Anyone ever had a "Sports Hernia" aka: "Sportsman's hernia", "Gilmore's groin", or &quot

Surf.....Its a documented fact that when they cut the Rectus Abdominus tendons on cadavers that there Pelvis sprung foward into Anterior Pelvic tilt...You can go into an anterior Pelvic tilt for many reasons but if you are healthy and do the right exercises you should be able to correct that pelvic tilt and get it in neutral which is the optimal position.....But if you have a rectus tear it wont happen....trust me ive done specific corrective anterior pelvic tilt exercises 100% to the T and they have done nothing....and I have a torn Rectus along wiht torn adductors.....

And I dont mean to be a downer but even with the tears That I have had ......I have averaged at least 100 games of competitive softball each year with those tears over the last 5 years.......and its been from one extreme to the other...at times I felt really good at about 90% to the point where i felt I have finally recovered and beat it and cold run full speed and even cut...other times felt the sharp pain come and was done doing any running for 2-4 weeks...then would seem to get better again and back and forth...but always in pain somewhere weather it be my groin, back, SI, Sacrum, Hip, ab etc.....last time I felt that feeling of it retearing was Sept 08 and from then have never recovered.....Still playing Ball at about 50%...some days could run ok other days not to good...always in pain somewhere reguardless...SURGERY SCHEDULED 7/15 WITH MEYERS

I believe if you have a torn tendon in that area it scars up over times which tightens up the tendon but the scar tissue has absolutely no elasticity...so wehn you push it the scar tissue gives and your back to square one and it happens over and over again.....thats why surgery is pretty mcuht he only option ..jsut my 2 cents

Mike in Va,

I'd forgotten that you had specific incident, so surgery may be good for you.

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JCSportsman,

You and Albert both misunderstood my words. Many people seem to think a posterior pelvic tilt (or butt-in), like "The Hulk" superhero character is the ideal manly build, as opposed an anterior tilt (butt-out).

I'm guessing that the current generation, very "image" conscious as opposed to "action" conscious, see that because women in general have an even more pronounced anterior tilt (more butt-out) than men, they somehow conclude that posterior tilt (butt-in) is more perfect form.

But of course they are dead wrong. The finest athletes in the world almost always have a anterior tilt (butt-out). The best football players, soccer players, sprinters, you name it.

Yet the image persists in a generation of TV watchers, guys in the gym wanting to fit that he-man image of The Hulk, or Rambo, or GI Joe or something, not from real life, but from the cartoonists mind. So fitness websites still teach, "get rid of anterior pelvic tilt", so you can look more like Rambo.

In other words, JCSportsman, if you've been following PT that tries to eliminate your anterior pelvic tilt (butt-out), then I think those exercises could be responsible for your troubles today. But I'll admit, I could be wrong.

I say all this because last summer I had begun doing a little drill before each basketball game. I thought to myself, I want to be able to move the ball as low as possible (very low dribble, only 1 ft off the ground) and as quickly down the court as possible (running). I also thought to myself, Since I'm running so fast in such a bent over angle, I should really tuck my butt in to keep from getting a sore back. (Little did I know!)

I did that little 1 minute drill as part of my warmup for every session of basketball for about 3 months, no problems. Not long afterwards I came down with sports hernia.

But now that I have SH, in the last few days I've experimented, and by tucking my butt in when I walk, it instantly makes my groin pain worse. But by filling my lungs and putting my shoulders back when I walk, it puts my butt out a little bit, my back has a good little arch, and and the groin pain with each step stops immediately.

When I played football in high school our main running back was so good that he was honored as Florida's top all-state running back. He had a pronounced anterior tilt (butt-out), and was very, very fast and powerful. The ultimate athlete. He was built nothing like "The Hulk".

The myth going around sports hernia threads that one should do exercises to eliminate anterior tilt (eliminate butt-out) is exactly wrong. Instead such exercises might be the cause of sports hernia.

Hey ther Hockey Player-

I am following Meyers rehab as close as I can. His pool workout is really the only thing that is spelled out. I am hiring a Gray Cook trained therapist at week 6 (right now i am almost 4 weeks)..

All other things I was told to do what I could. What I am learning is that i am doing too much cardio. Sunday i did close to 2.5 hours all said and done. Well, Monday my plantar fasciatis hure like a mother and I was inflamed in general. I suppose I should learn the word moderation. Most tightness is dissipated. However, unlike most here I am out of shape and I do not have a solid foundation built so I should not be surprised at the inflammation,

I am very pleased with the surgery. Each day the incision gets less and less tight. My adductors fatigue easily still. I really think the 8 week mark is a key mark. Until then i am scaling my cardio waaaay back and doing more stretching / strengthening excercises than previous.

Right now both my adductor regions are shaking due to being fatigued after a long day.

I have alos been doing some core work. Mainly balancing on 1 foot 3 x 45 seconds per foot.

Surf-

I think you are making waaaay too many assumptions about this condition. First of all...you have no idea if you have it. Secondly, just because you feel better does not mean you are out of the woods.

Many athletes do have an anterior plevic tilt. However, many people who have it alos have a lower cross syndrome where the hip flexors dominate as well as tight quads, tight calves, tight QL's. I think when we speak of this we are speaking of an excessive lordosis which happens when people are unbalanced.

I also do not see many people trying to adopt a butt in look....That makes no sense to me.

Surf.....an Anterior pelvic tilt is fine and normal....Im talking an excessive anterior pelvic tilt with excessive lordosis of the spine........Too much posterior pelvic tilt is no good either since you lose the natural curve of the spine....Thats why to be in neutral is the goal...My tilt is very excessive at the moment...along with a right rotation of the pelvis...tears are on the left...makes sense ....no......Your making way too many assumptions as to why and how you get it.....tendons get stressed and give out....overuse and poor posture alignment seem to be the simple choices.....to try to come up with something in common like "hey I eat a lot of candy bars" " Oh yea me to".." Albert also eats lots of Candy bars" thats it ...ITs the damn Candy bars that cause the SH LOL .......personally Id rather look foward into the fix then look behind

Played indoor soccer last night after 30 mins of stretching and felt a slight groin ache after the game that has continued into today.. It feels much better now than it did last night, but the fact it is there at all scares the $h!+ out of me.. More accurately, its depressing. I don't know what to think of it, but I'll rest for a few days and see what shakes. I also think I pulled a muscle in my left glut somehow this weekend. YiYiYi!!!

Words to wise (unlike myself).. Stretch! I'll report back on the groin in a few days. Not my best day needless to say.

M.

MeLLoDraMa I saw where you posted on 6/1 that you played 6 games since the previous Wed...thats a good run...but maybe slow down a bit...could be fatiguing some muscles that arent used to all the games............even the the SH is fixed rest of the body has to catch up...good luck

Mello,

I pretty much have vowed not to play indoor anymore... the intensity of playing a faster game on a short, harder surface is way too much. Strictly outdoor on softer surfaces for me... no way I'm risking it after what I've been through.

Day 12 after mesh repair and felt pretty good today... some stiffness still and and a bit of a know at the incision point. But overall, I feel pretty good... went for an hour on the treadmill today. I get a bit of a burning sensation after I get up from sitting a while or sleeping. I have a follow-up Thursday. I think I posted it earlier, but Dr. Hoadley said I had a splaying/widening of the conjoined tendon. I'll get some more clarification on that in a couple of days. I know a lot of the guys experienced various tears related to the injury. But this might explain why my symptoms were milder and rehab seemed to lessen the condition somewhat.

sports hernia alert...

is "like a sports hernia..." sounds like it is a sports hernia to me...

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4225437

"Most everything is better signficantly, but not to pre-injury levels. I expect that it may take many more months, or maybe never, to be the way I was before the injury. (Actually feel the same way about my achilles injury, which has been very slow to heal totally - may never really be the same)"

SH in SC,

I don't think most of us we'll ever be 100% again. Even if we are physically, there is still a mental aspect to it. But the good news is that you are doing a lot of stuff you couldn't do with the injury.

Who did your surgery? Keep us posted... I'm interested in your progress with the mesh repair.

den

JCsportsman wrote:

MeLLoDraMa I saw where you posted on 6/1 that you played 6 games since the previous Wed...thats a good run...but maybe slow down a bit...could be fatiguing some muscles that arent used to all the games............even the the SH is fixed rest of the body has to catch up...good luck

I'll second that. Even the healthiest of athletes need to rest. You're going to do fine, MeLLoDraMa.

Den,

For only 12 days after mesh surgery, it seems to me your doing very well. And it seems to me that the splaying/widening of the conjoined tendon may be a sign that your body is extremely healthy, and was very active about repairing itself, even before surgery.

Surf,

I hope so... I actually lost weight after the injury as opposed to some of the guys that gained. I don't think either is good, but I'm starting to gain it back now with muscle tone. I have very weak hamstrings and tight hips, which honestly, I think probably contributed heavily to this injury. Leading up to the injury, I had played a couple very intense soccer games. My entire body was stiff and sore to the point where I really should have rested more before playing again. It's hard to say what caused it, but I think the fact that I was trying to compete at a high level when my body was telling me not to...

I suspect I'm in the minority here, but has anyone else had the mesh removal repair done?

