ANYBODY ELSE REALLY TIGHT??

naughtoj

naughtoj

Cathlete
Hi everyone!!

My name is Janice and you may remember my post a while back about my scoliotic back pain ...about my desk job making it unbearable..and i was going to see a spinal specialist..

Well, the specialist wasn't impressed. It is official!! I am a medical mystery. He couldn't even come up with a reason for my back hurting!! Even with my desk job, I am out of my chair every 15 min. or so..stretching and walking..and on my lunch hours I work out to Cathe and sometimes bike or run in the AM. He was bewildered, but not really concerned..he didn't know me and I am so young and healthy that he kind of blew me off. However, as a last resort, I will be going in on Fri for a bone scan. Don't think this will reveal anything.

Anyway, I have resolved that muscular tightness really must be it. For the past 6 months I have been trying to stretch after my cardio and weight workouts, but it really seems like it is getting me nowhere. I never see significant increases in flexibility.

Just for kicks...to find out how truly inflexible I am, I asked my sedentary co-workers to do some stretches so that i could see how "normal" people are regarding flexibility. They all could do the stretches much better than me..all except touching their toes (I have gotten good at that one:)

Many of the stretches it even HURTS to get into. So I am pissed at how I ended up so inflexible and all these people that don't even exercise and don't even know what a stretch is are more flexible than me!!! I have only been lifting weights for around a year, and if anything, my flexibility has gotten better since then!! All I ever used to do is Cardio, so where did all this incredible tightness come from?? Especially in my upper body?? I know I obviously still don't stretch as much as a should, but I sure stretch a hell of a lot more than anyone else I know!!

I have a book with some flexibility tests in it and I miserably fail all of them. You know that stretch where you clasp your hands behind your back and lift up?? It stretches the pectorals and let me tell you....my arms BARELY MOVE UP AT ALL!! I mean, it feels like something is physically in the way of me being able to raise my arms!!! And the more I do the stretch, the less it ever seems to change!!

I am sorry this is so long but I am just really frustrated that I am so tight despite all my work. Do I really have to go to yoga 3 times a week and do stretching on my own as well just to be normal??

Please, if anyone can share their experience or give me an idea of how long it takes to see appreciable changes in flexibility, please tell me!! This is my last resort and if I can't improve in this area, I am going to live a life of pain...Thanks guys...Janice
 
While I've never been really flexible, I have noticed lately that things have been tightening up a little as well. I've especially noticed it in my back (not painful, just the instinct to stretch it more often). It doesn't help to have a two-year-old who readily goes down into a split like it's the easiest thing on earth! I finally had to do some reading before I realized the benefits of stretching as we, ahem, get older.

I don't do yoga. I just don't. But I bought two videos - Karen Voight Pure and Simple Stretch and Tamilee Webb Beginner's Stretch for Flexibility - and I'm working Tamilee's into my week. These videos also have some nice back stretches, and are about half an hour. I figure I need to start small and eventually I'll get better.

Another nice video (you'll have to judge with your back problems) is KV Back and Abs Pilates. Some very nice back stretches in this, and supposedly strengthens the back as well. I've only done it a few times though. A stretching book by Bob Anderson is also really good.

Hope some of this helps!

Rose
 
I am not an expert in--well, anything-- but it seems rather unusual how inflexible you are. It also seems odd that tight back muscles would give you so much pain that you went to the doctor and need to vent to us. Have you been to any other doctors? Maybe one who would take you more seriously?

Sorry I can't add much about how to become more flexible. It sounds like maybe you would have to work on it daily to get to the same level as others.

I guess I just really want you to know that others feel for you! Your msg sounded so distressed. Take care.

Jeanne
 
Thank you Jeanne and Rose for your replies. The fact that you even got to the end of that post means alot to me. I know I sound distressed, and I am I guess. It just sucks to never be "diagnosed" with something. You have this REAL pain that just can't be medically explained. People (as well as docs) look at you as if you are either a wimp, or just making it up. You are left to figure it out for yourself.

