High hamstring pain right under butt won't go way no matter what! Proximal hamstring tendonitis or strain?

My problem is pretty similar and right now it doesn't hurt too much but when I do feel pain it's right below the crease of the butt on the inside and actually a bit in the groin area too. I'm not sure it the adductors are involved since side to side movement and standing with my legs further apart hurt a lot.

I have gotten whole body cryotherapy before and decided to try the localized version to see if it can help speed recovery. I figured it can't hurt since it is kind of just like icing it. So far it's been two days since getting the cryo and honestly I think it didn't help at all. Before I got it I only had a stiffness in my leg and the pain was mostly gone but now it seems to have come back. I don't know if ice was a bad move or maybe cryotherapy is not as miraculous as they claim.

Hello. If the pain feels as if it moved down from the lower glute. more the upper hamstring, probably the sciatic nerve is irritated as well or entrapped by the affected tendon’s scar tissue, causing sciatica-like symptoms down the leg. Not unusual for this kind of injury. I've had it since February, right leg. Personally I am exploring cortisone injections or Ultrasound-guided tendinous injection of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) or ultrasound guided tenotomy. It rarely goes away with conventional therapy. I my case, even driving has become a pain in the butt (literally speaking). I checked on ultrasound, and lo and behold you could see some small tears on the tendon. I am seeing my orthopedist in a couple of weeks. Good luck!

LosingHope wrote:

I have been having the EXACT same problem I think. I haven't even done spinning or elliptical but it still hurts just to bend over especially if I bend at a certain angle reaching for something. I had hope when it seemed to get better after resting for a week but then I got a massage from the PT and now it has suddenly gotten even worse than it was when I went running. Now the slightest movement causes a twinge of pain in the upper hamstring area and I don't even know if I should continue any bridges or strengthening work.

Is it possible the massage made things worse in some way and can that affect the healing process? I don't see any bruising but the pain feels worse and has even spread to the inner thigh area now.

Elliptical works, it's non weight bearing almost zero gravity as well as aqua running (that's the vast majority of my training since the injury). Spinning....be careful, it can aggravate it.

Tryingeverything wrote:

I have gotten whole body cryotherapy before and decided to try the localized version to see if it can help speed recovery. I figured it can't hurt since it is kind of just like icing it. So far it's been two days since getting the cryo and honestly I think it didn't help at all. Before I got it I only had a stiffness in my leg and the pain was mostly gone but now it seems to have come back. I don't know if ice was a bad move or maybe cryotherapy is not as miraculous as they claim.

The purpose of icing is simply to calm down the nerves and help them to relax, not to freeze the whole area which is what a lot of people mistakenly think.

All you do is ice for a minute or two to calm the area down, followed by gentle movement. Then ice for a 1/2 minute followed by more gentle movement. Once the area is cool and calmed down then you don't need to keep icing. You don't want the tissues getting too cold, just cool and calmed down is enough. The same goes for soaking in ice water. Just do it enough to calm the area down, which also is quite strengthening. The more the injury is healing, the more cold that can be tolerated for short periods. Then dry well and keep the area warm enough to be comfortable but not too warm and not hot. The purpose of this is to reduce pain and inflammation along with promoting good healing. Ask if you have any questions.

Sounds a lot like the sciatica issues I've been having over the past few years. It's a pain in the butt and shoots around the hip and down my hamstring.

My physio and loads of strength / core training are helping to manage it, but it does flare up when I am taking time off or at the end of a hard training block.

Following up on my earlier post - still not much improvement despite complete rest. I take cabs if I have to go somewhere and I only do arm and abs workouts. I have tried to not to anything to irritate the leg at all. The PT advised me not to do any strengthening work yet even though I think at this point I probably could since it doesn't hurt to do the bridges even on one leg or hamstring curls. But I have followed instructions pretty well and stayed away from leg exercises, running, ellipticals, bikes, and even walking. It seems like one of the reasons the hamstring injury is so frustrating is because once there's a problem you realize there are so many activities you have to avoid.

Since my first post I also got 2 sessions of PT where I had some graston and ART done. Their diagnosis is that I have a minor tear where the hamstring and glute meet. I don't know if the slight improvement is from PT or from barely using the leg at all. Walking doesn't cause pain at all anymore but after I'm done it feels a bit stiffer. The only way I can provoke the pain at all now is bending forward with my legs straight in a wider position or a side lunge to the opposite side of the injured leg.

I don't know how often I should be doing self-massage at home but it seems when I sit on a lacrosse ball and do a lot of back and forth and side to side I feel significantly better right after. I'm careful not to put all my weight on it so it's not too aggressive. I also have a electric massager that I use to try and do some cross friction which also gives some short term relief.

Time seems to pass so slowly but I think at this point if I try to run I'll probably start my healing all over. Next week if symptoms don't start to decrease I'll probably have to pay for the MRI just to see what's going on so I don't keep researching for any similar cases.

For people who might have some experience with this, do you have any tips on whether I should start to incorporate the strengthening exercises and if walking more would actually help my recovery? Also for those who have had PT or had the misfortune of dealing with high hamstring problems, how long did it take before resting or PT started to have major improvements?

I had this in both butts. Only time healed it. About 4 months of no running. I have it again for some reason so have to take time off again. Also, don't sit so much.

Hadittoo wrote:

I had this in both butts. Only time healed it. About 4 months of no running. I have it again for some reason so have to take time off again. Also, don't sit so much.

Eeeek! That must have been horrible! I am on my 3rd month of no running. Been walking a bit more and that seems to be fine so far. I can still feel random twinges of pain so I have not even done the walk/run plan yet. This is the longest break I've been forced to take and I'm terrified it'll be a chronic thing.

How long were you able to run without pain? And did you see a doctor or PT at all?

I don't think this has been diagnosed accurately.

My guess is a tear in the muscle and fascia torn as well.

Not sciatica, just inflammation and pressure changes.

Try adding incline to the walk, same pace w 7%.

cati1234 wrote:

Hadittoo wrote:

I had this in both butts. Only time healed it. About 4 months of no running. I have it again for some reason so have to take time off again. Also, don't sit so much.

Eeeek! That must have been horrible! I am on my 3rd month of no running. Been walking a bit more and that seems to be fine so far. I can still feel random twinges of pain so I have not even done the walk/run plan yet. This is the longest break I've been forced to take and I'm terrified it'll be a chronic thing.

How long were you able to run without pain? And did you see a doctor or PT at all?

It's been 1.5 months and I'm running pain-free again. There's still a slight twinge so still have to be careful with stretching, speed and distance. I did see a chiro but didn't really help. Rest and not sitting so much is what helps it.

I agree sounds like hamstring tendinopathy. I've had 2 nasty cases, and it is enormously frustrating. First, a PT who knows running the injuries well and can do dry needling will help out. Eccentric exercises were key (the backwards treadmill eccentric walk in particular and also Bulgarian squats).

For me, as my PT preached, it's a matter of getting the hamstring and the tendon back into a normal load and release pattern. Right now it's just one big ball of load, and it can't release. He had me run a day, then eccentric exercise with dry needling to help release the muscle and tendon, then another run 2 or 3 days later, then eccentrics and dry needle etc, gradually increasing the intensity of the run. Within a week or two I was back to daily running and the competing within 2 months.

I have the same problem but I am old and never like running that well. Just want you guys to know … have your back X-rayed or even MRId. Doctor says my problem is from the back and I need three disks replaced. One of the things I almost totally cannot do is lift anything that is heavy, and even notice the pain when I carry something as simple as a full gallon water jug. Just cannot do it! I have had numerous joint problems and several replacements. Also told I cannot have back surgery without knee replacements. I have had one and recovery sucks with that, too. I have had both hips replaced, 5 disks in my neck, open heart surgery, etc. So I am a bit skeptical to do the back. I probably will have ankle surgery in the fall (scar tissue or worse, but lots of pain walking). Now I have a wrist problem.

Enough about me. Just wanted to point out that my upper hamstring problem, deep in the lower cheeks (both cheeks) apparently is a problem because of bad back issues. So, it wouldn't be a bad idea if you serious runners see a good orthopedic doctor to rule out other issues. It just seems that no one has an answer to this problem.

