Here are a couple articles on “dead butt syndrome”, less commonly known as gluteus medius tendinosis. It’s a problem that PT’s have had to treat for forever, but now it has a catchy name so “dead butt” has received a lot of press lately, and we are glad for that. Your rear end needs more attention than you think!
The glutes as a muscle group don’t get near the credit they deserve for all the work that they do. PT’s consider the glutes to be part of the “core muscles” because of the important role they play in stabilizing the trunk and pelvis, particularly gluteus medius. During walking, running, or doing stairs, the gluteus medius keeps the pelvis level while you are weight bearing through one foot during these activities.
“Why does it stop working?”, you ask. The answer is as individual as the person asking it. There are many reasons…it may be due to an injury to the low back or hip, overuse, a hard fall on your butt, or lack of exercise. The problem is, once it does stop working as efficiently, a lot of other things try to compensate for it and the end results can be problems like IT band tendinitis, hip pain, meniscal tears and plantar fasciitis. So…”dead butt”, while it is worth laughing at, is no minor problem. If this sounds like you, consult us! We have to address why it shut down in the first place, then get it to “wake up” again.
Here are a couple articles with more information: