Sore hip - any ideas

I have been running for about 4 months and after a run last week I got a pain in my right hip. It feels quite a sharp pain and is located deep in my hip, feels like the actual hip socket. It is only sore when I run and the odd time when I get up off a seat. I have tried rotating my hip and moving it in different ways to see if I can replicate the pain, but I can't. I have rested it now for 7 days and only done two 3 mile walks in that period. The pain has eased slightly, but when tested with a 20 metre jog the pain is still there everytime my right foot strikes the ground. The pain isn't severe and I could run with it but my gut feeling is that doing so would be a bad idea.

I was running about 25 miles per week with a 7 mile long run and 4 or 5 mile runs 3-4 times during the week. I have been careful to increase mileage gradually. Several weeks previously I had a sore right instep/arch, stopped running for a week, pain subsided and I started running again. Then a week after starting back, my hip feels sore. I suspect that I may have been running slightly 'gingerly' after my instep/arch injury which may have resulted in my right hip not moving as it should. The pain in my hip occurred after a hard 5 mile run.

Regarding shoes, I bought a pair of Asics Gel 3000's from a well known running shop who carried out a basic gait analysis (walking up and down the shop barefoot) and had clocked up 100 miles in them before the injury.

I have searched the forum and haven't been able to find anything similar. Has anyone any thoughts or suggestion. Apologies for the length of the post, but I wanted to set out as many facts as I could.

Hey....check out  www.physioroom.com  in the injuries section.....it has helped me self diagnose lots of times!

Thanks for that.

I have had a look and hip bursitis was my first thought except I have no pain when I apply pressure to my hip. Bursitis appears to relate to a fluid sac just under the skin. I have no swelling or pain when direct pressure is applied to the area.

My gut feeling is that it is a bio-mechanical injury brought on by over compensating for my previous sore arch. I am frustrated that even after a week of rest, it is only marginally better. I suspect it just needs rest, however given that there is only a minor improvement after a week, it might take a month or two. Great, just what I didn't want!!

Hi

You cant have looked very hard on the board (lol) because I have a spookily similar problem!! Mine started, like yours in my right hip.  I was running and felt a sharp pain, and so stopped.  I can't tell you how sore it was, and I had to walk, sorry hobble, about 3 miles home...ouch!  I was about 4 weeks from the GNR and had no choice but to keep training, though I did the bare minimum.  To be honest, it has got a lot better since then, but I hate to tell you, it is still there, and I have my second physio appointment tomorrow.

She basically said, that it was an ITB problem, and as you say, biomechanical. She got me doing loads of excercises, and she examined and massaged me, as it was all so tight.  In my case it was due to too much flexibility in the hips, causing them to roll inwards when running, rather than being straight and square.  Also, my inside thigh muscles are weak compared to the outside, so this is making the problem worse.  She said it was nothing I had particularly done wrong, and it would probably have happened anyway. I don't have to stop running,  but I have to go careful, and do the stretches she told me too, which is fine.  She did say, that when running distances "running alone is not enough"...and you must do strengthening excercises to support your body and your muscles.  I go back tomorrow, so I will report back if you like?  I am glad it is not serious, but it is annoying, and I have an awful feeling that it will be something I have to manage rather than get rid of.  I also rested for 2 weeks after the GNR and its still there, so I dont reckon rest is really the answer in my case.  Yours may be different though.

RP

RedPanda,

Many thanks for the post. What I am experiencing does sound very similar. Day to day, I would describe the pain as a very mild niggle which only occurs infrequently when getting up off a chair or if I twist or move. Like I said previously, I cannot get it to ache on demand which makes it all the more frustrating. It's just when a try to run I get a deep sharp pain.

I think I shall rest for a few more days and then try a gentle run to see how it fares. If there is no improvement, then I will have to seek some professional help.

I am pleased that you have got to the source of your problem and whilst it is annoying that it is something you may have to manage, at least you are able to do so. Hopefully your exercises will strengthen the muscles concerned which will greatly reduce the problem.

Please let me know how you get on.

Good luck

Smalleyboy

Hi, I get a pain in my left side. I went to see a podiatrist after worrying over my gait, and it turns out my left leg is shorter than the right which is causing the hip pain, as its slightly out of alignment. Apparently its very common and I have a extra bit in my trainers to compensate.

I've only been running since May, but a "stretched feeling" on my achilles tendon made me seek out help (again, caused as the left side has further to travel to the ground).