Last December’s twinge turned into excruciating pain after a HM I should’ve skipped in February. Finally saw an ortho, yep — tendinopathy. Got better with PT, then reinjured it again last month as soon as I started running, even though I started out nice and easy on a treadmill. I’ve done everything short of voodoo spells to bring the inflammation down: icing, topical arnica, massage, special diet, even herbal supplements. No joy. The bike irritates it. The elliptical irritates it unless I keep my hips relatively immobilized. Im doing cardio with VMX rope pull.

Good luck. This injury sucks. I feel for you.

I once had hamstring soreness/tightness, combined with hip bursitis. PT diagnosed it as weak gluteus medius/glutes not firing when I ran. She had me do single leg glute bridge raises (theraband at knees), clamshells, single leg deadlifts, monster walk, and hamstring curls.

My hip issues resolved in 6 weeks ish, but my hamstring pain lingered UNTIL I started doing hamstring curls on machines at the gym. Deadlifts help, but they just don't target the bicep femoris like extended hamstring curls do. Bicep femoris is the part of the hamstring that engages at the START of the pulling motion. It snaps the foot back, and then the rest of the hamstring muscles kick in and continue/accelerate the motion, all the way to push-off. After about 4 weeks of doing hamstring curls 1-2x/week, the pain was gone. No soreness, and my hamstrings felt great.

Look, there is a time for rest, and a time for re-building muscle. Too much rest just leads to muscle atrophy. Most sprains heal in about 6 weeks. Plus, the hamstrings are really poorly designed muscles on the human body. They do not get a good supply of blood, especially if you are sitting on them most of the time. They respond well to being lightly active.

Remember this when it comes to muscle tears: our muscles are made of many small fibers. When we tear them, sometimes they heal badly. Instead of lining up like a row of dry spaghetti, instead they end up like cooked spaghetti on a plate - all over the place. They fuse like this, and soreness/tightness remains in a muscle. The muscle needs to be selectively re-torn gradually so that the fibers can heal straight. Eccentric muscle contractions help this (which is why eccentric heel drops are the protocol for achilles tears). Massage also helps with these muscle tears that don't heal properly. But massage doesn't increase the amount of muscle fibers or strengthen the muscle. It just increases blood flow and breaks up the scar tissue.

You could try doing some hamstring curls on the machines at the gym. The kind where you lie down on your stomach, and pull your feet behind your butt. Lift the bar with both legs, then let it down with the injured leg. Start small - 10 lbs. It should hurt, but feel like manageable pain. Not excruciating. Don't do any huge volume. Just 2 sets of 20 reps - do both legs. Plus some of the other stuff I mentioned above would help with overall stability.

If you are unsure/don't have access to a gym, just go do a drop in sesh and try it out. After one session you should feel some 'changes.' Your hamstring will feel a deep "good" soreness, rather than a sharp, pinchy soreness. In a few days, you can do it again and it should feel easier/less painful.

I am NOT a PT, but this is what worked for me. I strongly believe in pre-hab, so I continue to do hamstring curls 1x/week. If I slack off, and maybe go every other week, the hamstring pain returns.

Piano_Man87 wrote:

my hamstring pain lingered UNTIL I started doing hamstring curls on machines at the gym.

Thank you for covering that all in detail in your interesting post.

Is there any way to do hamstring curls in a simple manner at home?

I've been having hamstring, knee, hip issues for almost three years, sometimes so bad that it was painful to walk or even to stand for more than a couple of minutes. I tried all sorts of different remedies. I had to stop running immediately, haven't run at all for almost three years, would try to go for long walks but even the walking would keep hurting my leg. There was no specific cause of this, other than wearing running shoes, as they seemed to cause jarring in my leg and especially my knee.

Earlier this year I got a Concept2 Skierg, and was very cautious at first, but soon found it didn't aggravate my leg at all, so I've kept increasing the distance and workouts. Now after doing quite a few meters, my leg is not hurting anymore, and I don't miss the running so much. I'm doing hard workouts like I used to do on the roads, hills and the track, with no pain! In fact my legs are feeling much stronger than they were. I feel almost like this machine saved my life.

