Deep muscle soreness that won't go away

[Will Wilson]

I recently developed deep muscle soreness and pain in my right leg. It not a sharp pain but a dull throb that gets worse when I am sitting. It started in my right butt, then the hamstring (but more on the side under the IT band) and now has settled in my lower calf. I am also experiencing a lot of stiffness and loss of range of motion. I've had many muscle pulls and overuse soreness but this doesn't feel the same and it is not getting better.

I'm starting to get worried - anybody out there experience something similar?

 

[mikeler]

I've had hamstring tightness the last 2 or 3 months. I thought about trying a deep tissue massage.

 

[Say Chi Sin Lo]

Sounds like a mild case of sciatica to me?

 

[ollinger]

^^ agree, this sounds more like the progression of sciatica (usually involving a lumbar disk) than simply sore muscles.

 

[Say Chi Sin Lo]

If you're not bed ridden and are still able to move around without an awkward limp, then it's a mild case. That's the good news.

The bad news is, it's one of those things that will look at your recovery/rehab plan, and says: "I don't give a f*** what you do."

My advice is to keep doing your light hamstrings stretches, and keep yourself mobile. When my lower back locked up on me, I really couldn't move at all. But I made myself to walk up a hilly block next to my house. It took me ~20mins to walk up and down one steep block, but it kept my legs and lower back loose.

 

[RogueFLIP]

Suggest you stop speculating about your condition.

If you're worried, go to a medical professional.

 

[Will Wilson]

Thanks to the posts above I researched sciatica and that's it. I always assumed it would be sharp pain not just soreness. There is also something called Periformus(sp) Syndrome where the Periformus muscle contracts and puts pressure on the sciatic nerve.

Anyway, I've been stretching alot as I'm very inflexible. Yesterday I went to a massage therapist and that definitely helped as I can notice my back being much looser and the soreness / symptoms in my leg is less today.

One of the things I've learned is how many hip flexor muscles there are and how intertwined they are around the spine and pelvic region. Hard to stretch and very important for this kind of stuff.

Just to be on the safe side, I'm going to a chiropractor in a couple days.

 

[Abbygrant]

OP, I've had a similar problem off and on for quite awhile. I believe it is Piriformis Syndrome. I'm seeing my dr next week and asking her to refer me to Physical therapy. I'm hoping that the PT can correct some mis-alignments and give me some exercises to keep this from coming back. I will keep you informed.

 

[Chas Tennis]

Blood clots require immediate attention and probably many other conditions also.

See a Dr.

 

[RogueFLIP]

There's been some threads recently about sciatica/piriformis syndrome with interesting information that might be worth a search.