Stu Helmore explains how using Pelvipro tackled the back problem he didn’t realise was causing his knee pain and preventing him from getting back to running after injury.
I’ve been a keen runner for about seven or eight years now.
Over the years, I’ve done lots of 10k runs, half-marathons and even ran the Yorkshire marathon in 2013 – albeit with not quite as much training as I should have done!
Then, in 2014, I was out on a training run around Thruscross reservoir near Harrogate when I picked up a knee injury. It came from nowhere – one minute I was running, the next I was in a lot of pain and couldn’t put my weight on my leg properly.
There was no question of carrying on, so I hobbled back to the car and drove home.
Trying to get back to running after injury
Having never really struggled with injury, it was all new to me. I tried resting it, then gently went back to exercise, but it was clear everything wasn’t as it should be. Going back to running after injury was a real challenge.
For the next three years, I was unable to run as far as before without pain in my knee, and it seemed to start after shorter and shorter distances. In the end, I could feel discomfort even walking to the bus to go to work in the morning and just sitting at my desk.
I explored a few different options to try to tackle the problem. I saw physios, including one who specialised in running injuries, and did endless exercises to try to build strength. When they failed to produce results, I ended up going to my GP to get the problem investigated further.
Months of waiting led to a few NHS physiotherapy sessions, which again didn’t yield results, and I was finally referred to an orthopaedic consultant. After scans and assessments, he proposed surgery to attempt to loosen a tendon which was too tight and could have been causing some of the problems.
While I was waiting for a date to come through, I heard about Chris from a friend who was raving about her successful back pain treatment. I decided to give physiotherapy one more try.
New treatment for running injury
In the first session, Chris showed me how to use the Pelvipro, gave me some new exercises to do with it, and spent time manipulating my knee. I went away with a Pelvipro to use at home.
Five days later, I ran my first 10k in two years.
Since then, I’ve been using the Pelvipro at home as well as working on the strengthening exercises Chris gave me. I’ve seen him around half a dozen times, each time looking at different aspects of the problem and tackling them in new ways.
We’ve established that the knee problem stems from misalignment in my pelvis – my hip flexors are tight and when I run, my left side drops much further than my right. Using Pelvipro is correcting the misalignment that caused the injury in the first place, and during each session, Chris looks at further ways to rebuild strength to support my pelvis and spine now they are correctly aligned.
I’m back to running a couple of times a week, regularly covering 10km or more, which seemed impossible just six months ago. I’ve signed up to events this year and I’m even feeling like another half marathon – or even a marathon – wouldn’t be impossible.
Having never suffered back pain, I wouldn’t have guessed that a treatment for my back could give me such effective results with my knee problem. I’m really grateful to Chris and Pelvipro for getting me running again.
