Injury in inner thigh/adductors (not sure what it is)

[Christian Byskov]

This might be a bit of a long shot but i will still give it a try to ask in here. Might be someone who has experienced something similar. 
I'm not quite sure when i got this injury, but it definitely got worsened or might even have started 2 years ago doing a mobility class. We were practicing the pancake and had a person to push on your lower back. I remember i could feel the pain in my right back/inner thigh, but i didn't really say anything (ye, i know it was stupid and i really regret it now). To day, 2 years after it still not good, i don't have any problem during the daily work, and i only feel pain when i specifically stretch in split position or like the pancake. Nothing at all when i'm doing butterfly stretch for instance. I've been to doctor and physiotherapist and they haven't really been able to identify the injury. I've tried several exercises from the physiotherapist but it hasn't got any better. i've tried longer break etc. The pain is like a stinging pain from the groin and all the way to inner knee.  The pain only starts when i get into the outer position the feeling is like if i go any further i will get a injury like a ruptured muscle. I know thats probably not the case, but more to indicate how the pain is feeling. I think the injury might be located to the m. gracilis, but  not certain about that either. It has just been frustrating for so long now and i don't really know what to do or how to rehabilitate it. So i hope someone might have any ideas or might have experienced something similar. 
 

[Alessandro Mainente]

Hi Christian , well if you can do the butterfly and you are not feeling any type of pain the problem are the adductors which move from hip through the lower part of the inner knee, basically they are gracilis and sartorius. The are responsible for the tightness of the legs on the split and on the pancake with legs in a wide straddle. I think that it is the time for an echography or a magnetic resonance.

[Josh Earl]

On 5/3/2017 at 7:35 AM, Christian Byskov said:

This might be a bit of a long shot but i will still give it a try to ask in here. Might be someone who has experienced something similar. 
I'm not quite sure when i got this injury, but it definitely got worsened or might even have started 2 years ago doing a mobility class. We were practicing the pancake and had a person to push on your lower back. I remember i could feel the pain in my right back/inner thigh, but i didn't really say anything (ye, i know it was stupid and i really regret it now). To day, 2 years after it still not good, i don't have any problem during the daily work, and i only feel pain when i specifically stretch in split position or like the pancake. Nothing at all when i'm doing butterfly stretch for instance. I've been to doctor and physiotherapist and they haven't really been able to identify the injury. I've tried several exercises from the physiotherapist but it hasn't got any better. i've tried longer break etc. The pain is like a stinging pain from the groin and all the way to inner knee.  The pain only starts when i get into the outer position the feeling is like if i go any further i will get a injury like a ruptured muscle. I know thats probably not the case, but more to indicate how the pain is feeling. I think the injury might be located to the m. gracilis, but  not certain about that either. It has just been frustrating for so long now and i don't really know what to do or how to rehabilitate it. So i hope someone might have any ideas or might have experienced something similar. 
 

Hey @Christian Byskov, wanted to jump in here because I am working through a very similar issue myself.

In college I was goofing around and faked a roundhouse kick to a buddy's head. Only I wasn't warmed up—riiiiip. Limped for months.

I'm 36 now, and that injury has continued to bother me off and on ever since.

When I started GST, I couldn't even get past my knees on twisting windmills without significant pain. I'd feel tightness and restriction all the way up and down my right inner thigh.

After about 5 months of doing F1 and the stretch series, I realized that I was getting WAY more flexible, but I still had the same level of pain when I hit the end of my ROM.

I decided to get some physical therapy. I'd read on this forum that it's critical to find a PT who does deep tissue manual therapy, so I found someone who specializes in working with athletes and gymnasts.

I did four sessions with her. She did deep manipulation of my lower adductors and showed me how to foam roll the area correctly. We also worked on strengthening the opposing muscles, especially the glute med.

After a month of this, I was feeling *significant* improvement—the pain and restriction were reduced by about 60-70%.

For the last 8 weeks or so I've continued to work on the problem myself. I bought Jill Miller's Roll Model balls and book, which have been FANTASTIC. The balls work much, much better for me than a regular foam roller or the other types of balls I've tried.

Through this work, I've been able to determine that my issue the right gracilis muscle. Basically it's a mess from the injury. I had issues at the insertion point below my knee, a massive and painful knot halfway between my hip and my knee, as well as pain near the origin point on my upper thigh.

I've been working on this thing every day for 10-15 minutes, and it's massively improved. I do straddle stretches before and after to measure the tightness and pain, and after I do my rolling I can stretch almost completely pain free. 

To sum up my advice: 

- Find a *competent* PT, someone who works with athletes and does hands-on, deep tissue massage. (I knew I was in the right place when I walked in and saw a wall lined with squat racks.)

- Get on a consistent self-treatment routine where you're rolling out the entire inner thigh daily. I find the Roll Model therapy balls to work better than a foam roller, because they allow me to better target trigger points and reach into the painful origin point near my groin.

This has been a long road, and I'm still not quite there yet. Totally worth it though.

[Christian Byskov]

@Alessandro Mainente Ye, thats what i thought aswell.. I might contact my doctor again and try to push for a scan. 

@Josh Earl Thanks for your reply! I will still work with the exercises i was given from my PT , and might try to invest in a foam roll and i got a similar ball that i can try to use (actually didnt think about that). The problem is i tried several different exercises for might be 5 month now and haven't really got any improvement at all.. So i think the next step must be a scan of some kind.. Will try to contact my doctor again. 

[Josh Earl]

5 hours ago, Christian Byskov said:

@Alessandro Mainente Ye, thats what i thought aswell.. I might contact my doctor again and try to push for a scan. 

@Josh Earl Thanks for your reply! I will still work with the exercises i was given from my PT , and might try to invest in a foam roll and i got a similar ball that i can try to use (actually didnt think about that). The problem is i tried several different exercises for might be 5 month now and haven't really got any improvement at all.. So i think the next step must be a scan of some kind.. Will try to contact my doctor again. 

Scan is probably a good idea.

The lesson I've learned from my experience is that stretching and strengthening is sometimes not enough. The deep tissue work makes all the difference.