Welcome to Wednesday Q&A, where you ask questions and we answer them!

In this Wednesday Q&A, we answer your questions about right leg pain, gentle ways to build core strength, and osteomyelitis.

Your questions:

1. I have pain deep in my right glute that shoots down the back of my leg. It started back last July after I finished my first half marathon. A few weeks after the race, I developed horrible low back pain that shut down the right leg. The doctors wouldn't give me a firm diagonal diagnosis without an imaging test, but he prescribed muscle relaxants, anti-inflammatories, and told me to do piriformis stretches. The meds and rest eventually put it into remission and I stopped doing all seated forward fold postures and never stretched my hamstrings without bending my knees, trying to be very mindful of neutral pelvis and to protect my SI joint and lumbar spine. But in February or March this year, it came back. This time I had no pain in the low back, just the glute in the back of the leg. It's worse first thing in the morning and sometimes it wakes me up at night. I've been working with some functional movement practitioners for about a month now, trying to relieve and correct the issue. But it's truly a roller coaster. Some days I take two steps forward, I think it's getting better, and then the next I take three steps back and can hardly walk without medication. Sitting aggravates it the most, especially sitting in a car. I have a desk job and I've been using a standing desk exclusively since March. When doing windshield wipers with my knees, I find that internal rotation is much more accessible and pain-free on the affected side. Any insight is greatly appreciated.

2. Having connective tissue disorders, there isn't a whole lot I can do without making matters worse for myself by way of inflammation. So I stick to movement, “gentle stretches,” and things like qigong. This has always worked well since I'm naturally long and lean, but I'll be 50 in August and I'm in menopause and my middle is getting icky. Is there a gentle way to tighten this area without hurting myself? I can't plank because of what it does to my neck and shoulders. Physically, I can do almost anything. I'm not weak, I'm just very flexible. But my fascia is apparently a mess.

3. I have a friend recovering from osteomyelitis of the lumbar spine. While bloodwork and scans show the infection is going away, maybe two more weeks left of antibiotics, and he is moving better. He still has pain with bed mobility, rolling supine-to-sit and sit-to-stand, especially first thing in the morning. Any thoughts on exercises to help his back feel better, less stiff while he is recovering? As a clinician, I have never seen lumbar osteomyelitis and I am unsure how to proceed.

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The Fragile American Experiment