The sacroiliac joint, also known as the SI joint, is one area that changes as we get older. It is important to retain mobility and movement in these joints to decrease the SI joints from becoming stiff and tight. While it not only can create pain in our lower back, it may create tension in the piriformis and the glute muscles.
Have you ever felt like you have pulled a muscle in the backside upper thigh (glute region) and believe that it is a pulled muscle? This is not always the case. So many times I will say that ‘Everything is connected’, and this is one of them. While you may feel the pain in your glute, it is often the SI joint is the cause of this pain. The piriformis muscle happens to be a muscle that we do not always include in our stretches, or you may not even realize it is being used. Let’s also be honest, have you ever heard of piriformis? Yeah that took me 38 years to find out.
The piriformis muscle is key in the hips and their movements. It is attached to the sacrum and when it is tight or constricted, it may create a pull of the sacrum. It is tied to sciatic pain and can stem from one having piriformis syndrome. This of course leads to the pain found in the upper leg, lower back, butt, and hips. The statement ‘everything is connected’ just makes sense in this scenario.
We can be proactive in the health of our joints, and keeping our hips fluid in movement will benefit ourselves as we continue to get older.
There are some amazing poses that can help you gain mobility and flexibility in the hips to continue to support a healthy lower back. All of these poses can be accomplished with while using a chair, yoga blocks, or even cushions.
Reclined Tree Pose/Standing Tree Pose
Butterfly
Triangle
Flank
Half Moon
Cow
Pigeon
