[pct-l] Thank you

[Melanie Clarke]

Dear Mark,

I need to manage my hip area with excessive running and hiking also.  Your
wife can check with her doctor but it is purely a management issue.  Without
being aware, I have an uneven gait.  That means I take a long powerful
stride with my right leg and a shorter, less powerful stride with my left
leg.  Over time and distance I tend to load and stress my right leg
excessively.  There is a muscle, the Tensor Fasciae latae, that travels back
and forth over the Greater Trochanter of your hip.  We females have wider
placed Trochanters.  The body has bursa sacks that facilitate this movement
but with repetitive stress, the bursa sacks get inflamed and hurts like
heck, can't even walk!!!!

A physical therapist can give your wife exercises to stretch out this muscle
and tendon.  The muscle is actually quite small but it is part of the long
Iliotibial Tract, a long band of connective tissue extending the entire
length from hip to leg.  More importantly!!!!!! When your wife begins to
feel stress on a long run or hike, she needs to concentrate on a more even
gait or even consciously take a bigger stride with the leg/hip that doesn't
hurt.  Causes of an uneven gait can vary.  I have a little scoliosis which
tends to rotate my pelvis a little, puts my right leg forward...yada yada
yada.  Everything is connected in the body.  A proximal problem can lead to
a distal injury.

It will take about 4-6 months for your wife to heal.  Then have her learn
how to "manage" this issue and it should not severely impact her life style!

Melanie Clarke
Kinesiology, 1984 UCLA
(UCLA no longer has their Kinesiology Major but they were the first
University in the US to have the major "back in the day".

On Wed, Jul 7, 2010 at 7:03 AM, Mark England <ingylufc at hotmail.co.uk> wrote:

>
> I know this is a bit late but we have been very busy since returning from
> our hike on the pct.
>
> As i'm sure the people who we hiked with ( Frog, Trail Hacker etc ) will
> have figured out by now i had to return to England to take care of my wife (
> carol who had to leave the trail due to injury ) and my company which had
> some issues that needed dealing with. I would just like to say thank you to
> everybody we met for helping make our honeymoon/hike a great experience. We
> may of only made it 400 miles but we had a fantastic time and met some great
> people.
>
> For those that are interested carol will not be able to complete the
> remaining 2100 miles due to her hip but she will be able to do bits with me
> when i return next year to pick up where i left of in wrightwood. Looking
> forward to it already and for those still out there...Good luck & take care.
>
> Yours
>
> Wimbledon
>
> P.S if anybody can point me in the right direction of a download of the
> national geographic documentary it would be much appreciated as it is not
> been shown here in england yet.
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