Jeanne..I think, and this is TRULY, that the doctors run their little myriad of diagnostic tests..MRI, X-ray, and the like, and if they don't find any significant findings that they really know very little more than you on what to do about it. They rely solely on these tests to point to something they can diagnose. When these tests don't show anything, you are forever a medically mystery!!

I have learned to live with it now, and I guess will have to quit my desk job, as that is what everyone seems to think is doing me in. I guess you gotta do what ya gotta do.

Really, thank you for your sympathetic ears and suggestions. They are appriciated more than you know....Janice
 
Have you been to a physical therapist or a chiropractor? Maybe they would be more useful than an internist? You should not have to live with inexplicable pain. Jeanne
 
Janice
Like Jeanne said, this does not sound like a problem an MD would be useful at. God only knows, your MD might have this same problem himself! Here's a suggestion- why not try some books about flexibility? I was having some problems with it myself, and I got 2 books on flexibility- well, one is about joints and the other is on stretching. I also got 2 books on general fitness and I read them all. These books really have increased my knowledge pool and first I'll tell you the names of them, then I'll tell you something that might help you with stretching.

Health and Fitness in Plain English, by Jolie Bookspan PhD

Peak Performance Fitness by Jennifer Rhodes (she's a Phys.Ther. AND a Pers. Trainer/ instructor in a gym)

Super Joints by Pavel Tsatsouline

Relax Into Stretch by Pavel Tsatsouline

Power to the People by Pavel Tsatsouline

From what I can remember from these books, there are hereditary factors that influence ligament length and the shape of connective tissue. You want to avoid lengthening ligaments because they are not elastic. Aging reduces elasticity even more. However, muscles can stretch more than most of us realize. One way to help stretching is to remove tension from out whole body- especially face and hands. Then stretch gently and wait for tension to drain out of the muscle. Do not try to get into a position- just try to feel the stretch in your muscle.

Get in the habit of keeping grace in all movements- no more "plopping" into a chair, etc. Controlled movement requires both antagonist and agonist muscles, e.g. the biceps and the triceps working at the same time. This adds control and also safeguards the joints.

I wish I knew more about your situation because I have just vanquished a similar one for myself. I work as a dental hygienist and most of us (who work more than 2 days a week) are in constant pain. I was too, but now I can work pain-free 4 days a week! I used a combination of ergonomic aids, strategically planned days off, heavy strength traning- with Cathe mostly- including posture and finger exercises (Power hour, Slow and Heavy Bi and Tri), bike riding to and from work, and step tapes or other cardio. The cardio helps me release tension. Also a stress-free working environment as far as my co-workers. It all helps.

Remember that range of motion and stretching are 2 separate components of flexibility. Try to isolate which one is more of a problem. When rounding your back (on all fours) do not fold in one place, but round in a smooth manner engaging all the vertebrae. I could go on and on, obviously! HTH - Connie
 
Hi Janice!

For other similar stories, you might want to check out Beryl Bender Birch's book, Power Yoga. In it, she describes her early days of working with skiers, runners, etc and how incredibly tight these people were (are) and of course, the amazing benefits of yoga. She also has a nice section about common injuries and other sports-related topics. If you are interesteed in yoga, this book is excellent in showing modifications for beginners, who may not be able to put their leg behind their head. :) I certainly don't think you are alone, or a 'mystery' per se - many people who overtrain in a repetitive way get extraordinarily tight and never know it until they experience pain or an injury. Hope this helps!

cheers,
Colia
 
Flexibility is like cardio or weight training..consistent flexibility work (20 minutes at least 3 times a week) will usually see results in about 4 weeks. Also the older you get, the less flexibility you have if you don't work at it.
I have back issues myself, and when I first started doing yoga, UP DOG hurt like heck. Most of the back-bending work did. AFter about a month, I noticed a huge difference, doesn't hurt at all now. It is truly helpful. They have yoga for the back specialty tapes, that are very good when you are first starting.
May I also suggest those new icy hot therapeutic patches? They really help both during the day at work, and also during yoga.
Another trick I have found...before yoga/strech work, I use a massager on the lower back muscles.

Much of flexibility is genetic, but also may be greatly improved with work. You definitely have to approach like any other training.
 
