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That sounds like something worth trying.

Is this something that I could do myself? Are there any techniques you'd recommend?

Thanks again.

Yes this is what I've been cursing myself about for months now. If only I'd realised how influential my actions immidiately after injuring were to be.

I can't change that now though. 

I've been told by some that stretching through the pain is necessary to an extent. And that in order to allow the muscle(s) to repair properly, they must first almost be damaged all over again, in order to break down all the scar tissue. 

Would you say that this is the case?

Should I be thinking about seeking another type of treatment such as massage, or even surgury? 

Thanks for replying by the way.
 

Hello people, it's been hell since last August. I'd really appreciate any insight. Here's the backstory...

I was running in late August last year, I pushed my mileage too much and felt a sudden bad strain at the top of my left inner thigh. I limped the 4 miles home. It seemed to settle down, but trying to run again immidiately flared it up again. So I stopped. Then a few weeks later, I was out doing some light hill-walking and got achilles tendonitis (again on my left side!).

I paid to see a private physio, during september/october time and he said that I had a groin strain and Achilles tendonitis. He gave me stretches to do. However, whilst this worked on my Achilles, which has been fine since November, the stretches began to almost make the groin/hip injury worse. It would flare up more easily, and the pain also began to be felt on the outside of my upper leg, below the hip bone, as well as in the groin area. 

I stopped seeing the physio in early Novmber and decided to simply cease all stretching and excercise. This did seem to settle things down a bit, but a tightness and proneness to flaring up again has always remained, even though the last time I ran was in August last year. 

I decided in March that enough was enough, and got refferred to a physio on the NHS. I first saw him a month ago. He told me that instead of a groin strain, I had some kind of hip muscle imbalance which involed something to do with the muscles around my hips fusing together. He diagnosed this by looking at my standing posture, noting that I naturally stand in a manner in which my upper body is slightly hunched forward, perhaps a sign that the muscles at the front of my hips are slightly contracted. He also asked me to lie flat on my back and bend my left leg (the bad side), and then pull it in towards my chest, and noting that when I did so, my right leg began to lift as well rather than remaining flat.

He gave me a different set of stretches to first physio. And told me to come back in two weeks.

I did them for two weeks, exactly as he told me- holding each of the 3 stretches for approx 20 seconds, 10 times a day. Everything felt the same- no worse, no better. A constant slight tightness in the groin/upper leg area at rest which only flared up into pain if I was on my feet a lot or did something that set it off throughout the day. 

When I saw him again two weeks later (12 days ago), he basically told me to keep going with the stretches but to hold them for no less than 30 seconds from now on, as it is only after 30 seconds that the muscles begin to truly stretch.

I began holding each stretch from 40 seconds to a minute, until last Friday, where I began to feel a mild pain on the outside of the upper leg at rest. I ceased all stretching and had some Ibuprofen. It is now Tuesday and the pain is worse, and is also contstant on the inside of the groin area. 

Can anyone help me? Could I have just overstretched? Should I begin stretching again and hope I work through this?

I just feel like nothing is ever going to shift this injury. It's so frustrating.

I miss running. I've been tentatively planning a hike in southern France in July and now even that looks very unlikely. Needless to say I'm calling the physio dept tomorrow, but I don't know whether to trust a physio after my experiences so far quite frankly!

Thank you to anyone who has been kind enough to read all of this. I just had to get it all out. I'd really appreciate any help or advice people may have. 

Rich.

Thanks guys. I definitely don't see the harm in trying the stretch mentioned above until I see my physio again next week.

Can it be done with a rolled up towel instead of a foam roller?

Six Physio wrote (see)

Yes!

I think your groin and achilles are bothg connected to an underlying issue with your back/pelvis/gluts etc. If your treat (or stretch) the symptoms you don't address the underlying cause.

You've an over stretch issue - your groin and achilles are over stretched and painful because something else is not moving enough...this'll be the bit between your shoulder blades  (thoracic spine) causing you to poke your chin out and get referred pain in this area.

A stiff thoracic spine will cause youre low back to move too much. This will over use and over stretch the supporting muscles (your groin). They are not designed to do this.

Not sure I'd stretch an over stretched area....but I would stretch your stiff thoracic spine..

Thanks, this is an interesting theory. I will definitely mention it to him.

Are you sure they may not just be seperate injuries in their own right?

I realise now that in my first post, I may have made it seem as if the Achilles Tendonitis came out of the blue. In reality, when I got it, I was testing out some new walking boots, had a 12kilo pack on my back, and had had a long day of walking in the same new boots the previous day.

Surely these are prime conditions for an Achilles strain, regardless of a more complex underlying back problem? Especially as I was going up hills, putting strain on the tendon more than it would be used to? Perhaps my physio is correct to treat each injury seperately, initially at least?

Thanks.