The REAL Cause of Tight Glutes & Piriformis

If you’ve got pain/tightness in your glute or piriformis area, and you’ve tried what everyone else is telling you to do... massage it or stretch it... but it’s NOT working and you're just not sure what the root cause of the tightness actually is - then this video will help you understand WHY (as well as what you can do about it)!

Many people with lower back pain, pain deep in the buttock and/or sciatic nerve pain (sciatica) problems experience tightness in their glutes or “piriformis” region. I want to share with you the four (4) reasons that I've found to be the cause of that piriformis muscle tightness:

00:00 - Intro
01:28 - Reason 1 = Problems Upstream (including all the self tests you can do to figure it out!)
09:13 - Reason 2 = Over Stretched
10:07 - Reason 3 = Under Powered + Over Worked
11:11 - Reason 4 = Brain Mistake

So if you're trying endless glute stretches, piriformis release techniques, sciatica exercises all aimed at reducing your piriformis pain and loosening up what you feel is a tight piriformis muscle (tight glute) and you're just not getting the pain relief you want... then perhaps it's time to take a different approach and explore what the real cause of your feeling of a tight glute is coming from!

Is it really just referred pain you feel in that area, but the problem is coming from your back?
Is it that your muscle isn't actually tight at all - but in fact it's over stretched and needs strengthening?
Is the piriformis muscle fatigued and working too hard already?
Is that feeling of tightness actually your brain just mixing up danger signals?

Let me know what you find.

#drcharliejohnsonpt #piriformissyndrome #glutes #piriformis
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[kpatel]

Thanks again for bringing this video so I can understand where my pain is coming from.

[sumedhjambhulkar]

Please make particular exercise video of strengthening and stretching of a piriformis muscle ... without talking too much 🙏 dont just make a whole movie or a serial bro 🙏 just a single video with whole stretching and strengthening of muscle please 🙏

[pallavishome]

The last cause was truly insightful. Loved this. Thank you doctor. Very helpful.

[sunnybhatti]

My burning sensation 100% gone. Bit pain still there like 20% left, hope will be recovered soon.
I implemented the test motions in my exercises. Thanks doctor

[scotthunt]

Dr. Charlie - excellent video, as usual. None of these movements reproduce the pain in my left buttock. I find that the pain gets significantly worse when I sit for longer periods of time, so I'll definitely try hanging the affected cheek off the chair. Too, I've been diagnosed with bone-on-bone arthritis in my left hip, and will eventually face a hip replacement. My orthopedic surgeon (who is one of the best in my region of the country) tells me that this bone-on-bone arthritis could be causing a lot (not all) of the pain in the soft tissue of my hip/glute area, which makes sense. Thoughts?

[homeworks]

Right on point as far as finding the root cause. For me, I've been dealing with constant piriformis discomfort for many years, trying many different stretches to alleviate the pressure. In my case, I've found the root cause to be poor posture (with the stomach arched out). The second I tighten the stomach muscles and sit up straight the pain goes away. Why I have poor posture could be another issue but I think I'm finally pointed in the right direction and will hopefully be free of this pain

[hitherandyonstudio]

Your videos are finally giving me some answers. Thank you! I have always dealt with lower back pain from pregnancy with 2 healthy, large babies, but I recently had a fall (forward and down) when I missed a step and twisted my ankle. Since that fall I have what I now believe (thanks to your self-diagnosis video) is piriformis syndrome. It is unlike any past pain and I can find little relief except rest. The ankle I twisted was the same side where my pain is now. I wake up feeling better most days but the pain gets worse by evening almost unbearable by end of day. I’m fairly active and climb stairs a number of times a day but also sit for long periods for work. I’m sure it’s hard to diagnose from this bit of info, but my question is, could a fall have brought this on? Could a sudden movement like a fall bring on this syndrome?

[peachysparkles]

I'm finding that nutrition is really huge. My swelling and pain goes down so noticeably when I drink a lot of electrolytes, and sometimes when I just eat a meal I feel some improvement. I was reading that electrolyte deficiency usually means pain and swelling and tightness. :/

[jorgeconj]

Hello Dr. and thaks for your videos. Recently I was diagnosed with SI Joint Syndrome. It feels a lot like periformis but ofcourse it also hurts when twisting lifting and specially rotating my leg outside (pivoting). Do you have a video for SI Joint like what to avoid what is damamaged. Already went to my Dr. Physiatrist and I wasn’t happy. They keep telling me to stretch but it hurts when stretching and pain management. I also can’t take anti inflamatory meds because of a kidney condition.

