1 00:00:01,920 --> 00:00:06,440 Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey 2 00:00:06,519 --> 00:00:10,280 Speaker 1: brain Stuff, Lauren bog Obam here. In the past few years, 3 00:00:10,320 --> 00:00:13,240 Speaker 1: it's become apparent that sitting at desks all day, followed 4 00:00:13,240 --> 00:00:15,680 Speaker 1: by hours of sitting on couches while we binge watched 5 00:00:15,720 --> 00:00:19,200 Speaker 1: The Great British Baking Show is slowly killing us. But 6 00:00:19,440 --> 00:00:22,239 Speaker 1: what we didn't know is that it's killing us. But first, 7 00:00:23,280 --> 00:00:28,240 Speaker 1: it's called dead butt syndrome. Well, officially it's called gluteal tendonopathy. 8 00:00:28,400 --> 00:00:32,040 Speaker 1: It affects the gluteus medius and minimus, which are smaller 9 00:00:32,120 --> 00:00:35,760 Speaker 1: muscles than the more well known gluotyus maximus. The glootyas 10 00:00:35,800 --> 00:00:38,279 Speaker 1: medius is attached to the upper portion of the pelvis 11 00:00:38,400 --> 00:00:41,199 Speaker 1: and the top of the femur, while the gluteus minimus 12 00:00:41,240 --> 00:00:43,519 Speaker 1: is attached to the outer surface of the pelvis and 13 00:00:43,600 --> 00:00:46,280 Speaker 1: the head of the femur. The two work with the 14 00:00:46,320 --> 00:00:49,640 Speaker 1: gloodyus maximus to form your buttocks, So when the glootys 15 00:00:49,680 --> 00:00:52,760 Speaker 1: minimus and medius are weak, it puts strain and pressure 16 00:00:52,800 --> 00:00:55,400 Speaker 1: on other muscles in the hip area, including the hip 17 00:00:55,400 --> 00:00:58,040 Speaker 1: flexors at the front of your pelvis, to pick up 18 00:00:58,040 --> 00:01:02,600 Speaker 1: your butt slack. According to a study published in the 19 00:01:02,680 --> 00:01:05,680 Speaker 1: Journal Sports med women are two to four times more 20 00:01:05,720 --> 00:01:09,880 Speaker 1: likely to experience gluteal tendonopathy. A similar study published the 21 00:01:09,920 --> 00:01:12,559 Speaker 1: same year in the Journal of Orthopedic and Sports Physical 22 00:01:12,600 --> 00:01:16,280 Speaker 1: Therapy noted that few risk factors have been validated by science, 23 00:01:16,560 --> 00:01:19,600 Speaker 1: but to stand out, being a woman and being over 24 00:01:19,680 --> 00:01:23,560 Speaker 1: the age of forty, distance runners of any gender who 25 00:01:23,560 --> 00:01:27,160 Speaker 1: work desk jobs are also likely to experience dead but syndrome. 26 00:01:27,720 --> 00:01:29,960 Speaker 1: Not only do they park their rear ends and chairs 27 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:33,120 Speaker 1: all day, but they're chosen sport also relies mostly on 28 00:01:33,160 --> 00:01:35,720 Speaker 1: the quadriceps at the front of the thighs there but 29 00:01:35,959 --> 00:01:38,399 Speaker 1: is just along for the ride on that Sunday long run. 30 00:01:39,680 --> 00:01:42,240 Speaker 1: If you suspect your butt is dead, you'll often notice 31 00:01:42,280 --> 00:01:45,399 Speaker 1: pain in your hip while in certain positions like sitting 32 00:01:45,400 --> 00:01:47,560 Speaker 1: with your legs crossed at the knees, or sitting with 33 00:01:47,600 --> 00:01:50,480 Speaker 1: your knees together but feet apart on the floor, standing 34 00:01:50,480 --> 00:01:52,920 Speaker 1: with one hip jutting to the side, standing with an 35 00:01:52,920 --> 00:01:55,280 Speaker 1: ankle crossed in front of the other, or lying on 36 00:01:55,320 --> 00:01:59,480 Speaker 1: your side with your knees bent. But there is good news. 37 00:02:00,040 --> 00:02:03,720 Speaker 1: You can resuscitate your butt. A few common glute exercises 38 00:02:03,720 --> 00:02:06,160 Speaker 1: can bring that butt back from the dead. Even if 39 00:02:06,160 --> 00:02:09,400 Speaker 1: you don't have a dead butt diagnosis, doing exercises while 40 00:02:09,440 --> 00:02:12,160 Speaker 1: you binge watch other people baking can help undo the 41 00:02:12,240 --> 00:02:15,880 Speaker 1: damage of sitting all day. Various stretches and exercises like 42 00:02:15,960 --> 00:02:20,079 Speaker 1: dead lifts, the clamshell exercise, lateral bandwalks and bridges, or 43 00:02:20,160 --> 00:02:24,360 Speaker 1: hip lifts can help. In those studies, most people found 44 00:02:24,400 --> 00:02:28,120 Speaker 1: relief from these exercises, though it takes time In very 45 00:02:28,160 --> 00:02:30,640 Speaker 1: painful cases, some people might need to go the extra 46 00:02:30,680 --> 00:02:35,000 Speaker 1: step of getting cortico steroid injections or shockwave therapy. I 47 00:02:35,080 --> 00:02:37,280 Speaker 1: want to know if your butt is dead, Just stand 48 00:02:37,320 --> 00:02:39,720 Speaker 1: in front of a mirror and lift one leg. If 49 00:02:39,800 --> 00:02:42,200 Speaker 1: you see your hip dip on the same side as 50 00:02:42,200 --> 00:02:44,919 Speaker 1: your lifted foot, then the gluteus medius on the opposite 51 00:02:44,919 --> 00:02:52,760 Speaker 1: side is weak. Today's episode was written by Kristen Hall 52 00:02:52,800 --> 00:02:56,040 Speaker 1: Geisler and produced by Tyler Klein. Brain Stuff is production 53 00:02:56,040 --> 00:02:58,320 Speaker 1: of I Heart Radio's How Stuff Works. For more in 54 00:02:58,360 --> 00:03:00,560 Speaker 1: this amounts of other topics, visit our home planet how 55 00:03:00,600 --> 00:03:03,000 Speaker 1: stuff Works dot com. And for more podcasts from my 56 00:03:03,040 --> 00:03:05,840 Speaker 1: heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 57 00:03:05,880 --> 00:03:07,560 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.