Odd popping in back during plank exercises?

[PLS]

I have been having inconsistent back problems for about 6 weeks now. I have no recollection of any injuries. The first incident I was driving home from work and my hip started hurting really bad, I couldn't get home fast enough. By the time I got home it hurt to sit, stand, lie down, turn, etc. By the time I went to bed my pain was easily a 10/10. The kind of pain where once you are up it hurts bad enough that you have to figure out how to move. I didn't sleep at all that night, iced it, everything that was suggested online.

I work in PT and I thought maybe my hip bone had rotated slightly and the PT suggested SI exercises and stretches. I did those and have continued to work on them. The next day was better, not great and the 3rd day improved. In 4 days it was gone but I felt weak. I did continue to exercise through this but modified and found workouts that made me feel better and involved some stretching. Then I went a week without much difficulty.

Then I had another round of this pain, it seems to have been brought on by a pair of dress shoes I wore to work, not heals but not my normal sneakers either. Same problem, with sitting, standing etc. But by morning I was better.

The whole time I have noticed that when I am standing still I can feel something popping in my back, not painful, kind of like when you breathe a muscle is sliding over a bony prominence. With all of this I have really been focusing on strengthening my core and as long as I have no pain I have been doing planks and pushups. With both of these I have had DH & DD watch my posture, I have a flat back so no low back sway or postural difficulties. But I again have the popping in my back. It doesn't hurt, but it is rather distressing to feel. It is especially noticeable when I hold plank pose and I am breathing.

Has anyone experienced this? Any suggestions on what I should strengthen to get this to go away? I am trying to incorporate core work and more stretching, I have noticed that my right hamstring is quite tight since this started as well. I did the Bender ball healthy back tape after the 2nd round of pain and it did feel better that day. I have the TRX strong back dvd but have not tried it yet since that might be more than I am up for.

Thanks for any suggestions.
Penny

[SpiritYogi]

Penny,

Considering your current experience with back pain, you really should see a doctor so you can get to the bottom of these twinges and pains you're having. There could be something going on that is causing all these inter-related issues.

I hope you feel better soon!!

[Sophie]

would it be too weird to go to the PT you work for/with? I know he/she gave you a suggestion, but maybe you need a more thorough evaluation.

[PLS]

I have actually talked with the PT about this and it is "possible" that if my hip is still rotated that could be causing an increased pull of one of the muscles and or sliding and causing the popping sound. We have also discussed my "fibromyalgia" rotating muscle pain at length as well. Which is what she thinks is going on as well.

I have recently been diagnosed with Gluten sensitivity after several years of multiple problems including unexplained pain that moves after a while. I have been on a GF diet for just 3 weeks now and most of my symptoms are going away. And although my pain is very real(but it is not constant), my experience at the doctors office is to be given pain meds/ muscle relaxers which I cannot take and function. And usually the pain resolves if I wait long enough.

I had considered trying a chiropracter but DH is adamantly opposed to it.

I am wondering if I should try the Classical stretch back dvd or would one of her other sets be better?

[kitty12]

I have a posterior innominates rotation on my left (SIJ issue) and hip dysplasia on the right. I do a lot of core strength exercises and also a lot of hip and lower back stretches. I am mostly stable now, but will still rotate when I sleep at night sometimes.

I do adjustments for my back first thing when I wake up in the morning and also after I exercise. I do not use the standard adjustment that most PTs will teach, but use one of the ones on this web page:
http://thelowback.com/
These are designed to be done as maintenance so can be done more frequently. To tell if I am out of alignment, I lie on my back. If I can click my ankle bones together, meaning my legs are the same length, then I am aligned. If they are not lined up so can't be clicked, I do an adjustment. There are also times where the ankle bones line up, but it feels like my right hip is riding up. I will do adjustments for that as well.

Tight muscles can really contribute. One thing that has helped me at times is the yoga pose called constructive rest. Normally you do this with your knees bent, feet on the floor, however, I use a modified version with my feet/calves resting on a chair and my legs bent at the knee to about 90 degrees. I will stay in that pose up to 10 minutes, but sometimes just a couple of minutes can be helpful.

With my last bout of hip and knee problems I had to give up heels completely. My shoes only have a slight lift to the heel.

I do not have clicking when I do regular planks, but can get it doing mountain climbers. Since it doesn't hurt, I ignore it, but I don't do them very often. When I was in PT they told me that generally if it doesn't hurt you don't need to be concerned. However, I had a time where my piriformis was snapping really badly and loudly that I was concerned that it would eventually hurt. I rarely have that anymore - it improved with strength and stretching. I guess a few times I've also had a snap in my lower back doing Warrior 3 pose - Jill Miller refers to them as free chiropractic adjustments. Again, it doesn't hurt so I'm not worried, but it is really strange when it happens.

[PLS]

Thanks Kitty12,

I checked the link you posted and have it bookmarked, I tried a couple of the exercises and plan to do them on a regular basis.

It is good to know that as long as it doesn't hurt that it probably isn't anything to be concerned about. It is also a relief to know I am not crazy. And I will continue with stretching, core strengthening and add in the stuff from the link you posted.

Thank you.
Penny