I think my tail bone pops when I stretch. You?

May 29, 2008 7:15 AM

Why does my butt pop? Does yours?

I'm asking anonymously because this question is about my butt.

Try this: Sit at your desk job for a couple of hours, then stand up and stretch. Clench your buttocks really hard. Did your butt pop?

Mine does. I think it's the tail bone. But how could that pop? It's not breaking, and I don't have an injury AFAIK. I Googled, and most of the results are about injuries.

Will doing this intentionally kill my butt?

posted by anonymous to health & fitness (13 comments total)

Everyone's joints crack now and then. If I hug my lady hard, which she likes, I can occasionally get her back to pop. I can crack my knees, knuckles, jaw, and ankles. I think you're probably just cracking a lower vertabra. I can't imagine it's any big deal.
posted by Guy_Inamonkeysuit at 7:25 AM on May 29, 2008

Mine does, particularly if I have been sitting on a hard chair or surface for a while and when I do some yoga positions. I asked a chiropractor friend about it once, and she told me that sometimes the joints on that end of a person's spine are fused and sometimes not, so they can pop just like any other vertebrae. Mine's been doing it for ages, and my butt is still alright. A little wider perhaps, but my tailbone hasn't broken or caused me any grief yet.
posted by Orb at 7:31 AM on May 29, 2008

Mine does too. And sometimes I do it intentionally after sitting on a hard surface for a while (especially in grad school seminars). I've never had any pain associated with it, and my elbows and back pop too, so I think it's just a joint thing, no big deal. But then again, I'm no chiropractor. :)
posted by cachondeo45 at 7:35 AM on May 29, 2008

My butt doesn't pop, but if I stand up and stretch my sternum does. Everyone is a little different, but it's not something to worry about.
posted by sanka at 7:35 AM on May 29, 2008

My butt pops in that area, after doing exactly the procedure you describe. I'm fine with it, but then I love to crack my knuckles and pop my back.
Sometimes after a day of little motion or hunched over a work bench I sit up and press crack my back. On a good day I can feel it pop from the base of my neck all the way down to the tail bone.
And it feels so good.
posted by Science! at 7:36 AM on May 29, 2008

Mine does sometimes but only on one side. I assume it's the sacroiliac (SI) joint popping on that side. I've heard the same thing as Orb, which is that sometimes those joints are mobile and sometimes they aren't. I've also heard that modern chairs don't do a good job of supporting that area, which could explain why it's happening when you stand up after a long time.

It's fun to have a chiropractor do it, too.
posted by cabingirl at 7:43 AM on May 29, 2008

I get this with my neck. You would not believe how loud you neck can pop if you have an osteopath crack if for you.
posted by biffa at 7:48 AM on May 29, 2008

Yep, sounds like a hypermobile sacroiliac joint. It fuses in most people sometime before adulthood. One of mine is mobile, probably due to much abuse mountainbiking.

I don't think that popping it aggravates it. Personally, I crack mine every morning doing yoga stretches. When it doesn't crack, it is because I've irritated my back with activity, and I'm looking at back spasms if I don't ease off for a few days.
posted by Manjusri at 8:48 AM on May 29, 2008 [1 favorite]

Nthing the "I can do this and it's probably not gonna hurt you" camp.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 9:25 AM on May 29, 2008

I'm sure it's fine.. but this question makes me wonder about your sitting posture, and whether your butt pops because your posture causes unnecessary flexion in your bottom vertebrae.

If you sit with your butt out and your chest out, your spine is straight, and your weight is on the meat of your buttocks. If you sit hunched over, your spine is curved backwards, and your weight may instead be resting on your tailbone, causing that flexion.

Just a thought.
posted by crunch buttsteak at 9:26 AM on May 29, 2008

I do this, too. I do it on purpose sometimes by laying flat on the floor because sometimes it starts to feel weird if I don't, especially after a long day sitting in a chair at work. In fact, I didn't know until reading this thread that not everybody's does this.
posted by fructose at 10:09 AM on May 29, 2008

yes! it's your sacroiliac joint (or SI joint). mine pops all the time. i also frequently get a rotated pelvis. if you have insurance and the scratch, i'd pop in to see a physical therapist for some core strengthening exercises because it can really throw your back out of whack if you're not careful. (otherwise, just keep up with your crunches)
posted by thinkingwoman at 10:33 AM on May 29, 2008

If I squeeze my glutes together with some force -- as if I were trying to crack a nut between them -- I can make something right at the base of my spine pop. It's definitely not in the SI joint area.
posted by pmbuko at 11:21 AM on May 29, 2008