[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON Jun-28-02 AT 02:57PM (Est)[/font][p]Hi Janice,

I could totally be you, minus the back pain. I can touch my toes well (like you) but that is it - that is the only area where I've seen major flexibility improvements, the hamstrings. What is REALLY bad for me is my inner thigh/hip/groin area, SO TIGHT and like you, it hurts to even get into a stretch position if I haven't warmed up. The side lunge stretches Cathe does hurt me at first in EVERY workout (although I've found that step aerobics really does help me loosen up), and its not just a stiff muscle feeling, it is a pinching pain that I know can not be good. I have to be very careful and do a little 'pre-stretch' before I can do them. I do tae kwon do and it is REALLY noticible there, I can't do kicks to the side higher than waist height and EVERYONE ELSE can kick at head height, VERY discouraging. I'm not even 30 yet and I feel as inflexible as an out of shape 40 year old man sometimes. I know exactly how you feel, like there is something wrong with you but you don't know why. I've considered going to a chiropractor or even an accupuncturist too, I just haven't yet.

Anyway, you aren't alone!

Jill
 
WOW!!

I am really overwhelmed with all of your responses. It means alot to me that you all took the time to help me!! Your suggestions are all wonderful.
I purchased Karen Voights Pure and Simple stretch a while ago and have done it a few times..problem is, it is so BORING!!!! I am going to look into a tape approx. 20 min in length and try to do it everyday. I saw something called "Flexappeal", or something like that, on the internet that suggests I will have the flexibility of a gymnast in no time. YEAH! I might order that as well as purchase some of the books suggested.

I have been to a chiro and he did nothing for me. BIG waste of money. I went to a physical therapist and seemed like a major rip off in that I aleady knew all the exercises she told me to do. And she didn't tell me anything relating to me PERSONALLY. Its like they have this big book of stretches, and when you come in they look up "BACK" and give em all to you. No thanks, I can do that myself!!

Yoga is another option. I have purchased a package at a facility near my home, but have yet to use it. I went to one class and was very sore the next day so I know it worked, it is just that I tend to lack the "spiritual" side of yoga..and everything is just so SLOW. And an hour and a half a session is a big time investment in something I don't like.

Jill...
EXACTLY the same with me!! I do Cardio Kicks and I know I must look like a chicken flailing around when I do my kicks!! No higher than waist height!! It is hard for me to even get into the kick without toppling over at the speed Cathe does them. I think if I were more flexible I would see great improvement in this area. I get many little "aches and pains" that I think are also related to tight muscles..such as knee twinge pains and shin splints here..you get it.. Cool to know there is someone else like me!! Do you carry alot of muscle on your frame?? I am 5'0 137 pounds and definetly built like a brick *&%!house!!
I have tried it all. It is so bad that I cannot sit through a 2 hour movie without a heating pad on my back. I have a heating pad in my bed. I have a heating pad at work. I have developed a chronic heat rash on my back that the dermatologist says if I don't stop using the pad that eventually the rash will turn into burn scars. So I gotta find a way around this!! What is so frustrating about the whole thing is my pain is in ONE area of my back...right between my shoulderblades in my thoracic spine. NO OTHER PART of my back hurts!! Go figure!! I do have a DD chest that apparantly no doc thinks is the problem...to bad huh, cuz then I could get em chopped off!!!:):)

I don't have great insurance either and am sick of taking time off, so this will be it. I have a bone scan on Sun. and if it shows nothing, I am not going to another doctor. I will have to learn to be my own. Like my mom says..with everything I have learned just educating myself, I could get an MD degree...and that is NO KIDDING!!

Thanks again guys, and any more info is still appreciated.....Janice
 
Connie..

I wish you could cure me!! And congratulations for fixing your own problem. Most people would rather rely on the medical community than do something for themselves. I am just like you, constantly trying to diagnose myself.
Strategically planned days off would do wonders for me, I believe, since my problems didn't start until I got my full time desk job. I am up and about quite a bit at work, but apparantly not enough. I laughed when I read that you rode your bike to work. That is what I keep trying to do..incorporate more fitness and movement into my routine, but when is enough enough, you know?? I live 10 miles from my sedentary job, but have considered biking there and back everyday to relieve my pain.But who says that will work.