I had clocked up 150 miles before noticing a problem

Hope this helps

Hi

You are welcome!  Just got back now...She is great, she did some really hurty massages (!), I could have cried it pain, digging her elbow into my hip...I said, "I can't believe I am paying to be tortured on a Saturday morning LOL!"...Anyway, my main problem is weak glutes, again, causing everything to roll inwards.  She said due to my biomechanics, I am not ideally suited to running, BUT, that does not mean I can not run, just that I have to do more work when not running, and she gave me some pilates type excercises to strengthen my glutes and inner thighs.  This should hopefully straighten everything up so my knees and hips face forward, like any normal person!

I asked her to be honest, and I said "Will this every completely go, or is it a case of managing it?" and she said, it should definatley go, as long as I keep doing what I am supposed to, and work on my muscles.  So that was a big relief.  I have to go back in 2 weeks time.

Your symptoms sound exactly like mine smalleyboy.  When I first did it, it was so sore that I could not lie on my right side in bed.  It hurts the day after a run too, it feels almost like a bruise, as if someone has kicked me in the side.  Is that what yours is like?  Mine hurst more when running/walking up or down hills too.

I don't know whether yours will be the same reason as mine, but she said it is very common in people new to running.  Honestly, if I were you i would go to a sports physio, its not very expensive, and you will be glad you did.  I wish I had gone sooner to be honest.

Let us know how you go.

RP

xx

Hi,

Sounds very similar to a problem I had last year. My hip seized up after a 10K race. I went to the physio and she told me that me that my hips had become mis-aligned. Essentially, one leg was lower than the other! Had to do a few sessions of physio and an intense stretching regime to sort it.

Apparently the cause was that I had been pounding the pavement with an exisitng shin splint problem and the hips had suffered over a period of time.

Its weired isn't it getting a hip injury?  I could understand a knee or shin injury, but I never imagined a hip problem, until it was all explained to me, then it kind of made sense!

Redpanda,

Glad the treatment went well today. Sounds like you took a bit of a beating, but it looks like it will work. I had to do a bit or running today as it was raining and I had to jog to the car after coming out of some shops. No pain over the 200 metres I covered. In fact I have had no pain today at all. I am going out for a short run tomorrow morning on a gravel trail to reduce any impact, so hopefully all will go well.

I have never had any problem sleeping on my side, and even when I knead my hip with my fist, I feel no pain. My pain is/was as if it is in the hip socket itself which seems to differ from the majority of hip complaints. I have been running on and off for 20 years and seem to remember something similar about 10 years ago which passed eventually. Just got to take it steady.

Keep at your exercises and it will all slot into place for you. It might take a bit of time, but avoiding injury is the name of the game.

Smalleyboy

Did a 2 mile gentle run this morning and no problems during or after.
Looks like 9 days rest have hopefully dealt with the problem. I'll take it easy for the next few weeks and build my mileage back up gently.

Smalley, I had a similar problem at the end of last year/beginning of this year. I tried to ignore it at 1st but after a 5 mile run one day I woke up the next morning and couldn't weight bare on the right side at all. After seeing a fantastic sports masseus the problem is now fixed. He said it was to do with my ITB and TFL and lack of strength in my glutes. I got some incredibly painful massage and he gave me exercises to do at home and a foam roller to use which worked wonders. I got back to the running and started training in June for the New York marathon, all was going well until an off road 10k in september which was incredibly wet and slippy, the next day the pain was back with a vengence but luckily a few sessions of painful massage later and it was much better and I was able to complete the marathon last week.

What he did say was that it was a problem very much related to stability so I'm now doing lots of core exercises and work on my glutes.

Sorry if i've waffled on a bit and hope you get the problem sorted.

Me too – training for Royal Parks half marathon, all going well up to a week before the race.  Just went out to do a couple of miles when I felt a tightness in my right thigh and red hot pain in my hip joint, ended up limping home.  I spent the week before the race convincing myself I could still run –  spent a fortune in Boots on pain killers, hot pads, freeze sprays etc. plus another £40 on a sports massage.  

 

I really shouldn't have run but my stubbornness made me do it.  About a hundred yards over the start line I felt like I'd been shot in the hip!  I managed to get to the side but that was as far as I could get - my leg literally stopped working.  I couldn't put any weight on it at all without excruciating pain.  Luckily I had my mobile on me and managed to phone my other half and he and a passing stranger carried me to a bench.  I spent the whole of the race day stranded in the medical tent (a real eye opener, quite terrifying what some people do to themselves but that’s another story).

