Booty Amnesia
Wake your Glutes up from the dead folks!
Have you heard of Gluteal Amnesia? Also known as 'Dead Butt Syndrome' aka DBS, Gluteus Medius Tendinopathy, Sleepy Butt or I call it Booty Amnesia. It’s a real deal thing and I'm guessing you're sitting on your derrière right now as you read this. By chance does it feel numb after sitting for extended periods of time? Those layers of cushiony muscles are shutdown as our weight compresses them. As a result, they lose their memory and literally forget how to work and contract. So if they aren’t working, what muscles are holding your skeleton as you’re sitting in a chair? Your hip flexors. The front side muscles are recruited to support you since the buns are turned off. When one side of the body is turned off or even relaxed, the opposite side of the body has to accommodate and kick in. This is known as 'reciprocal inhibition.' What to do? Around 80% of Americans work at a desk or have sedentary jobs. And since the pandemic, hours spent sitting per day increased 28.6%. Besides limiting sitting, which is like asking a bunny not to hop, it’s basically impossible, right? What you can do is first, check the integrity of your hip muscles with a physical therapy test called the “Trendelenburg Sign.”
Stand in front of a mirror, lift one leg up with the knee bent, hold there. Or for the yogi’s, do a tree pose. You may notice your pelvis drop on the side of the lifted leg. That’s your weak Glute muscles on the standing leg. Repeat on the other side too.
The Glutes are a powerhouse muscle group with three layers, starting from the outer layer; Gluteus Maximus, the single largest muscle in the body, then deeper to that is Gluteus Medius, and then the Gluteus Minimus. Together their jobs are to extend, abduct and internally rotate our hip. The concern, more specifically is the middle layer, the Gluteus Medius as it stabilizes the hip joint and aids in pelvic rotation. This muscle is essential for a healthy lumbar spine. It helps with walking, getting up from a chair, climbing stairs and is a key player in maintaining your posture.
TLDR (too long, didn’t read), the takeaway: When you sit on your buns for too long they become weak and forgetful and the hip joint even loses range of motion. Therefore other muscles are drafted to play and this may cause low back pain, tenderness over the hip bursae (especially for side-lying sleepers as it adds to the weakness of these muscles) and even knee pain.
Wake up your anesthetized cheeks and get your rear in gear with these moves that stretch what’s tight (the hip flexors) and strengthen what’s neglected (the Glutes).
Take frequent breaks and take care of your tush folks,
Amanda
8 minutes and 8 exercises - a simplified version of the program is below. Proceed at your own pace and with caution.
1. Glute Squeezes: sitting or standing. Squeeze and contract your booty. Hold. Relax. Repeat. 10- 20 times.
2. Squat / Chair Pose / Utkatasana: With your feet about hip width apart, squat like you are lowering to sit in a chair. Ground through your feet. Shift your weight back so you can see your toes and hug your Glutes to help support you. Add a twist if you’d like. Hold. Repeat 10-20 times.
3. Bird Dog / Opposite Arm + Leg Reach: from all fours, reach one leg back, keep it in neutral with the toes pointing down. Contract your Glutes so your heel is the height of your level pelvis, then extend the opposite arm. Hold. Lengthen. Release. Repeat other side. 10-20 times.
4. Bridge Pose / Setu Banda Sarvangasana: Lie on your back with knees bent. Feet and knees parallel. Engage the core, press into the backs of the arms and feet, firm the hips as you lift your pelvis up. Hold. Release. Repeat. Option: use a block in between the upper legs so you don’t overly clench the Glutes. Repeat 10-20 times.
5. Band walk: in standing, place a resistance tube around your feet and hold the handles to your desired tension. Slightly bend your knees. Take lateral side steps. 10 in each direction.
6. Lunge: Step one foot forward and reach to the ground or blocks. Power up the back leg. HUG in the hip so it’s in line with the bent knee that is stacked over the ankle. Draw the core in to support your back. Take 10% of your weight out of your hands. Hold for 30-60 seconds. Switch. Option: for strengthening- reverse lunges
7. Hamstring Stretch: Lie on your back. Reach one leg up. Hold the back of your leg or loop a strap around your foot. Reach to heel up and the toes toward your face. Shoot for a stretch in the hamstrings and/or calves. If there is a pull behind the knee, lightly bend it to take the tension away from the delicate tendons and ligaments and direct it towards the muscle belly.
8: Pigeon Pose / Thread the Needle: Hip opener of choice. From plank, bring your left knee up to behind the left wrist. Angle the shin at about 45 degrees. Flex your ankle/foot. Aim to level your pelvis and stay upright or fold forward having some where for your head to rest.