Lower Back and Hip Pain from Skiing

[Eric@ict]

Lots of direction in this thread. I had a very similar issue. Sounds exactly the same but who knows on the net. I went to a chiropractor who put me on two scales and we saw I wasn’t carrying my weight evenly. He then took ex rays of my hips and found one was rolled fwd a bit. He started me on twice a month visits. I went a saw a masseuse and found my pireforma and sciatica. The same area you are experiencing pain. I saw her once a month and am now down to once a qtr. The last thing I do every couple of weeks is use a egoscue tower and some of their methods and what a game changer this has been. I hope you get this all worked out soon. For me, it’s turning into a life style also I keep these people and stretching in my life.

The Egoscue Method of Health Through Motion is a book you can find on Amazon..​

 

[VickieH]

My update... I'm getting a new hip. Total hip replacement scheduled for mid-April. Yay me.

So it's the joint that has been wreaking all the havoc and not soft tissue? If there is also soft tissue damage, will they be able to repair it while they're in there or will it resolve on its own during the rest and rehab?

Congrats on getting a diagnosis and plan for fixing it. Progress.

 

[Noodler]

So it's the joint that has been wreaking all the havoc and not soft tissue? If there is also soft tissue damage, will they be able to repair it while they're in there or will it resolve on its own during the rest and rehab?

Congrats on getting a diagnosis and plan for fixing it. Progress.

They're not even discussing any potential soft tissue injuries. They're not planning on getting a new MRI. I know that I have problems with the muscles across the hip complex, but I think it is all related to a painful and sometimes unstable hip joint.

Knowing that the joint is now "disposable", I have been just pushing through my exercises and stretching, while ignoring the pain in the joint. There's no way it will ever actually "heal" without replacement, so now I'm just taking a f*ck it approach to getting in my workouts so that I can go into the surgery as strong and fit as possible. My whole-hip gel ice pack is my buddy once again...

 

[Prosper]

I'm considered quite young to have this procedure. I was advised to wait at least another 5 years to avoid having a second (revision) surgery, but doing the math, I doubt I would avoid the revision even if I waited 5 years, so why wait? The implant supposedly has a lifespan of 15-20 years. 20 years puts me at 75. I don't think I can escape a second surgery down the road.

Many people who have uneventful/successful THA and TKA express that the wish they would have done it years sooner especially those who live active lifestyles. They’re able to return to the activities they did previously without the significant pain they had prior to the replacement. This is a pretty good article about the longevity of joint replacements: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/how-long-will-my-hip-or-knee-replacement-last-2018071914272

Do you know if you’re having a THA with cement or with a press-fit prosthesis?

 

[Rod9301]

Many people who have uneventful/successful THA and TKA express that the wish they would have done it years sooner especially those who live active lifestyles. They’re able to return to the activities they did previously without the significant pain they had prior to the replacement. This is a pretty good article about the longevity of joint replacements: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/how-long-will-my-hip-or-knee-replacement-last-2018071914272

Do you know if you’re having a THA with cement or with a press-fit prosthesis?

Of course the ones that had successful tkr say that they should've done it earlier. I wonder about the ones where it wasn't successful.

I had a thr 2 years ago, excellent results. Talked to the same surgeon about knee replacement and he was much less positive about the potential outcome.
My knee is not bad at all, just wanted his opinion.
He said that compared to thr, knee replacements are much more problematic.

And he does a ton of them, and he's a badass skier.

 

[Prosper]

Of course the ones that had successful tkr say that they should've done it earlier. I wonder about the ones where it wasn't successful.

I had a thr 2 years ago, excellent results. Talked to the same surgeon about knee replacement and he was much less positive about the potential outcome.
My knee is not bad at all, just wanted his opinion.
He said that compared to thr, knee replacements are much more problematic.

And he does a ton of them, and he's a badass skier.

Most of the patients I have seen where TKA did not go well are those who did not do the PT. Yes, surgical complications can and do occur but those are pretty uncommon. Joint replacement surgeries are among surgeries with the highest patient satisfaction rates. The recovery from TKA is much more painful than for THA. And PT hurts. That can prevent patients from doing the PT and the end up with worse results than they should have had.

 

[Rod9301]

Many people who have uneventful/successful THA and TKA express that the wish they would have done it years sooner especially those who live active lifestyles. They’re able to return to the activities they did previously without the significant pain they had prior to the replacement. This is a pretty good article about the longevity of joint replacements: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/how-long-will-my-hip-or-knee-replacement-last-2018071914272

Do you know if you’re having a THA with cement or with a press-fit prosthesis?

Of course the ones that had successful tkr say that they should've done it earlier. I wonder about the ones where it wasn't successful.

