Groin Woes. How much would you endure to cure your nether region pain?

Twelve miles left of the Colfax Marathon and my groin ached exponentially as I trotted along an uneven surface, my right leg at least 4 inches higher than the left.  After 6-7 miles of this pulling pain, it slowly went numb and I only noticed it as a problem at mile 25 and walking back to the car.  My poor husband and friends had to walk about a mile with me limping like I recently underwent a hip replacement surgery.  The blister in between my toes on the right foot made my waddle even more pathetic, as my husband asked repeatedly, "Would you prefer we just bring the car to you?"

"No thanks, that's clearly a pride issue at this point."

A few hours after the race, I had a sports massage that focused 100% on my legs.  The next day, I wasn't sore at all and managed stairs beautifully.

The Hanson's Marathon Method that I followed prescribed a full two week break from running after the race.  Not even a slow recovery jog would be appropriate so I hunkered down and decided some core work that completely left my legs out of the picture would be appropriate.  Nine days after the race, I had the shakes so bad a stranger would have thought I was coming off of a drug induced high.  So I ventured out for a short 3 mile run to test out the system.

One mile in, I noticed the same pulling that I experienced during the race.  I've never had this problem other than the race, but it is a feeling that's hard to mistaken.  I wanted to run through it but I kept asking myself what further damage I might be inflicting on my body by ignoring this pain, permanent damage in the nether regions is never advised.

I let another week slide by while icing and avoiding any impact on my legs or hips.  Fifteen days after the race, I tried again with worse pain.

I figured, "Screw it!  I just ran another marathon.  Give yourself permission to heal."  My family was leaving for Disney World in a few days and I had no desire to run alone on hot, humid streets at ungodly hours in a strange place, with a sore groin.

Owen loves Mickey and Minnie but when we got there, he was so star struck he just stared at them in disbelief.

Apparently, I didn't behave myself.  The day we returned from Orlando my husband told me to go on a run as soon as we got home.  Once again, the painful pulling on the inside of my leg became so severe, I grimaced just walking home the rest of the way.

That's where my physical therapist comes in.  Meet Kevin.  I don't like doctors.  They aren't bad, but I don't like fixing things medically that can be fixed naturally with a little rest and a lot of ice.  I thought I had a strained hip flexor.  All the symptoms pointed to that, but it should have improved after a month of rest.  I felt like I had no other choice but to seek professional help.  Kevin found that I have cartilage caught in my inner hip socket, causing the muscles around that point to seize violently when scraped.  He thinks we can move the cartilage out of the way by repeatedly moving the joint and stretching the surrounding muscles.

He prescribed a stretch that relieves 75% of the pain after a few reps and 100% for 20 minutes at a time after a ton of reps.  I call it the Dog Pee Squat because it literally looks like a dog on a hydrant.  Elevating my right (injured) leg on a bench or bed I bend my leg at a 90 degree angle.  My right foot rests behind me out to the side and my left leg stands planted solidly on the floor.  Then I lean into the left leg, squatting into it slowly and pausing for 3 seconds.  I'm supposed to do 30 of these Dog Pee Squats every hour, 50 before and after a run, and 20 after each mile of the run.  I get to run 3 miles every day, but never more than 3 until the pain is completely gone mid-run.

After doing 10-15 of these, I can spread my left leg out further and get a deeper stretch, but this shallow stance is painful enough to start each set. 

Because the stretching helped, Kevin ruthlessly thought sticking needles into my groin would also help.  Sure, it makes sense.  Stick a hot poker into a muscle that has never seen the light of day, and of course it will spasm out of control, trying to escape from the insanity.

The best way I can describe the "treatment" was Kevin pinched my muscle as if trying to measure my fat content in gym class.  When I squealed in pain, he found the right spot to stick his needle.  Rolling the muscle between his fingers, he inserted the tip, stuck it in there really far and wiggled it around while continuing to massage the muscle.  He was trying to find a "trigger point" deep within the muscle, which once found, it jumped around violently and sent unpleasant vibrations throughout the muscle.  It burned and ached.  The sadistic bastard did it 6 times.  (By the way, I really do like Kevin.  But needling my groin left me testy.)

Afterwards he asked how I felt.  I told him my groin was just electrified, so all considering I felt pretty violated.  All day my muscles in the right inner thigh have been tired and spasm suddenly.  He warned me this would happen and actually meant progress.  By twitching the muscle, it should release and the pain will subside.

God, I hope he is right because I could do without galvanizing my privates, ever again.


~Roadburner

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