A few weeks prior to the Rev 3 Tri half iron race in Connecticut, I did a 15 mile long run. At the 10 mile point of that run, I had a severe pain in my butt that felt alot like Hemorrhoids (I had those during my pregnant years). I toughed it out and kept running, and the pain subsided after five minutes. I was able to finish the run strong. This pain never happened again.
Until today.
Exact same thing. Running 15 miles. At the 10 mile mark, I got that same severe pain in my ass. Walked for a bit. Started running again, and was able to finish my workout. Hasn’t bothered me since that 5 minutes at mile 10! So weird. It was not even the same course. Last May, I ran three loops of a very hilly route. Today, I did an out and back entirely flat route!
It seems odd that it would be Hemorrhoids since I don’t have any other symptoms. I googled Sciatica and found an article on Coolrunning.com talking about Piriformis Syndrome. That is a small muscle deep in the buttocks that can irritate the Sciatic nerve. Too much running, tightness in the hips, or improper running form can cause this condition.
- I have been running alot more. I bumped up my weekly miles to 30, from about 22. Probably too much too fast.
- I have been very very tight in the hips and butt since trying to do the butt running. I have been doing more stretching, but probably not nearly enough, since I am aware of tightness in my left it band even as I type, and my hammies and hips are almost always tight.
This has me a little worried for the Ironman training. I have never done a marathon. My longest training run ever was 16 miles. I probably need to back off on my mileage and do more stretching. Alot more stretching. Rodney Yee, here I come!
Maybe I never even had hemorrhoids when pregnant. Maybe it was sciatica back then. The only symptom I ever had was pain in the butt. I just assumed it was hemorrhoids because that where the pain was. I kind of wish it was Hemorrhoids. I think that would be an easier fix – just a little Preparation H. Hahaha.
There are a number of stretches that you can try before your run. Check out the following link for some more info:
http://www.yourbodydotcom.net/files/Pirformis_Syndrome.pdf
Hope things sort themselves!
Get one of the Baller Block Trigger point therapy sets too. You can pinpoint trigger points in the piriformis and all along attatchments to the sacrum.
Hey, Carol. Have you tried a foam roller? We have one at my gym which I use a lot. It might be just the thing to really get into those deep muscles and work them out a bit more. http://www.workoutz.com/shopping/product/foam_roller