How To Sit With SI Joint Pain

Sitting with SI joint pain for any length of time can make you miserable.  Unfortunately there isn’t just “one fix” that will work for everyone all the time.

Instead, there are a number of things that can help reduce sacroiliac region discomfort.  They need to be tested to find out which works best.

However, the key reason why most people feel pain when sitting is because of a lack of movement.  Tissues, and especially nerves, need blood flow and oxygen to reduce increased sensitivity.

This is especially important to remember because at the end of the day, you need to MOVE as a human being, and not doing so simply cannot be worked around by using an expensive ergonomic chair, creams, pills, etc.

That said, lets get to our how to sit with SI joint pain list.

My favorite recommendation to reduce discomfort when sitting and introduce movement is with the Seated Hip Shift Mobilization.

Since we are all asymmetrical (not balanced front/back/left/right), we tend to have favorite sides to sit on, muscles to use more, etc.

These asymmetries can be exacerbated in our daily activities, so we need to be conscious of using both sides of our body.  This movement in particular will help accomplish this task while sitting.

Here is how to do it:

1.  Sit upright with your feet flat on the floor and with your hips slightly higher than knee level.
2. Place a small ball or yoga block between your knees. (even a rolled up towel or pillow will work)
3. While keeping your feet flat on the the ground, shift your weight to one side and pull your hip back while simultaneously pushing the opposite hip forward.
4. Hold this position for 1-2 seconds, then repeat on the other side.
5. Shift from side to side until you start to feel some fatigue, you start to lose good form, or feel any discomfort.

When you perform this hip shifting maneuver, it’s essentially “pumping” the hips and lower back.  You need to make sure this movement is done with low intensity.  It’s not about forcing the range of motion or building strength or anything else.  Just introducing movement, getting blood flowing, and relaxing overly sensitive nerves.

This option is almost identical to the previous one, but in this version you will place a light mini-band around your knees.

The first version emphasizes the groin muscles to pull the hip back, and this version emphasizes the glutes to slide the opposite knee forward, but also to decelerate the same side hip as it goes back.

Yeah, that can sound a bit confusing, but the point is those muscles need to do both. In addition, adding a bit of resistance to the glutes further helps you to feel them and also get a bit of a muscle pump for blood flow.

Here is how to do it:

1.  Sit upright with your feet flat on the floor and with your hips slightly higher than knee level.
2. Place a light-moderate mini-band above your knees. (don’t go too heavy on this as it will distort the movement!)
3. While keeping your feet flat on the the ground, shift your weight to one side and pull your hip back while simultaneously pushing the opposite hip forward.  Maintain the tension outward against the band with your knees.
4. Hold this position for 1-2 seconds, then repeat on the other side.
5. Shift from side to side until you start to feel some fatigue, you start to lose good form, or feel any discomfort.

You may find that one of these versions appears to help reduce discomfort better, OR doing both of them provides the best effect.

The one that works better is the one you should repeat often throughout the day.

That said, IF you are going to do an exercise movement frequently, my rule is to make sure it’s done with LOW intensity.  Getting excess muscle soreness or fatigue is not the goal, and in fact it may slow down progress because you have to wait until it goes away to proceed.