Cardio with Butt Pain?

adj11481

My mom was diagnosed with (and has now defeated) breast cancer 3 years ago, and my best friend, my little sister, passed away 2 1/2 years ago. During this time, I was a mess emotionally, I gained a lot of weight, getting close to 190 pounds on my 5'3 frame. Last year, I realized I was only 32 years old, I wanted to have a family in the near future, but my overall health was terrible because I was the heaviest I'd ever been, and I felt terrible about myself. I decided enough was enough and started working towards a healthier lifestyle and mindset. The diet slowly got more and more strict, and the workouts slowly got more and more frequent and challenging. Then in February of this year, my boyfriend proposed! We are getting married on September 20th. So my dieting/workouts definitely picked up. I have lost about 40 pounds and gained who knows how much muscle by doing both cardio and strength training 5 days a week.

Last week, I realized how soon the wedding is (3 months out) and that I had sort of hit a plateau in my weight loss, but I want to lose another 20 pounds. I knew I needed to pick up the workout intensity. I decided to start doing 6 days a week of cardio, and another strength or stretching session 6 days a week. I have been doing interval sprinting and brisk walking on the treadmill, gradually increasing my sprinting time/speed. Last Friday, I made the mistake of doing sprinting/walking intervals on an inclined treadmill AND squats AND a session of pilates that had a lot of lower body exercises.

I woke up the next morning with a pain in my right butt cheek. Saturday, I did the elliptical to try and give my butt a break. But it still hurt. So Sunday, I took the day off. Monday, I did an hour and a half of yoga, all the stretching really seemed to help the butt. But by Monday night, it was hurting again. I did some research Tuesday and realized I've probably got piriformis tendonitis. Everything I've read says you have to give cardio a break for a few days (some say a few weeks). I skipped the gym Tuesday, only did upper body weights on Wednesday (no cardio), and finally woke up Thursday with no butt pain. So I tried doing 30 minutes of moderate treadmill intervals, making sure to do mat stretching before and after, and including a long walking warm up / cool down. My butt hurt a bit Thursday night. Friday, I decided to try the stationary bike to see if that would be better. But my butt hurts again today. It's not a sharp, shooting pain (so I don't think it's a disc), it's a dull pain like there's a muscle cramp deep in my butt cheek. Lovely, I know.

Long story short: WHAT CARDIO IS OKAY FOR PIRIFORMIS STRAINS? I have finally gotten into the groove with the running, it's the first time EVER I'm actually enjoying it, and I need cardio to keep losing weight. But if the treadmill, bike, and elliptical all hurt my butt, what cardio can I do? Do I really have to take several weeks off? Or should I workout through the pain until the wedding and then take some time to heal? What about swimming? Please help, fellow self-improvers. Thank you!

MagnumBurrito

Try mashing the tight area with a lacrosse ball.

writergeek313

I use the Expresso bikes at my gym. They run competitions every month, and this month's is to ride 100 miles. After a few months of slacking on my workouts, I've ridden 60 miles in the last two weeks. My butt and hamstrings have been extremely tight and sore. I've been making sure to stretch before and after my workouts, but that hasn't been enough. Other things that have been helpful have been hot baths, ice packs, a heating pad, and most of all a foam roller.

This isn't a case where pushing through the pain is a good idea, as you could be putting yourself at risk for injury. Rather than self-diagnosing based on something you read online, I would suggest seeing a doctor if the pain continues. I have a feeling that it's not anything serious, just your muscles trying to adjust to the fact that you're suddenly doing a lot more exercise than you had been. Six days a week might be too ambitious based on your current fitness level. Take rest days when you need them. Keep in mind that exercise promotes fitness but it's eating at a deficit that's really going to help you lose weight.