Piriformis (and Glute) Complete 12 Week Rehab Guide

Stop Chasing That Deep Glute Ache: A 12-Week Piriformis Rehab Plan That Goes Beyond Stretching

A web-based, 12-week video rehab guide for piriformis and glute pain, built from what works with the piriformis, low back, SI and hip cases we treat at our clinic. Movement-based corrections you can do at home, starting with a short test, a couple of minutes per first aid, that tells you which direction your body wants to move. Not a stretching routine, no "cracking backs."

Who this is for

• A deep ache in your piriformis or glute area that you just can't poke, stretch, or roll away.
• It gets worse the longer you sit.
• Stretching feels good for a minute, then the ache comes right back.
• Bending forward makes it worse.
• It hurts when you lift weights.
• Running aggravates it.
• Your "piriformis" ache comes with hamstring, IT band, SI joint, or sit-bone symptoms. On camera Dr. Gonzales calls these "peripheral referred symptoms most of the time," and the same first-aid test covers all of them.
• You're having more trouble than most, or you're generally fit with a nagging problem. The program was written to cater to the first group and to stay challenging for the second.

The problem

If you keep repeating stretches and exercises that only give temporary relief, something is being missed. That's the pattern with piriformis pain: months of foam rolling, massage, acupuncture, and hip stretches that treat the sore spot instead of the reason it's sore. One reviewer put it perfectly: she didn't realize she was overstretching her hip muscles without ever isolating the problem.

Here's the encouraging part. In my experience, most of the time people do not feel better from the care that they get because they don't have the correct first aid selected. This guide is not a stretching routine and it is not rest. It starts with a test: pick a movement that bothers you, do one first aid, and retest. A 30 percent improvement means you've found your direction. From there we cool the area down for a week or two, then rebuild the support your hips have gotten lazy about providing. The body wants to heal itself; sometimes we just haven't been giving it the right first aid.

What's inside

A 12-week online course with weekly classroom lessons and video demonstrations: 57 videos in all (43 exercise and first-aid demos plus 14 weekly classroom lessons), with written sets, holds, and days per week for the circuits and a simple rule for picking weight. The arc:

• Weeks 1 to 2, cool down. Test the first-aid options (extension press ups, a side-bend opener, and gentle flexion positions like 90-90 breathing and the door jamb squat), keep the one that changes your test movement, and dose it in small amounts spread across each day for 5 to 10 days. Add breathing, daily walking, and easy patterning work (birddogs, side bridges, wall bugs, dowel split squats).
• Weeks 3 to 8, support, mobility, and glute priming. Circuits 3 to 5 days a week that build what Dr. Gonzales calls the guy-wire system around a pressurized trunk (hard style planks, side planks, birddogs, quad rocks), re-pattern the hips with a dowel, then train core endurance and wake up the glutes (glute accordions, banded glute bridges), with spinal mobility (cat cows, windshield wipers) and light loaded patterns (kettlebell deadlift, box and goblet squats, farmer's carries) introduced along the way.
• Weeks 9 to 12, foundation of strength. The five basic human movements, push, pull, carry, squat, and hinge, at a "rule of eight" load you can repeat, plus 5-to-10-minute movement flows to get your heart rate up, unilateral variations (suitcase carries, bear rows, halos), and reactive-posture work in week 12. Deliberately sustainable: "you shouldn't crush yourself."

A "Want some help?" checkpoint at week 4 offers a one-time discounted video session (not included in the purchase), and the closing lesson covers what's next after week 12.

How it works

1. Buy the program and get instant access to the online course.
2. Watch the Start Here and Week 1 videos. Pick a real-life movement that bothers you (not a stretch), do one first aid, and retest. Keep the one that improves it by about 30 percent, and only that one.
3. Do one session of circuits a day, 3 to 5 days a week depending on the week, roughly 30 to 55 minutes, plus a recommended hour of walking broken into chunks. In week 1 the first aid is different: small doses spread across every day, not all at once.
4. Progress week by week. Movements are patterned before they are loaded: "if you don't have control over the movement, why would we load it?"
5. Finish weeks 9 to 12 with the five basic movements, movement flows, and loaded carries, a routine you can keep for years.

Why Performance Place

Performance Place Sports Care is the Orange County, CA clinic of Dr. Sebastian Gonzales, DC. On camera he puts it plainly: "We are specialists at low back, hip, piriformis, SI joint and hip flexor problems." This guide is built from what works with the low back, hip, and piriformis cases we see in clinic, on the same guy-wire core stability model (Stuart McGill) and five-movement strength model (Dan John) we coach in person.

FAQ

Is this right for my case?

It's built for a deep piriformis or glute ache that worsens with sitting, bending forward, lifting, or running, especially when stretching hasn't helped, and for the hamstring, IT band, SI joint, and sit-bone symptoms that so often travel with it.

How is this different from free YouTube videos?

The guide is extremely detailed on purpose; there are subtle nuances to these movements, and the weeks are sequenced so each phase prepares you for the next. That structure, plus the week 1 first-aid test, is what scattered videos can't give you.

What equipment do I need?

Household items for the first weeks: a chair, a towel or yoga block, a door jamb, and a broomstick or dowel. From week 3 you'll want a kettlebell or dumbbell, and from week 8 a cloth glute resistance band (we link the one we use). By weeks 9 to 12 the program expects real load, a kettlebell or dumbbell somewhere in the 25 to 55 lb range, and something you can carry in each hand. A sandbag is optional. Equipment is not included.

How much time does it take?

One session of circuits a day, about 30 to 55 minutes, 3 to 5 days a week depending on the week, plus an hour of walking that you can split into 10-minute chunks. Week 1 is different: the first aid is done in small doses spread through every day.

How soon might I notice a difference?

Everyone differs. The week 1 first aid is designed to give relief early, but on camera Dr. Gonzales is clear it takes "reps and reps and reps" over a 5 to 10 day period, and in some people the pain briefly moves toward the back before it leaves. That is expected. Some people will not find a first aid that works on their own; that is when a one-on-one session helps. The support and strength work after that is built to take some time and to help keep the problem from coming back.

When should I stop or get help?

If a first aid makes any pain, tingle, or tightness travel further down your leg, stop it and try another. Do not run a first aid past 5 to 10 days, and never more than one at a time. None of the exercises should be painful: challenging yes, painful no. If by the end you cannot push, pull, carry, squat, and hinge and you are not back to your activity, that is the time to ask for professional help. This guide is not a substitute for medical advice.

What if I get stuck?

Week 4 includes an invitation to book a discounted video session, and you can email the office for one-on-one exercise coaching (not included in the purchase).