Every time I tell the docs that it all started when I got my desk job, they just look at me in amazement and say "And why haven't you quit yet??". It is so easy for them!! Will I never be able to hold another desk job again in my life?? I hate them, so that would suit me just fine, but what do I do instead.....become a construction worker??!! I guess they just don't think of it that way!! I would love to know what you did specifically if you want to email me at [email protected]. I sure would appreciate any specific advice. I was looking into purchasing that russian tape for stretching. I will have to do some more research. Fortunately, the internet has proven to be a valuable tool in learning how to help myself as well as to talk to you all, but UNFORTUNATLEY, it is sitting, and that HURTS my back.....Oh well, enough about me.. Thanks again...Janice
 
I just read an article while I was on vacation in an old Self from last year (July 01) featuring Olympic swimmer Dara Torres and her Stretching guru Bob Cooley. He has a studio called Meridian Stretching in CA. You resist as you stretch to increase your muscle length. I just e-mailed him to see when his book might be available. It was fascinating. Dara Torres claims it was instrumental in her comeback to swimming after 7 years off, and being an "older"(33yrs) athlete. In the magazine 8 very unique poses are demonstrated that not only stretch you out, but tone as well. I think the website is www.meridianstretching.com. I am going to try them out today. He says that you will feel better almost instantly. We'll see. Have a great day. Janet
 
Janet..
Checkout out the website. Man, that would be sssoooo cool!! Too bad I don't live in CA. I would kill to do that personalized computer thing!!! I will get the book when it comes out. Let me know when...thanks for the good advice...JANICE
 
Hello, Naughtoj,

My name is Susan and I'm mainly a lurker on Cathe's forum.
However, I had something to suggest and thought I'd come out of lurkdom to share my experience.

I see a physical therapist who specializes in sacro-cranial therapy and myofascial release. I wonder if your inflexibility might be due to tension in your fascia, the tissue that covers a person's muscles.

The theory goes something like this: the fascia is an interconnected tissue that covers your muscles from head to toe. When trauma or tension occurs in one part of the fascia, it triggers tension and pulling on other parts of the fascia, kind of like when one part of a spider's web is pulled, it affects the whole web. A physical therapist specializing in myofascial release uses subtle pressure to soften up the fascia and cause it to "release" the tension.

The sacro-cranial part comes in where my therapist uses manipulation of the body to encourage the body to realign itself correctly. (For example, my PT will ask me to press my foot against his hand to leverage some part of my hip back into place.) This therapy has never been painful for me, although some parts have been a little uncomfortable. However, a good S/C physical therpists will NEVER push the body further than it is willing to give.

I have been riding horses for a number of years now, and after a few falls, some of them quite serious, I heard about this kind of therapy and thought, "Well, I'm sure I'm jammed up somewhere in my body after getting knocked around!" I went to the therapist, and sure enough, I had been carrying major tension throughout my body. After a couple of sessions, I found distinct, albeit subtle, changes in my ability to take in a good breath, and it even had a positive affect on my ability to sit on a horse in a more balanced and relaxed position.

Certainly, going to this type of therapist didn't drastically change my life, but it made enough of a difference that I have been back a few times for smaller "adjustments".

I wonder if this kind of therapy might be one part of a solution for you. I apologize for the length of this post, but I hope you can take something from it.

Best of luck to you,

Susan
 
I'm going to post this in more than one place, so my advance apologies to anyone who has to read my story more than once.

On Saturday I went to a massage therapist who does "myofascial release." I won't go into what it is (you can find it on the internet), but I will say that I was AMAZED at the relief I felt.

I have been struggling with pain in the back of my thigh for over three years and nothing has helped. Every medical professional has a different opinion (most recently I was diagnosed with a herniated disk), but no one could give me any relief.

I won't say I'm "cured", but after only one session I felt better than I had in months. I can't get over it! I finally have real hope that I can eventually feel normal again!

Check into it! If you do, please let me know if it helped you!

