Hi everyone, have seen some great responses from other posts so i am hoping to find some help here.

1.5 years ago when i was 17 (currently 19) i fractured my 5th metatarsal  (high up on outside of  left foot) and ended up wearing a big boot for just over 4 months. Ever since i've had ongoing back issues (and havent seriously lifted/worked out since) & have just tried to deal with it through remedial massage & stretching. I've basically lost all my strength and size and still have back problems which are worse than ever. I went to a physio a couple weeks ago because of unusal stiffness through my lower back and he thinks it was the sacoriliac joint. He also confirmed the right side of my hip/pelvis sits higher than the left which is likely the ongoing cause. Due to this my left shoulder seems to sit slightly foward which is causing my left side of traps/neck to feel continually tighter, especially after any form of exercise.

I just wanna be able to exercise again!!!!!

Cheers

Hey man!

So sorry to hear about this. Sounds like you have been through a lot brotha.

Are you seeing a massage therapyst that specializes in athletes? I feel like you have so much tightness in your lower back and hips that is it pulling on other parts of your body.

Also, what are you doing daily to work on flexibility and mobility? Have you tried this?

Hi scott,

Ive been doing daily/ twice daily similar stretches for quite some time now however i think i've gotta ad in some basic hip & back strengthening exercises like in the vid. Like i said in the above post to john (sorry for causing 2 posts by the way), even though i've gotten quite flexible the unevenness in my hips is still there. My cores gotten so weak from not exercising much and just stretching due to the problem however this has probly just made things worse. Ill get the pyhsio to check for scar tissue like john suggested, try and do consistent strenghtening exercises aswell as stretching and see how i go.

Cheers.  

well definitely keep us posted and no worries about the two post haha it happens :)

Try this to help improve your core strength.

Hey mate,

I think the problem could originate from your previously fractured 5th met. As a consequence of the treatment of this you may have developed or previously had a leg length discrepancy which may be affecting how your pelvis sits. In this case your SIJ maybe causing pain. I would also make a point that it may not be stiffness but a combination of weakness and stiffness throughout your back. The SIJ is a strange joint that likes to be very stable so a stiff SIJ may not be the problem but it maybe that the SIJ cannot handle forces that are running though it when you exercise which would indicate some weakness in the lower back musculature, glutes and "core". If you go see your physio again, which I think you shoud do as its hard for me to diagnose and treat over the internet, ask them to check for a leg length discrepnacy and ask to see whether your glutes, lower back or "core" is weak/inhibited.

Also maybe you could post some photos so I can atleast try and make some sort of assessment of your posture?

Thanks for the great info daniel. Physio said my right legs 1.5 cm longer but is within normal range and doesnt think its the problem. He thinks im an unusual case that doesnt seem to have a singular cause and just thinks its progressivly built up over time due to my fractured foot and torn groin. Heres some pics which will hopefully help.

No problem mate. In my eyes 1.5cm could be significant. Normally anything over 1cm is worth considering. From the pictures you can clearly see that the right side of your pelvis is significantly lower than the left and this pattern is also seen at the shoulders. Although I cannot tell you how to correct your leg length discrepancy over the internet I can suggest some rehab work that may help your back. Before I share these with you though I need to know any exercises the physio has given you as I don't want to be conflicting with him and make things worse.

Previously he suggested to do glute bridges, mountain climbers, planks on flat surfaces, and any upper body exercise i feel comfortable with. I asked about hanging knee raises and he said should be fine but you dont want to make hip flexors too tight. Today i asked what i can do for my left shoulder sitting foward and tight left trap and he gave me a band to hook over a door and do something similar to lat pulldowns but just focusing on pulling shoulderblades back and down. Keen to hear what you think may help. Thanks.  

Hi,

I think I have a similar issue to the op..

This is a really dumb question, but could somebody please explain if i'm looking at this right and why in the OP's pic, from the front the left hip seems higher, but from the back the right hip seems higher. Also the difference in height seems so small i'd have to use mspaint to see for sure which is higher..

here his left one seems marginally higher.

below, also his left one is marginally higher

But from the back the one , his right hip seems quite a bit higher

The OP says his right is higher than his left.. which correlates with the back pic. His right hip is significantly higher in the back pic.

So why from the front is it that his left is higher than his right and only a tiny bit?

Am I looking at it wrongly, if so, how?

Thanks

It may actually be the shadowing on the left hand side (from the back shot) which gives the illusion that the right hand side is higher. With the shadowing you can't see for certain where the top of the hip is.

The other thing is it could be more of a postural issue where there is more leaning towards one side than the other, and it could actually be changing.

Either way, I hope @Broc_K found some kind of solution! It has been a while since this thread was open!