Gotta Love Stretching

So contrary to the title of the post, I'm horrible when it comes to stretching.  I've always been fairly flexible without working on it.  Even when I gained some weight I was still able to touch my toes without issue.  The other thing I'm horrible at is sitting properly when at the computer.  It was my bad posture and propping my legs up at odd angles that has caused my latest ailment.  I'm currently suffering from issues related to my sciatic nerve.

For those who don't know the sciatic nerve is a major nerve that runs from the lower back down the back of the leg.  Issues with lower back alignment or compression caused my inflamed muscles can cause the nerve to compress or pinch.  When this happens it can cause a number of things from aches and pains up and down the back of the leg to weakness, tingling, or the sense of the foot and calf falling asleep.  I have had all of these symptoms over the course of the week.  I had to refer to Dr Google to help me get through things. 

My first order of business was to correct my posture.  I removed my computer chair for a day and replaced it with a stool.  This forced me to sit upright so I wasn't able to lean back and prop my legs up.  Next I found some stretches to do that help alleviate the pressure put on the sciatic nerve.  Originally I had used a roller on my hamstring and calf thinking I was trying to work out stiff muscles.  This was before I knew what I was dealing with and made things far worse.  The next day it felt like my foot and calf was asleep all day and I couldn't shake it.  The key was finding stretches for the back and hips.  Once I started doing these stretches the pain has gone down drastically.  Hopefully it will be barely noticeable next week for my half marathon, but we'll see.  I really hope it subsides in time for the Shamrock Shuffle.  I've still been able to run with the issues, its just a matter of pain tolerance.  It doesn't really get any worse from running, unless I start to push things.  All I know is I'm stretching more and will continue to do so.  At least this isn't shin splits, I hate shin splits.