I finally decided it was time to see my favorite sports chiropractor Dr. Justin. He helped me tremendously when I had a knee injury last year before the Disney Marathon. So I knew he could help with this recurring hip pain and the knee pain. So I made the appointment with him last week and saw him yesterday.
I was a little nervous going into the appointment because you never know what the diagnosis may be. I didn't think I had anything seriously wrong. I truly felt that it was an overuse injury due to increasing my training. I felt like my hip was misaligned. And I knew that my quad and IT Band were super super tight. But I also knew that my methods weren't working all the way.
I've been icing. I've been stretching. I've been rolling. And it helped a little...but not all the way. I needed help.
The first thing Dr. Justin did was have me lay on my stomach. He did a test to see if my legs went together correctly. And they did not! That told him right away that my hip was not aligned correctly. He said that was causing the hip pain which in turn caused the knee pain.
He also said my quad, IT Band, and hip flexor were super tight.
He used two treatments: Active Release Technique (ART) and Fascial Distortion Model (FDM). To me...it was just like a deep tissue massage of the sore muscles with some movement of my leg with it. Of course there is a better definition for both of the methods lol!
The good news....he told me to RUN! He wants to see how well I feel after I run. And I have to continue to roll, stretch, and ice. He thinks that it will only take 3-4 visits to have me pain free again! Yay!!!
So I know these pains are probably overuse. But I also asked him about my shoes. I've worn Asics for the past 3 years. I got some Saucony running shoes through my blog a few months ago. When it was time for new shoes a few months ago I decided to try the Saucony shoes instead of buying another pair of Asics. They were free....I wanted to make them work!!! Dr. Justin said the different brand of shoes most likely aided in the hip and knee pain too because the shoes changed my gait.
I already had an idea that maybe the Saucony shoes weren't working for me. So the week before my half marathon I went and bought another pair of Asics (although of course I didn't wear them for the half).
You may remember me posting these pictures on Instagram!
Even Cullen approved of the Asics!
Dr. Justin said to run in the Asics. And I go back and see him tomorrow for more treatment. I'm sooo glad this was nothing serious! And I'm so glad I have that peace of mind knowing it's going to get better. And...did I say that I can RUN??? This is one happy girl!!!!
So hopefully...today's run is awesome! :-)
QOTD: Do you see a chiropractor for injuries?
