Anyone get sciatica pain from barre?

dmlarue1 · 08-30-10, 06:42 PM

I had a flareup of sciatica really bad this weekend and my doctor thinks that it may be from the barre. My cardio has been the same and this has been the only difference. Has anyone else had sciatica from bar method? If so, did you have to give it up? or could you modify somehow??

neatski · 08-30-10, 07:13 PM

I imagine that barre could cause a sciatica flare up, but I think the chances of that happening are greatly reduced if you're using good form. It might be a good idea to try attending a live barre class to make sure your form is good before giving it up altogether. That would be terrible

Barbara P · 08-30-10, 07:23 PM

I think I had it last summer when I was going crazy with barre...I think in my case I overdid it. I'm fairly certain my form wasn't too bad, as I had been corrected in a couple of live P57 classes. But I was doing barre like 5-6 times a week. I cut back and it went away.

sophie kat · 08-30-10, 07:50 PM

As someone who has sciatica that was caused by barre work, I can tell you that it's not from "bad form". In my case the sciatica was caused by piriformis syndrome. The piriformis muscle is located deep in the gluteal complex, and when it becomes tight it impinges or presses on the sciatic nerve. Most barre workouts and the Bar Method in particular works the glutes very deeply, and if not stretched deeply or often enough, the piriformis will become increasingly tight and cause sciatic pain.

ETA: I didn't have to give up barre work, but I had to add more stretches to my routine. My sciatica attacks became pretty frequent so I decided to speed up my pain relief by going to the chiropractor and having muscle stim treatments for it, but I could have released the piriformis myself. I didn't know that at the time and I cut way back on my workouts and impact to give myself time to heal. Now I self treat because I know which stretches to do to loosen the piriformis after kickboxing and barre work, and that keeps the sciatica pain away.

I posted about my sciatica treatment and a Youtube video that really helped me here: http://forum.videofitness.com/showth...light=sciatica

Also, Jill Miller's Quick Fix Rx Lower Body dvd addresses the piriformis issue by using the Tune Down balls to massage it out. This can be pretty uncomfortable at first if the piriformis is really inflamed and tight, but it does help. She also has exercises and stretches for the rest of the hip area.

dmlarue1 · 08-30-10, 08:21 PM

thanks sophiecat!!! I have been doing research myself and many dancers have issues with their piriformis due to the turned out positions in legwork. I am going to give myself a break for a while and then go back to my fluidity workouts for a bit (these never gave me as much soreness or any sciatica pain). I also found on the bar method site that it says if you have ever had issues with sciatica to not do the leg work in turned out position. Wish I had read that BEFORE i spent three hours crying in the ER and lost 3 days of work!!

sophie kat · 08-30-10, 08:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dmlarue1

thanks sophiecat!!! I have been doing research myself and many dancers have issues with their piriformis due to the turned out positions in legwork. I am going to give myself a break for a while and then go back to my fluidity workouts for a bit (these never gave me as much soreness or any sciatica pain). I also found on the bar method site that it says if you have ever had issues with sciatica to not do the leg work in turned out position. Wish I had read that BEFORE i spent three hours crying in the ER and lost 3 days of work!!

I'm sorry to hear that!

I know it's not pleasant, and I hope you feel better soon.

I also read that the turned out work can be modified to parallel thigh, and I remembered that pigeon pose and supine pigeon are very helpful for stretching the piriformis. It's SO important to properly stretch the hip muscles when doing barre regularly. Even now if I don't stretch enough or slack off, my hips and piriformis will let me know.

neatski · 08-31-10, 08:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dmlarue1

thanks sophiecat!!! I have been doing research myself and many dancers have issues with their piriformis due to the turned out positions in legwork. I am going to give myself a break for a while and then go back to my fluidity workouts for a bit (these never gave me as much soreness or any sciatica pain). I also found on the bar method site that it says if you have ever had issues with sciatica to not do the leg work in turned out position. Wish I had read that BEFORE i spent three hours crying in the ER and lost 3 days of work!!

That is horrible....

I've wondered about Pure Barre for this, though. She does so little stretching during the workout.

Honeydew · 08-31-10, 08:31 AM

The youtube link doesn't work for me. I did get sciatic pain when I did squeeze and squeeze stronger, however, I've had no problems with it when I do the Bar method.

PhyllisG · 08-31-10, 10:28 AM

Sophiecat Thank you so much for the youtube link. I just did it and it worked almost immediately expecially the leg extensions. I have been feeling this since doing more barre work but mostly at night. So what is being said is that you can also help by keeping your feet parallel rather than turned out in first position? TIA for any other info!

