IT Band Pain: Strengthening > Stretching
I have a few friends who suffer from IT band problems. Put them on a foam roller and they cringe in pain. Lucky for me I don’t suffer from this problem (just lower leg tendon issues). But for those of you who do suffer, I found this recent article from Alex Hutchinson that may get you rethinking you home remedy. Strengthening your hips has been shown to not only help speed up recovery, but also in preventing the problem in the first place.
The results presented at the meeting suggest a new approach to dealing with iliotibial band pain. While traditional rehab has focused on lengthening and loosening the stubborn band, early results from a study by the University of Calgary’s Running Injury Clinic show that strengthening the hip muscles may be more effective – not only for rehab, but for preventing the injury in the first place.
Click here to read the full article.
Here are some hip exercises that are recommended to help improve your hip strength… Look likes I’ll be getting some good use out of the exercise band I got at Fitbloggin’ last week 🙂
Photo Source: Sweat Science
I hope everyone had an awesome weekend and is ready for the first week of October. Hello fall running season!!
Happy Trails and Happy Running,
Tracie
Run Inspired. 
My PT has me doing these exercises for my piriformis/hamstring pain. I have not increased my running over the past three months but I have set new PRs in my last two races.
I am convinced that these hip muscle and hamstring exercises are the reasons I have been able to do this.
The real test will be this weekend when I run a half marathon.
That’s awesome! I’m glad you’ve had such success with these exercises.
I definitely need to start doing the exercise more and more strength training in general. Being a runner is one thing, but to be a strong runner, is to be a less injured runner. And that equals a happier runner.
BEST OF LUCK this weekend on your race! You will do amazing and i look forward to reading about it 🙂
Tracie