Welcome to Episode 25 of the Movement Logic podcast! In this solo episode, Laurel shares her history with yoga butt, or, proximal hamstring tendinopathy (high hamstring pain.) This episode is packed with tendon and muscle physiology. It also busts the big myth that yoga butt (and any yoga-related injury) is because we’re all woefully “overstretched”. At the end, Laurel shares a 3-step approach to nipping yoga butt in the yoga bud using strength training knowledge and tools.
Additionally Laurel examines:
- What yoga butt is (hint: a pain in the butt right at the sit bone more technically referred to as proximal hamstring tendinopathy).
- What a tendinopathy is.
- Short and sweet hamstring anatomy.
- Why yoga students might be more likely to experience PHT.
- That a typical vinyasa or Iyengar-inspired asana class involves a whole bunch of passive forward bends/hamstring stretching and why that makes managing and overcoming yoga butt tough for students in those classes.
- How Laurel nipped her yoga butt in the bud.
- The contradictory advice yoga teachers (including Laurel!) gave about what to do about yoga butt.
- How proximal hamstring tendon compression (rather than tension) plays a role in causing or exacerbating PHT.
- How strength training can help students overcome and avoid yoga butt.
- Why the narrative that we’re overstretched is illogical and a distraction away from the solution.
- What motor units are, what muscle recruitment is, and how understanding this aspect of muscle physiology can explain why yoga asana won’t make your tendons stronger but strength training will.
- A 3-step process to overcoming yoga butt as well as encouragement to see a clinician if what you try doesn’t seem to help.
Reference links:
Get the Hip & SI Joint tutorial before the cart closes this Sunday 11/27/22: https://movementlogictutorials.com/movement-logic/hips-tutorial/
If you want to stretch your hamstrings please continue to do so
Ebonie Rio – Isometric exercise in tendinopathy
Putting “Heavy” into Heavy Slow Resistance
Do we need to think about connective tissues when strength training?
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Thank you for your common sense approach on this subject. I found it so refreshing. I have had Yoga Butt a few times. After doing a 5 day horse back ride it went away. I tried to figure out why and decided it was the extension of my achilles and calves primarily taking the stress of the hamstring (my conclusion) recently it has returned from my yoga practice so my natural inclination is to work and strengthen glutes thru compression which helps and to back off the forward bending for now. Also I will practice those bridge variations
I have been practicing and teaching for over 50 years. I have had 2 hip replacements and faced the backlash from those who said it’s Yoga’s fault. I don’t buy any of it. Too many people throw the baby out with the bathwater.
I wrote an article called “arrogance of a generation” expressing my thoughts on this.