Sara1000 · 08-31-10, 10:58 AM

I just started barre last week and had a flair up on the weekend I think was sciatica. It was a sharp, fleeting pain across my lower back that seemed to occur right after I sat down throughout the day.

I thought it was because of the lower back work in some of the workouts, more than I was used to, or else the result of carrying a very heavy bin out to the recycling Friday morning.

For me any type of back pain seems to be greatly improved by lying on my FIRM Wave for a few minutes. I start with my seat on the floor and inch up until I am lying all the way on it.

I'm going to check out those stretches Sophie Kat.

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08-30-10, 06:42 PM
dmlarue1 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: SC	Anyone get sciatica pain from barre? I had a flareup of sciatica really bad this weekend and my doctor thinks that it may be from the barre. My cardio has been the same and this has been the only difference. Has anyone else had sciatica from bar method? If so, did you have to give it up? or could you modify somehow??

08-30-10, 07:13 PM
neatski Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Orlando, FL	I imagine that barre could cause a sciatica flare up, but I think the chances of that happening are greatly reduced if you're using good form. It might be a good idea to try attending a live barre class to make sure your form is good before giving it up altogether. That would be terrible __________________ The most effective workout is the one you're not doing right now!

08-30-10, 07:23 PM
Barbara P VF Supporter Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: MiddletownCT	I think I had it last summer when I was going crazy with barre...I think in my case I overdid it. I'm fairly certain my form wasn't too bad, as I had been corrected in a couple of live P57 classes. But I was doing barre like 5-6 times a week. I cut back and it went away. __________________ DISCLOSURE: I have a professional relationship with a seller or producer of fitness videos or products. For details, please see my profile

08-30-10, 07:50 PM
sophie kat Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Pennsylvania	As someone who has sciatica that was caused by barre work, I can tell you that it's not from "bad form". In my case the sciatica was caused by piriformis syndrome. The piriformis muscle is located deep in the gluteal complex, and when it becomes tight it impinges or presses on the sciatic nerve. Most barre workouts and the Bar Method in particular works the glutes very deeply, and if not stretched deeply or often enough, the piriformis will become increasingly tight and cause sciatic pain. ETA: I didn't have to give up barre work, but I had to add more stretches to my routine. My sciatica attacks became pretty frequent so I decided to speed up my pain relief by going to the chiropractor and having muscle stim treatments for it, but I could have released the piriformis myself. I didn't know that at the time and I cut way back on my workouts and impact to give myself time to heal. Now I self treat because I know which stretches to do to loosen the piriformis after kickboxing and barre work, and that keeps the sciatica pain away. I posted about my sciatica treatment and a Youtube video that really helped me here: http://forum.videofitness.com/showth...light=sciatica Also, Jill Miller's Quick Fix Rx Lower Body dvd addresses the piriformis issue by using the Tune Down balls to massage it out. This can be pretty uncomfortable at first if the piriformis is really inflamed and tight, but it does help. She also has exercises and stretches for the rest of the hip area. __________________ "How do you know what you can do if you don't give yourself a chance?"--Billy Blanks I my VF friends!

08-30-10, 08:21 PM
dmlarue1 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: SC	thanks sophiecat!!! I have been doing research myself and many dancers have issues with their piriformis due to the turned out positions in legwork. I am going to give myself a break for a while and then go back to my fluidity workouts for a bit (these never gave me as much soreness or any sciatica pain). I also found on the bar method site that it says if you have ever had issues with sciatica to not do the leg work in turned out position. Wish I had read that BEFORE i spent three hours crying in the ER and lost 3 days of work!!

08-31-10, 08:31 AM
Honeydew Join Date: Jul 2002	The youtube link doesn't work for me. I did get sciatic pain when I did squeeze and squeeze stronger, however, I've had no problems with it when I do the Bar method.

08-31-10, 10:28 AM
PhyllisG Join Date: May 2005 Location: Woodstock NY	Sophiecat Thank you so much for the youtube link. I just did it and it worked almost immediately expecially the leg extensions. I have been feeling this since doing more barre work but mostly at night. So what is being said is that you can also help by keeping your feet parallel rather than turned out in first position? TIA for any other info!

08-31-10, 10:58 AM
Sara1000 Join Date: Sep 2008	I just started barre last week and had a flair up on the weekend I think was sciatica. It was a sharp, fleeting pain across my lower back that seemed to occur right after I sat down throughout the day. I thought it was because of the lower back work in some of the workouts, more than I was used to, or else the result of carrying a very heavy bin out to the recycling Friday morning. For me any type of back pain seems to be greatly improved by lying on my FIRM Wave for a few minutes. I start with my seat on the floor and inch up until I am lying all the way on it. I'm going to check out those stretches Sophie Kat.