I still feel like I might be able to run again someday.

Maybe not like I used to, but that's okay, as long as I can keep getting good exercise.

Nordic Hamstring curls.

Also what really worked was to tie a bicycle inner tube to really strong shelf I have at about waist height. Then I lay on my back and with the tube behind me and reach up and pull the tube as far as I can with a straight leg. Then slowly( eccentrically) resist letting pull my leg up to the starting position. Do this for sets of 10-20 , make It hard once you get used to it by pulling the band closer to the floor or making it tighter. Do these and start walking, keep doing any cross training that is working. Don't use a recumbent bike , or make sure it isn't setting you back, it did me and I still stay away from it.

Start going on long walks as soon as you can .... add hills as soon as you can.....add 10-20 meters or jogging interspersed with the walking as soon as you can ......add to this. Don't sit too much, if you have to sit , sit on a foam roller on you butt or right on the middle of your hamstings. Massage the heck out of everything in the area right up to and on the sore spot and the bellies of Hamstring muscles . Use the foam roller and a softball or a baseball or something like that. Don't do straight leg stretches , always stretch with a bent knee, Definitely do not ever do the straight leg bending over stretch, ever again. Stretch your glutes a lot.

If you are 100% sure you've rested the muscle/tendon tear for long enough, and it's still not going away after months and months, then try cross friction massage.

You don't need a therapist, just do it yourself. Dig you fingers or thumb into the injury site and rub perpendicular to the muscle to break up the scar tissue. Do this in private, as it will look quite neurotic to any observers.

Gotridofit. wrote:

Nordic Hamstring curls.

Also what really worked was to tie a bicycle inner tube to really strong shelf I have at about waist height. Then I lay on my back and with the tube behind me and reach up and pull the tube as far as I can with a straight leg. Then slowly( eccentrically) resist letting pull my leg up to the starting position. Do this for sets of 10-20 , make It hard once you get used to it by pulling the band closer to the floor or making it tighter.

Thanks very much for the details. What do you mean "lay on my back and with the tube behind me?"

Do you mean behind your head, so you're reaching up with your leg, then pulling back down with the tube?

If so, that might not work for me, as glut bridges greatly increased the strain in my upper hamstring and glut.

I don't go to gyms`, wrote:

Piano_Man87 wrote:

my hamstring pain lingered UNTIL I started doing hamstring curls on machines at the gym.

Thank you for covering that all in detail in your interesting post.

Is there any way to do hamstring curls in a simple manner at home?

If you can get them to work, Nordic curls could be good. They follow the right principle - maximum torque when the leg is straightest. I found them very difficult (I couldn't ever even do one). Maybe you could do them eccentrically - it, but the issue with them is that your minimum weight is the weight of your body from the knees up - so about 100 lbs, which is a lot! With a machine you can start as low as you want. You might be able to use a chair to take some of the weight off your hamstring at first - place it next to you and use it to take some of the weight. Hard to keep the weight consistent if you do that though. And if your hamstring is really injured.. you could easily overdo the weight and worsen it if you aren't careful.

Hamstring curls with an exercise ball I also tried, but didn't fix the issue. They work your core a lot, and it's hard to balance if using only one leg.

The ones where you lie on the ground on linoleum with a towel under your feet, then pull your knees up until your legs are forming part of a bridge - hard to do, don't seem to work.

I know guys who have struggled with hamstring issues for literally years. And they also refuse to go to the gym and do hamstring curls. They are still injured and have given up on running. It's a question of how bad you want it.

Just go to the gym once. Once! Do 3 sets of 15 reps per leg, with a low weight. 10-20 lbs. After 2 days, after they've healed a bit, they should already feel better. Then decide if you want to keep going.

I suppose another way is that you could get a set of adjustable weights at home (up to 160 lbs). Do Romanian dead lifts at home. Work up to 160 lbs. After not long (a few weeks?) you should be able to do 15-20 reps easily. Dead lifts work out your biceps femoris, but just a little bit, since they are engaged the most when you are almost standing - so the torque is very minimal. But with enough weight, it should still have a good beneficial effect. Weights aren't cheap though. I bet a gym membership for a year is cheaper.