Sciatic muscle pain can be caused by a variety of conditions, many of which have a muscle imbalance at their roots.
Muscle imbalances could be caused by either the over tightening of a mobility muscle (usually a large muscle or muscle group that keeps you moving) or the weakening of a stability muscle (a muscle that controls movement or joint position and often works against gravity.
) Mobility muscles have a tendency to shorten with under use or under-stretching, while stability muscles tend to weaken due to lack use.
Muscle imbalance is created when one of these muscles stops doing their regular job, so to say.
If a mobility muscle tightens, movement gets restricted and stress on joints increases.
A tightened mobility muscle can also inhibit a stability muscle from doing its job, and vice versa.
So it is important to keep all the muscle groups balanced and strengthened in order for your body to function well and to keep pressure levels on disks, nerves, cartilage and joints at normal levels.
Now as is the case with most of us, there is most likely some kind of muscle imbalance in our bodies as we speak, since seventy to ninety percent of the population does experience lower back pain at some point in their lives.
The muscles play an important role in causing and healing the problems, which in turn can cause sciatica pain.
For instance in the case of a herniated disk, one of the most common causes of sciatica pain: a disk may rupture due to a traumatic event, but was most likely already weakened by too much continuous pressure, brought on by bad posture during prolonged activities.
It is important to strengthen our core muscles (abdomen and lower back) in order for our stability muscles in that area to be able to hold up our spine correctly.
It is also important always to use proper posture.
Since poor posture is most likely the culprit of putting too much pressure on the disk in the first place.
Lack of exercise weakened the muscles.
Putting those two together you have a perfect scenario setting a disk up to bulge or rupture, such putting increased pressure on the sciatica nerve and making you miserable.
Now if you are at this point, try to make use of your muscles to get you better again.
If under- or overusing them got you into a bad place; using them correctly can also speed up the healing process.
Once the worst pain of your sciatica flare up is over, start moving again.
Start slowly at first of course and always careful, but start with a short walk around the house and increase daily, until your mobility returns.
Ask your back specialist for some gentle stretching exercises that might help to loosen tight muscles and increase circulation to reduce inflammation, swelling and pain.
Once you are back to normal it is important that you start with a regular exercise regimen, prescribed by a back specialist specifically for your cause of sciatic muscle pain, to strengthen your muscles as to prevent further injuries and episodes.