Cheryl
 
Hi Janice,

I don't have a lot of muscle, I have that spoon shaped body, I'm 5'6" and about 130 lbs, give or take a few...small upper body...I thought about this all weekend and realized that I do have lower back pain, it isn't severe, but I notice if I walk a lot or carry my million pound purse, it makes my lower back hurt, and that when I stand or walk I arch my lower back which I know from yoga is not a good thing to do. Maybe this has something to do with my hip problem. I just did Cardio Kicks yesterday actually - one thing about your kicks (when I started tae kwon do 2 years ago I could not even get my leg parallel to the ground, either in a front kick or a side kick, and now I can - so I DID manage to improve with a lot of practice) I would recommend maybe after another workout when you are really warm, is watch the parts of CK where Cathe explains the kicks and practice them slowly, once you get the form down you'll find you are able to do them faster. Don't focus on height, imagine kicking somone in the knees - that is a more realistic application anyway. Once in my tae kwon do class, we got in 'trouble' ( it was a mixed age class so there were a lot of little boys in there) and they made us warm up for 15 minutes as 'punishment'. The kids were moaning, and I was thinking YES!! Finally a real warm up!! Anyway, that was the first time I DIDN'T feel that pain when we finally got into kicks. That was 15 minutes of stretching in a warm room, before we even started exercising. I still wasn't very flexible but it didn't HURT. So I'm thinking that it might be a good idea to warm up A LOT before you start your workout - I mean careful long stretches before the warmup and stretch section of Cathe's tapes. I'm also thinking about trying accupuncture, that appeals to me more than a chiropractor...I also ordered that book someone recommended called Super Joints, should be here today. I'll keep you posted. Hang in there!

Jill
 
Again, thanks guys....

Susan, I think you are talking about Rolfing. For a while I was going to see one. He stretches out the fascia so that it doesn't keep pulling on the muscles. After I went to about 4 or 5 sessions I took pictures and you can cleary see some postural changes in my body. I think it does have its worth, however, it did not relieve my pain. Moreover, my rolfer told me that he wasn't making any progress because I was going home and "tightening" myself up. OOPS SOOOORRRYYY!! That is when he told me atleast 5 hours of muscle stretching a week. By that time I was broke, the sessions cost 150.00 each, once a week. I had to get a second opinion and that is when I saw the spinal specialist that just sent me for a bone scan.

I would love to try all these therapies, but I am not rich and 150.00 a week was putting me in the really poor house. If the bone scan comes back negetive, I will be investigating these therapies though. Thanks for the suggestions..Janice


And thanks for coming out of lurkdom for me, Susan :):)
 
Rolfing is something quite different than myofascial release. In fact, I understand Rolfing can be QUITE painful. And yes, sessions for rolfing are also EXPENSIVE, and I think you have to go for a series of 8 or 10, I'm not sure. But sacro-cranial therapy is different than rolfing.

My riding instructor also sees the same PT as I do. She gets a prescription from her Primary Care Physician for a series of sessions with the PT so the insurance pays for a good chunk of it. My PT cost $125.00 for the first session which lasted about 1 hour and 45 minutes. Subsequent sessions cost $95 and lasted about an hour, sometimes a little more, depending on what your body was able to do in the way of correcting itself.

Please don't give up! There has got to be some relief for you out there that won't cost major $$$!

I'll be looking for news about your improvements in future posts!

Best,

Susan G.
 
Hi Janice,

I'm bumping this back up because I finally started to see a chiropractor and it turns out I have scoliosis in my lower back and that my TIGHT hips are a secondary problem because of the scoliosis and a misalignment of my hips. Anyway, its only been 3 weeks but A LOT of my pinching stiffness has gone away. I know it is still early stages but I'm really encouraged by this. You're situation sounds a bit more severe than mine, but similar problems. Anyway, I'm happy with my chiropractor, I've even noticed some Cathe moves are less painfull now (like wide squats). I'm really focusing on flexibility now that a lot of the pain is gone. I can't believe I was in so much pain before, now that it is gone I can really tell it was bad! I just was used to it before, I guess. Anyway, hope you are finding some relief somewhere.

Jill
 
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