 

I spent a week unable to put any weight on my right leg at all and a further two weeks on crutches; this is the start of my second crutch free week.  Now a month on and I am only just able to take the dogs out for short walks – even then the hip really starts to get aggravated.    I am unable to lift my right leg when I am sitting in a chair or lying on my back – it’s weird, it’s like the message from my brain just isn’t getting through to the right muscles and the leg just doesn’t move. I have a sharp pain the in groin extending down to the thigh and my hip also seizes up if I sit for too long.

 

I’ve been to see a private physio who has given me stretches and advised me on core strength exercises, and my GP (who was brilliant but baffled  - we Googled the symptoms together) he then referred me to the local ortho hospital.  Everyone so far has come with different theories from piriformis syndrome to bursitis but neither of these diagnoses fit quite right.  So, I’ve been doing my own research and my theory is damage to the iliopsoas muscle – it perfectly fits with the location of the pain and the other symptoms but what do i know?

 

Naively I’m still hoping it will go away by itself but will make another appointment with my GP at then end of the week if there is no vast improvement.

 

Lesson learned – listen to your body!  

Lynzjane & Lambchop - thanks to you both for recounting your experiences. My pain was never severe, just an annoying niggle but I knew it shouldn't be hurting the way it was in the place it was. In the past when I have had niggles I have foolishly pushed on and ignored what my body was telling me, resulting in months away from running. This time hopefully being over cautious will have paid off.

I shall try another light 3 mile run tomorrow and hopefully I will be pain free. I will only believe I am free of this injury once I have about 100 miles of pain free running behind me.

What I have learnt is the importance of core stability. My wife does yoga and pilates and she has shown me a few exercises which will improve core strength.

Here's hoping we are all soon pain free and can get back to enjoying our running.

Hi lambchop!!

 I had a stress fracture a few weeks ago that was misdiagnosed by 2 doctors  as a torn iliopsoas and I ended up needing to have it pinned. My symptoms were very similar to yours. It might be an idea to get a scan as they are commonly missed. I really don’t want to scare you though!!! And as you are walking without crutches it sounds good !!. Heres my very long story.... I had been training for a half marathon, my expected time was around 1:30. About a week before I stupidly bought new shoes from run and become knowing that  it wasn’t an ideal time to be getting new shoes but anyway...I ran around 5 miles in them 4 days before the half marathon and had to stop suddenly and hobble home with an excruciating pain in my right groin/hip which radiated down my leg and foot ached too. It was better by the morning but I then went on to limp for four days, I thought it had to be muscular and treated in with RICE. It hurt to weight bare and I was lifting my leg in and out of bed. Stupidly I thought that I just could not not run the half marathon ... On race day I hobbled to the start  and thought the muscle will ‘warm up’ and I’ll just pay for it after lol. I felt no pain running and was doing better than normal until past the 11th mile which is when I struggled to keep going, I got a bad headache and pain in my hip my brain was screaming at me to stop, I went into walking and then could not weight bare at all!!! I managed to get to the side where st john ambulance ppl helped me. I was told it was likely an iliopsoas tear and given ibuprofen and crutches after a week of not weight baring I got very frustrated. .....long story short 2 doctors misdiagnosed what I had, a week later I had an x-ray and they found a stress fracture at the neck of my femur!!! I was unlucky as it was on the friction side of the bone and needed pinning. I’m now walking with one crutch and having physio, only time will tell if I will return to full activity.

 Really sorry for the doom and gloom!! but without an x-ray or scan stress fractures are commonly missed and even with imaging can be missed. So definitely get an X-ray as walking on certain fractures could make them worse. (Hope this is helpful and not scary!) J

 

Hi SS22, thanks for the info!  Hmmm It does sound rather similar doesn't it.

I thought exactly the same as you on race day - thought it would warm up as i went along or at the very least not get any worse - oh how silly.

My tendency with anything medical is to wait and see and hope it gets better on it's own but this time i think I need to get back to the doctors sooner rather than later, especially as after a month it still get so aggravated when I walk even for short distances.

I took up running to lose weight and get healthy - oh the irony! )

Hi Lambchop, Yes exercise is dangerous and bad for you lol!

Dont worry too much worse case it is a stress fracture...not all need surgery, and I'm on the mend and feeling optimistic

Stress fractures occur for many reasons including low bone density, doing too much too soon, or returning to running after a break at the same intensity instead of building it up slowly.

Best of luck Lambchop, let me know how you get on!

Blimey,

I was worried about a bit of pain in my hip, and some of you had stress fractures.
I am pleased to say that after a gentle 5 mile run today, I am pain free. Hopefully things will stay that way.

To those of you with injuries, I hope they all pass quickly and you are back out running soon.

Smalleyboy