Get off your Piraformis and get busy!

So the anatomical name for my rear pain is the piraformis.  It's a rotator muscle deep in the butt that I've somehow managed to tighten up to the point that it's resting on my siatic nerve.  Sounds fun, huh.  Now if you think that appointment wasn't great, well...let me tell you.  

doc:  So how's the knees doing?  

jen:  Actually, they're doing pretty good.  I think they're getting better.  I have a new pain.

doc:  Oh, where is it?

jen:  Well... it's in my butt.  (here's where I'm starting to get worried about some sort of physical examination of one of the biggest, flabbiest parts of my anatomy.)

doc does some tests by bending my leg into contortions and then telling me that I have a very common runner's injury to the piraformis.  He tells me that he will show me some stretches and will work on it.  (Panic again ensues.)  He pulls out an electronic device to work on the tight old muscle.  I'm laying on my stomach as the rotating balls (?) are working on my rear.  I can feel every giggle and wave of fat going across the table.  I'm sure that if I had a video tape of this I'd never eat another bad thing again.  I'm wondering how he stands to do this to people day in and day out.  I'm having trouble relaxing.  He shows me the stretches.  Tells me to do them 8 or 9 times a day along with warming it up with a heating pad first.  Is he serious?  8 or 9 times a day?  He also told me "no running" for a few days and to use my roller in the meantime.  So I've been getting about 5 sessions a day in and I've been rolling it out.  It's getting better.  I'm not walking around like an old woman at the end of the day anymore. 

So to recap my week:

Monday:  yoga

Tuesday:  ran 2 miles in complete pain

Thursday:  got out my punching bag that I got for Christmas a few years ago and worked out my frustrations on it after a 20 minute session of jump roping.  (note to self, find a better surface than the concrete to jump rope on.)

Friday:  yoga

Saturday:  ran 3.5 miles with NO knee pain and only slight rear pain.  It was one of the best runs I've been on.  It rained the whole time and I had a new song on my i pod.  I also tried to incorporate some of the yoga style breathing into my run.  Came home and worked on the punching bag again.  I can always count on that workout to make my back and shoulders sore!  Plus it's a good alternative to lifting weights!

Congrats to my friend Sherry, who ran the St. George Marathon this weekend and qualified for Boston!  And to Barb, Sherry S., and Lindsey who all ran the same marathon.  And congrats to Mike who ran the Twin City Marathon this weekend!  Great job everyone!

Here's my new favorite running song, by Rascall Flatts if you're interested!  

"Cause when push comes to shove, you taste what you're made of.

You might bend till you break, cause it's all you can take

On your knees you look up, decide you've had enough

You get mad, you get strong, wipe your hands, shake it off, 

Then you stand."