I had a thr 2 years ago, excellent results. Talked to the same surgeon about knee replacement and he was much less positive about the potential outcome.
My knee is not bad at all, just wanted his opinion.
He said that compared to thr, knee replacements are much more problematic.

And he does a ton of them, and he's a badass skier.

Most of the patients I have seen where TKA did not go well are those who did not do the PT. Yes, surgical complications can and do occur but those are pretty uncommon. Joint replacement surgeries are among surgeries with the highest patient satisfaction rates. The recovery from TKA is much more painful than for THA. And PT hurts. That can prevent patients from doing the PT and the end up with worse results than they should have had.

0k then

 

[Noodler]

Many people who have uneventful/successful THA and TKA express that the wish they would have done it years sooner especially those who live active lifestyles. They’re able to return to the activities they did previously without the significant pain they had prior to the replacement. This is a pretty good article about the longevity of joint replacements: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/how-long-will-my-hip-or-knee-replacement-last-2018071914272

Do you know if you’re having a THA with cement or with a press-fit prosthesis?

Press-fit cup. No bone cement. From everything I've learned so far, I think I have a pretty good doc. What's working against me is I haven't had great luck with any of the procedures I've ever had done or my selection of doctors. My track record simply sucks. So here's to hoping I can finally break that streak.

 

[FlyingAce]

I ended my golf season in November with what I thought was sciatica pain from overuse (I golf 5 days a week). It was dull pain in my lower back, left side where the dimple is and I sometimes get pain down my butt, hamstring to my knee. Not burning, tinkling or numbing. It feels like a muscle or ligament is pulling. I don’t feel the pain when I am skiing so I just left it alone. Came Feb when I took a week long ski lesson on carving and we skied aggressively for a few days and now the pain is constant and worse. I cannot move without pain. Just did x-ray and dr said I have a SI joint injury and am scheduled to see a surgeon later this week. No more golf nor skiing for now.

 

[Roundturns]

Out here in Vail and conditions are great. But I have a cold or something and feel really weak. Today was the first day skiing, got in about 9 PM the night before.
First day altitude adjustment maybe, feeling lousy, and I pulled out my Cham 107’s with the fresh snow. I usually don’t ski a wide ski and maybe they required more input and energy fro me.
Anyway, got to bounce back tomorrow. Only made it to Noon today.
Feeling crappy on a ski vacation, Unacceptable!

 

[Paul Lutes]

I ended my golf season in November with what I thought was sciatica pain from overuse (I golf 5 days a week). It was dull pain in my lower back, left side where the dimple is and I sometimes get pain down my butt, hamstring to my knee. Not burning, tinkling or numbing. It feels like a muscle or ligament is pulling. I don’t feel the pain when I am skiing so I just left it alone. Came Feb when I took a week long ski lesson on carving and we skied aggressively for a few days and now the pain is constant and worse. I cannot move without pain. Just did x-ray and dr said I have a SI joint injury and am scheduled to see a surgeon later this week. No more golf nor skiing for now.

Surgery seems a little excessive based on what you've described. Have you lost any motor function? SL joint injury doesn't say much, really. I'm not saying you don't have a problem - unrelenting pain/muscle spasms is brutal, but your time frame seems a little short to immediately go for the knife. I mean, that's what I did back in the beginning, and what limited success it produced completely failed within 2 weeks. Targeted, intense PT is what's gotten me through the subsequent 30 years.

 

[FlyingAce]

Surgery seems a little excessive based on what you've described. Have you lost any motor function? SL joint injury doesn't say much, really. I'm not saying you don't have a problem - unrelenting pain/muscle spasms is brutal, but your time frame seems a little short to immediately go for the knife. I mean, that's what I did back in the beginning, and what limited success it produced completely failed within 2 weeks. Targeted, intense PT is what's gotten me through the subsequent 30 years.

Thanks for sharing. I don’t think surgery is in the horizon. My surgeon has been monitoring my knees for years so it only makes sense to see him for this too. My dad was an orthopedic surgeon and had always told me to only use surgery as a last resort. Aging sucks!

 

[RedbarnPD]

Sitting is evil for any athlete.

Suggest you look for YouTube videos focusing on addressing QL (Quadratus Lumborem)/upper glute pain. Try Coach Eric at Precision Movement (excellent home exercises) on YouTube and search for QL + hip flexors.

I think you will find a lot of as mentioned above, a focus on simple Glute Medius & hip flexor exercises & mobility. It takes a long time before you see improvement (weeks of single leg RDL & hip mobility), but you should be able to improve your issues with simple, continuous homework.

Good luck!