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Other/Mixed Numb glutes?

Other strength modalities (e.g., Clubs), mixed strength modalities (e.g., combined kettlebell and barbell), other goals (flexibility)
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the hansenator

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First I want to mention that I’m not looking for medical advice, just general “is this how muscles work?”

I’ve seen a physical therapist for foot and back pain and he helped get my glutes and adductors working again. I’ve made great progress and he turned me loose but it’s still a work in progress. Looking back, this is a problem that goes back at least 20 years so I figure there might be some catching up to do.

Everything could be going well but it seems like if I do too much the glutes go off-line again and it takes days to recover. Last Thursday for example – Everything had been going great all week but I must have done too much on Thursday, basically just spending more time on my feet than I’m used to. The next morning, it’s like my glutes were numb. I didn’t have as much feeling and there was decreased muscle tone on the bad side. It’s like there was less of a connection and it was harder to tense the muscle. This was accompanied by a return of my back and foot pain. So I took it easy for the next three days and this morning I feel achy like I had a big workout yesterday. But I feel the “connection” again. The muscle is more active and the symptoms have decreased but I can tell it’s going to take a few more days with my PT exercises to get everything back to normal.

It’s like I have to do enough work to make progress but if I do too much the muscles just go offline. Does this sound right, is it just a matter of building endurance? It’s been a very slow process and I get frustrated sometimes.
 
In my opinion you need to get back to your GP for a second opinion or just stay at it with the PT.

To me it sounds like a nerve compression around S1, but I'm no doctor. Anytime sensation drops off, muscle tone slackens rapidly, response is curtailed, I'm inclined to think nerve impingement, usually due to inflammation. When it acts up it takes a few days to tone back down - this is not a response of muscles to work.

Again, I'm no doctor, but certain movement patterns will aggravate osteoarthritis and other disk issues and lead to inflammation. I'd let the PT know this as well.
 
I've been looked at by multiple doctors, they haven't found any arthritis or structural issues and I haven't experienced any symptoms that made them consider nerve compression. But there definitely seems to be a pattern where I do more than I'm used to and get set back for a few days. Right now it feels like DOMS even though I've been taking it easy since Thursday. Over the weekend I didn't feel any soreness, I suppose it felt like the muscles were tired and just weren't trying very hard.
 
Hopefully someone else will chime in. I'm sure there could be other reasons for some of the symptoms, but when you describe a loss of muscle tone, really makes me think of nerve issues rather than anything metabolic.

Maybe piriformis syndrome? That would tie the nerve compression to muscle imbalance rather than a structural issue.
 
I suppose numbness isn't really the right word. More like the muscles are tired and don't work very hard or respond very well. It improves after a few day's rest. It took a while to figure that out too. I'd just keep working thinking that's how to become stronger but a few days off lets it recover.

A lack of muscle tone has actually been the norm for me during the last many years, it's my default condition. PT has helped strengthen and tone the muscles but it diminishes when I do too much.

Maybe I'm just frustrated despite my progress because I still can't do what a 'normal' person should be able to.
 
I think, I know what you mean..not sure though. It somehow feels like the mind-muscle-connection is interrupted.
Since I am doing Feldenkrais (mainly for the lower back), I can "adress" my left butt cheek more easily.
Maybe erxercises worsen an underlying problem? Skim your posture during your daily habits...it took me about 3 months of detective's work and Feldenkrais was/is! one of the big game changers.
 
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There is nerve compression, and then there is nerve inflammation, and then there is a combination of both. You state you are experiencing numbness and loss of tone, but it's not really numbness you say at the same time. Your Drs say there is no nerve compression. Did they examine you for nerve compression or inflammation? Did they check your dermatome patterns with pinwheels or toothpicks? Did they check all your lower extremity myotomes? Did they check your reflexes? Did they do a straight leg raise with it's many varieties and a slump test? Did you undergo a functional evaluation involving fms along with joint play assessment? Or did they just shoot an xray/order an MRI, find nothing, and say there was no nerve compression? You may not know all the things that I am mentioning, but the point is there should be some in depth testing.

My two cents...keep looking for a doctor or PT or chiro whose exam is good enough to nail down what is going on.

I see this type of thing all the time in my clinic. Taking a good 10 minutes to perform a solid orthopedic and functional exam will often tell a clinician much more about where the patient's symptoms are coming from than an xray or MRI will. The data shows an MRI is about 50-60% effective at localizing the symptomatic spinal level.
 
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