[johnnicholls]

Thanks Dr Charlie. Greetings from Australia. Just worked out that it is referred pain from my lower spine that is causing my discomfort/inability . South west back movement just found to be the cause. Any suggestions will be gratefully appreciated, thank you.

[jasonpattee]

Thanks Dr. I’m going on 3 years of carrying a Aylio SockSeat and lumbar pillow with me everywhere I go. Roller ball to the piriformis and hip hook to the psoas are the only things that give me relief, yet I know I’m not curing the problem with any of them. Definitely could be in the brain/psyche. I had never considered that!

[justinsims]

I've done the tests for the back and fine. About 99 percent sure my issue is because of overworking from running. It also started WHILE running. So obviously, I've stopped running lately but still some pain walking at times (sometimes it's actually more in upper back hip/low back area). However, the strength exercises you've shown in other videos help and I've stopped stretching and massaging. While I'm not 100 percent, it seems like it's improved. Recommend just continuing the clam hold exercise for a while?

[minners]

Hi Dr. Charlie! Me again! Lol! OK, so I thought my problem was coming from my bulging disc, but I've noticed something really weird that doesn't make sense. When I sleep on my "good side" I wake up in the middle of the night or in the morning with searing pain in my butt on my bad side! But when I fall asleep on my "bad side" and stay there....NO PAIN! None whatsoever! I wake up pain free and It makes no sense to me! Isn't it supposed to be the opposite? The only thing I can think of is I'm pissing of my piriformis muscle while sleeping on my "good side" because when on I sleep on my good side, by habit I put my one leg (my bad side leg) up pretty high towards my chest (in the 4 position) even with a pillow underneath it, but nope, pain pain pain after a few hours of sleep.
I used to do my elliptical 5x a week for a hour+ at a 20 degree incline. So I'm starting to wonder if in doing that motion with my legs for so long, so intensely, is what caused THIS particular pain (DEEP in my butt, hip, back of my upper thigh and also over my illiac crest). I'm confused! What are your thoughts? 🤔

[uciemgp]

Hi if i have a disc can make these exercises

[dwood]

I have the symptoms PS, but only when I walk for 10 minutes. My right side of my lower back and buttock hurts and gradually increases to the point of where I gave to stop for a couple of minutes, then I can continue. If I repeat this process, I will eventually have to sit for a couple of minutes. Then will have to just stop for 15-20 minutes if I keep going. Once that happens Im basically immobile for more than a couple of minutes. My car is 185 steps from my car to my desk. A slight incline makes me start feel the onset at about the halfway mark, with pain in my hip, buttocks, and back of leg. Leaving work, going down the slight incline, The pain is 50-60% less than going up the incline. Docs have no answer. This is a 6 year problem

[spenny]

My symptoms only show up in the middle of the night in my right butt and it seems to hurt there for a week or so and then it will move up to the back. Does the fact it only comes at night give you any insight? Should I follow the diagnostic test only when I have active pain/discomfort?

[vishwasbhushanb]

I had piriformis 3 months continuously.. I went to physio therapist but nothing worked but by accident I saw one of your videos where you explained to contract the muscle insted of stretching it.. After doing that i got instant relief. Thank you for that.
But after 3 months still the muscle is weak and i feel pain sometimes what to do?

[partonlvr]

I've actually done that before where I sat one butt cheek off the edge of the seat and when both have hurt me, I sit on the edge on the front side. I remember doing that when I was a kid in school because the seat was so hard on my behind. 😳

[GeneMoretti]

Both buttock cheeks are painful when I'm sitting on the chair. When I move one cheek off the chair the pain goes away on that cheek. None of the movements which I did all of them with you caused any pain in my butt. When I sat back down both cheeks and down the legs were back in pain. When I stand up, no pain. By the way I've suffered with this pain for about 10 years now and I'm 80 years old.

[normangrandy]

U can't bend forward in any direction hardly at all. Especially towards my left buttocks! Does this mean its a back issue? I cant even do any of the piriformis release stretches the other channels do? Im losing function in the lower half of my left leg. What the heck is going on with me!?!?
Any suggestions anyone? Anything at all!??