Are your hips dropping?
Why this matters:
Two of the most common exercises in sciatica pain recovery are the glute bridge and clamshell. These are great because they help with building up hip extension (kicking the leg back) and hip external rotation (turning the hip out). But these two exercises miss out on one of the most important parts of hip function which is stabilizing the pelvis.
This means that the glute muscles are responsible for keeping your pelvis (aka the area between your belly button and thighs) level when walking and taking steps. If you don’t have enough glute strength, the hips will end up bobbing side to side like you’re closing a car door with the side of your butt. Doing too much of this when walking results in a lot of “shear” force on the low back causing pinching of some/all of the sciatic nerve roots.
We need to fix this.
Action steps:The supported hip hike exercise is great because it provides a safe way for you to strengthen your hip stabilizers. You know you’re doing it right if you feel your butt engage when doing this exercise. Since the glutes love to be worked, I usually recommend 2-3 sets of 15 to 20 repetitions.
