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Finally know why I can’t lift my knee up/general leg weakness! hurrah! Psoas tendon help?
It’s my psoas tendon. I am having a couple of injections done into the site soon (cortisone and anesthetic) and I’m seeing my surgeon again in 3 months. But that’s what the problem is.
So it’s not mechanical, which is good- my leg still has full range of motion, it just lacks the strength to do a lot of movements due to the psoas tendon catching on the plating/bone and general weakness from all the operations.
I don’t know how much is reversible however, so any ideas on exercises I can do to try and strengthen that area, maybe get the muscles to take over the job of the tendon?
There is always the possibility of cutting the tendon completely and having a lot of physio to train the muscles around it to take over the job of contracting and releasing but obviously I would rather try anything but that first (my surgeon is also very reluctant to try that too, so we’re on the same page with that one).
Any advice would be great, thanks 🙂
Em x -
4 Replies
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Ah thought so! I dunno if you saw my comment on your disabilitypost a few weeks back but I left some advice on there since we have a similar hip history (at least as far as the fractures go and having to be on crutches/walker for a very long time). Pilates over all ROCKS as long as you are super mindful of form, single leg circles are the most helpful exercise just make sure your leg is turned out slightly and you don’t move your hips while doing it. If your hips wiggle it means your recruiting the wrong muscles. The movement will likely be VERY small at first since the muscle is weak, but it will get better. There are lots of videos for single leg circles on YouTube 🙂 not sure of your exact situation but typically if you strengthen the psoas muscle it takes some of the slack out of the psoas tendon so should improve the function over time. And be careful stretching too much since your tendon more stability right now than looseness.
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http://youtu.be/raJwYrWZt74B this video does a pretty good job of explaining! Really think about drawing a circle on the ceiling with your big toe while keeping your hips stable and don’t worry if the circle starts off as very small, it’s more about engaging the muscles than creating a lot of movement
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Thanks Lucca- yes, I meant to reply to your earlier comment, my apologies. Ahh hip fractures, fun times hey 😉
I will definitely give them a go. My biggest issue is being able to lift my knee up, it’s like I lock out a few inches above the ground, and although it’s very specific my left leg is definitely weaker overall.
I must say, trying to do fan kicks yesterday was interesting leading with my leg, though it’s fine leading with my right leg… go figure.
I am having a cortisone injection with some anesthetic into the tendon soon which will allow us to see if pain is contributing to limiting the tendon contracting or if it’s straight up weakness.
The worst thing is that I can feel the tendon “skipping” over the plating/bone shelf and you can even see it if I am lying down and lift my leg straight up. It is not a nice feeling *shudder*
Thanks again, I will let you know how I go with them.
And yes, I should be careful overstretching- having EDS and such flexible joints (my thumbs especially for some reason) means that sometimes I go too far without realising it- like my ligaments have the stretchiness but the muscle strength isn’t there to stabilise and support the flexibility, so definitely something I should show some more caution with (but probably won’t lol).
Em xox -
*leading with my *left* leg
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