Thanks

Swimming exercises

To heal myself and avoid surgery, I've been experimenting with swimming for the past 2 weeks as a means of getting exercise without rattling my sports hernia. Here is a list of things that seem to not aggravate either my lower abdomen or my adductors:

General Rule

I find it's safer to swim either with my arms, or my legs, but not both at the same time as is normal in swimming. If I'm propelling myself with my arms, then its good to have my back arched inward (in other words the two muscles running down my lower back are engaged).

If I'm propelling myself by my legs then it's good to NOT have those two back muscles engaged, i.e., NOT have my back arched inward.

Good: Paddling on a Surfboard

When lying on a surfboard one naturally raises one's head and shoulders off the board when paddling. To balance that, one naturally keeps ones legs fully extended as a counterweight to the raised head and shoulders. The result in a nice inward arch of the lower back, which somehow prevents the lower abdomen tendons from yanking away from the pubic bone or tugging on the testicle cords, even though the abdominal muscles are doing substantial work.

This exercise works shoulders, chest, abdomen, arms and back muscles.

The body position is very similar to the "rocker" calesthenics exercise of school students.

Good: On-back Flutter Kick

Lying on one's back, propelling ones self through the water with a gentle flutter kick, one notices that the abdominal muscles are engaged, and that there is NOT an inward arch in the lower back, but rather an outward arch.

This obeys the General Rule above that when propelling one's self with one's legs then the lower back should NOT be arched inward.

To date, this On-back flutter kick is the only exercise I know of that allows a sports hernia sufferer to directly exercise the major leg muscles without aggravating the sports hernia.

For non-surgical recovery and for surgical recovery

I'm thinking these two swim exercises are useful not only for someone like me who is trying to recover without surgery, but also for those who are recovering after surgery.

Has anybody else had experiences with swimming for SH recovery?

Hey Everyone!

First of all I want to say thanks for all of you posting on this forum! I have been reading it for 6-8 weeks now and your posts have helped me so much. People are reading this forum and getting A LOT of help from it.

I guess I don't really need to go into all the details of what my symptoms are since they are almost exactly what several of you have described here. It all started in November, 2008....just after running a marathon in october. I have the pain on both sides so I am very suspicious that I may have a bilateral SH. The pain gets so bad it is very difficult to do my normal daily activities. I have taken the last 6 weeks of from doing much of any exercising, except walking. The pain seemed to be subsiding but it still flairs up every once in a while. Yesterday I did a brisk 2.5 mile walk with the dog.....today...uughhh....it hurts!!!! I went through a few months of being majorly fatigued and probably even depressed!

BUT, after finding this forum and finding out about Dr. M I have felt a little better. I have contacted her office and am waiting for them to contact me about when she is comming to Colorado in July.

Like many of you here I will admit that I am addicted to exercising daily so this has been VERY difficult for me....espicially since I have a partner who is also very active. Sitting around while they are training for a Triathlon is killing me!

Mike in VA....I am REALLY looking forward to hearing your account of your surgery. Mello, thank you so much for posting here about your surgery. Mike in Denver, let me know when Dr. M's office contacts you...and I will do the same!

Thanks again for this great forum.

garrett

Surf,

I didn't have good results with swimming. But if may work for you. My PY was against it while I was still doing core work because she felt swimming made you feel more capable than you really are. It seemed to cause inflammation with me, but everyone is different. I still think your best bet is focused core work. Also, I went for 10 minutes on a stationary bike as a warm-up to the core work. But I honestly think I showed the biggest improvement through gradual light stretching during the core work. The stretching seemed to loosen everything else up and we really overlook that factor sometimes. I was very religious with stretching several times a day. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough.

Rem,

I just had a mesh repair a couple weeks ago in Atlanta and I'm hoping it goes well. But as you may know, Dr. UM is against using the mesh because it causes stiffness. Someone posted this ESPN piece a few weeks ago... it documents MLS player Marvelle Wynne... apparently the mesh repair migrated and caused problems. I'm assuming Dr. UM did a mesh removal first and performed her procedure. According to the piece, he was walking the next day.

http://www.leistenbruch.de/fileadmin/filme/Outside-The-Lines_klein.wmv

Surf,

I couldn't really say whether the exercises you mention are safe to do or not. But I think they aren't because of the intensity of the motions even if it's in water. Your body can be easily fatigued whereas with stretching and core work, you have better control over what you are doing. I especially think you are getting risky by messing around with s surfboard... too many factors you can't control. As I mentioned before, my results with swimming weren't good and I developed inflammation immediately a day afterward in my groin and adductor. But having said all that, if it's working for you, then it's probably ok.

All I will tell you is that I was doing quite well when I followed the core work and stretching to what was designed... when I strayed away from what the PT told me even slightly, I had problems.