgery on my elbow for "tendonitis" and found that the tendon was fine! The pain was coming from my forearm muscle which was chronically inflamed due to LD. I worked out the TPs in my forearms and got much better.
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