I wonder if anyone can help. 38yo male. Been lifting (squatting) consistently 3 x per week for several years doing re-runs of Stronglifts 5x5, SSNLP and now just found The Bridge. Although my form is not perfect, i do consider it alot better now as i have no major pain compared to the low back pain i used to suffer (most likely through poor form and trying to keep adding weight to the bar). The problem I do seem to have is after prolonged sitting, usually my drive to work (about 30mins), when I get out of the car to stand up my left thigh/groin has a very sharp pain almost from where my femur connects to my pelvis and down to mid-thigh. It takes about 30secs to 1min of slowly straightening my leg to stand upright to correct this. Does anyone have any idea what this might be. I have no problems during lifting or throughtout the day, and my ROM isnt restricted. I’ve also tried foam rolling and stretching, dynamic warm-ups (i know, heaven forbid). Any help here guys?
Based on your description, it sounds to me like your pants or belt may be too tight causing the temporary numbness you are describing (given that this only happens when you drive to work, and not necessary when you may be dressed casually or with looser type clothing). This is my presumption without knowing what you do for work and what you wear to work.
If this is the case, it’s the same type of scenario one may feel when their foot falls asleep while sitting or lying in one position for too long.
Doesn’t sound like its anything to worry about or warrant any sort of intervention.
No, i don’t think its anything to fo with my belt or pants. Its kind of somewhere in the hip flexor down into the adductor. After pause squats tonight my left adductor got really tight. I dont know if its just muscle getting their fare share of the work while im just new to these movements.
How long have you been experiencing this? And how often (i.e. how many days of the week does this occur, and does it occur on both your drive to work and back home)?
Ive been experiencing this for maybe 6months or so and it usually happens whenever my hip angle is closed for any given time, i.e, sitting. Only been pause squatting for 2 weeks since starting The Bridge. I’m also experiencing some slight patellar tendonitis too on that leg so dont know if its all connected. If i drew a line down my thigh from my hip flexor to knee cap thats sort of where i feel tightness.
While this additional information is helpful, I’m not sure that our medium of communication in relation to this initial issue, which has now compounded to additional issues, is an effective use of our time. Given that this has been bothering you for a while and that it has reached a point where you want to do something about it, you would benefit from a proper consultation.
*Edit: After re-reading this thread, I realize that I misread your initial post where I presumed you experienced numbness instead of pain. Apologies for this oversight on my part. Having said this, my current recommendation for you to pursue a formal consultation still stands.
Sounds like you have some positional related sensitization (hip flexed). Good news is it doesn’t sound serious given the resolution of symptoms once you are moving about. How’s training been going?
Training is going well. Just switched over to The Bridge from SSNLP. The control movements on The Bridge is where i’m finding some niggles. I think this maybe due to the fact i was just adding weight to the bar on LP at the expense of form and therefore creating an inbalance which is being found from pause squats and tempo’s. Ive tried foam rolling the thigh, all the way up at the hip flexor down the quad and there are some pretty tight spots in there. My ability to move is generally very good, very mobile without foam rolling and all that. I wonder if it just needs time to correct itself.
After doing some searching on google it looks like it could be my rectus femoris. It feels very tight in that area when in the bottom of a squat and the pain is at either end. Top of my patellar area, there is a mild pain which isnt exruciating or anything but just abit tender to the touch, and up near my hip is where i feel a sharp kind of pull after driving or sitting when i try to straighten the femur. Most stuff on google recommends foam rolling or “smashing” the muscle and stretching it.
Certainly sounds like a muscular issue. However, with time this should resolve. I wouldn’t search for a problem to necessarily fix from a tissue standpoint here. Instead let’s find appropriate dosage of training and ensure you are recovering appropriately. I notice you used the word tight and this warrants a discussion. Our perception of tissue is often not an accurate measurement of what’s happening at the tissue level. Tight is a word we don’t have a good definition for beyond this - An area of the body that feels differently than the person expects. We can modify perception with movement which is why many people use the foam roller but this detracts from specificity of training. I wrote a rather long winded discussion on this topic here: https://www.barbellmedicine.com/mobility-explained/