RunningAHEAD - Topic: Tight hamstrings and lower back = stiff neck?

xnomanx

Wild Beast

posted: 10/20/2008 at 11:08 PM

Hello all, First off, I know I should be stretching more (heck, this might be a rhetorical question)...just wondering if I'm alone in my new theory concerning neck pain I've been having (stiffness/soreness/mild burning persisting throughout the day). I'm suspecting it could be coming from tight hamstrings and lower back...Can they exert tension all the way up, through the back muscles, and manifest pain in the neck? (Sorry if my physiology knowledge is poor here!) I suspect that it's hamstrings/lower back because when I stretch thoroughly and more frequently (simply touching my toes), I seem to have less frequent neck pain. Anyone else dealing with similar issues?

Everything was beautiful and nothing hurt. -K. Vonnegut

JennerVT

posted: 10/21/2008 at 8:36 AM

I'm no expert but I've had low back pain/tight hamstring issues for a long time and I never had associated neck pain. Is it possible that your stretch (touching your toes) is also stretching your neck? If you figure the muscles in your neck relax as you hang your head upside down touching your toes, maybe it's just enough to loosen it up and make it feel better after you've stretched? Just a guess.

2009 Goals:
PR 5K (Ha, current 43:10)
Run a 10K
Meet Seasonal Weight Loss Challenges
Complete my first Sprint Tri

JerryBZA

Runs with the pack

posted: 10/22/2008 at 1:34 PM

Quote from xnomanx on 10/20/2008 at 11:08 PM:

I'm suspecting it could be coming from tight hamstrings and lower back...Can they exert tension all the way up, through the back muscles, and manifest pain in the neck? (Sorry if my physiology knowledge is poor here!) I suspect that it's hamstrings/lower back because when I stretch thoroughly and more frequently (simply touching my toes), I seem to have less frequent neck pain. Anyone else dealing with similar issues?

Yes, I've always been really tight and told by sports doctors that I need to stretch more. I'm prone to Achilles tendinitis and I'm currently suffering with neck pain that is aggravated by running. I've found several stretches that I've added to my routine have helped. One is to lay on the ground and to simply stretch with hands overhead and toes pointed out. The toe touch and all the Achilles stretches help too. If you can find an overhead bar to hang from, that would be perfect.

goat

Finder of good newts

posted: 10/22/2008 at 2:36 PM

I would say, yes - possible. I grew up with nasty headaches that weren't solved until I went to a chiropractor and figured out that tightness in my back and hamstrings was causing scar tissue from an old injury in a neck tendon to flare up - and that caused some connected areas across my scalp to tighten up. It's all connected. Now, when I'm getting a headache, I stretch my back and hamstrings and I'm usually good to go. When I started running more again this last couple of years, the tightness became a problem again. Now I use a foam roller and stretch out my back and hamstrings nearly every evening - I've never felt better running. I'd vote for checking it out with a physical therapist or chiropractor... I'm lucky in that my chiropractor is both and has run many marathons. They can give you stretches specific to your tighter areas.

It's hard to look down if you don't go up

Tight hamstrings and lower back = stiff neck? (Read 1408 times)