Trochanteric Bursitis and Yoga

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

I am a 17 year old male. I just started yoga hoping to increase flexibility in my joints, particularly my knees and hips.

I was “diagnosed” with trochanteric bursitis although I’mnot sure if that’s what I have. My main symptom is almost zero internal rotation (knee inwards) in both hips and pain whenever the internal rotation is forced.

[ul]
[li]I can’t sit back on my heels because of my knee flexibility limiting it. What poses can I do to increase my knee flexibility?
[/li][li]What poses can I do to increase the internal rotation of my hips and alleviate pain?
[/li][/ul]

I have been lifting weights for just over one year, I’m not sure it has had any affect on my hips.

I am looking forward to getting more into yoga. Hopefully, I’ll eventually be able to do the complex balancing poses.

Thanks

#2

Hello Liam,

This sort of thing requires contact hours, seeing you, working with you to really get at it. My guess would be that you need some work on opening up the muscles of the buttocks, gluteus medius, maximus and minimus. I have found this work to be best accomplished using two wood blocks with the student in a supine position. Please have your teacher work with you directly.

The knee is a hinge joint which flexes and extends around a single axis. Therefore there is no “knee flexibility”. However, there are muscles which cross the knee joint and when they are tight or hypertonic then the mobility of the lower leg relative to the upper leg (termed "knee flexion/extension) can be inhibited. For this, you’ll need to have your teacher help you with lengthening three things; the quadriceps (which are four muscles), the psoas, and the iliacus.

Hope this is helpful.

gordon