Honestly, it is going to feel like a slap in the face but I think the writing is on the wall. At 6 days out and with the pain you are getting you will likely do a lot more damage to yourself trying to do an ultra with that.
Sometimes (having been on the receiving end myself) you are best to take your medicine immediately and come to accept that you are going to have time off. The longer you delay what needs to happen the longer your recovery will be....and I really feel in some instances your recovery becomes dramatically prolonged the longer you leave things,

I wouldn't risk it personally. What is to be gained with possible further damage. There will always be other races.

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Prepared to do anything?

That makes your decision easier. Stop running until your injuries have healed.

I appreciate the responses. Any ideas on how much rest is required for something like this to heal?? I've been reading and it does not sound like arthroscopic surgery is the way to go, but I have not been able to find a noninvasive recovery duration anywhere..6-8 weeks? months?

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think a torn labrum can heal on its own, can it? Thought it required surgery (if the tear is in fact bothering you).


From a quick google search:

If left untreated, acetabular labral tears may become a mechanical irritant to the hip joint, which can increase friction in the joint and speed the progress of osteoarthritis in your hip. ... Without surgery, symptoms may subside in younger patients with minor labral tears.

I’m in the same boat as you with a turn labrum and FAI. I’ve seen a surgeon and been told I need surgery sooner or later. The thing with mine is I’m not in a lot of pain. I can still run with some achey discomfort afterward. I know that ultimately I need to get it fixed—which even with surgery isn’t a sure thing.

I’m signed up for The Rut and still hoping I might be able to train enough to run it (if it’s not canceled). You asked about the recovery. Six to eight weeks? Try MONTHS. Ideally at nine months you are back to pre-injury levels. Crutches for the first 4-6 weeks. This is all based on my research and what the surgeon told me. It’s a long road.

Not what I wanted to hear :( ! It sounds like the surgery actually causes increased pain for some and many people are requiring multiple surgeries to relieve the pain. This isn't something I can let calm down with rest, work on strengthening and increasing mobility, and hopefully start to feel better? I am under the impression surgery is NOT required to heal nor is it the preferred route to go and I hope this is the case. Thanks again for everybody's input it is very much appreciated!

A torn labrum does not heal. FAI does not heal.

Stop doing anything that bothers it. Start strengthening you glutes/hips as much as possible. Seek out a good pt who has experience with labrum tears.

It’s possible to avoid surgery. Many people have labrum tears and are a symptomatic. Hopefully you are one of those people.

It is possible to have a successful surgery. I’m almost 5 years post op. PT didn’t work for me and I was left with no choice. I’m stronger/faster than I was before the surgery.

Cortisone shot may get you through the event but I personally wouldn’t risk it. The hip is not something you want to screw around with.

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Last year I was diagnosed with a torn and detached labrum that caused pain when riding and running in March and thought my season was over. Once I reduced my activity the pain subsided so the surgeon wanted me to try PT before surgery. After a couple of weeks of PT which was just prescribing the same old glute/hip exercises and no real improvement, I got a second opinion from another sports PT who performed hip distraction. My pain began to reduce immediately with twice weekly treatments and I was relatively pain free in ~4 weeks then raced 2 IMs 5 and 6 months later. Now if I feel any tightness or achiness I go back in for another treatment but have held up well considering the initial diagnosis.

Perhaps I am just one of the lucky ones who so far has avoided surgery, but may be worth a second (or third) opinion.

Firstly, I'm really sorry about your DX. It totally sucks. I feel for you. I had this happen to me a few days before an Ironman. I decided not to compete because it wasn't worth risking more damage. And I was in so much pain that it was really a no brainer.

This is my N=1 experience. I had both cam and pincer FAI, plus a tear. FWIW I had just turned 29 when this all went down, was very healthy/active, and did not think I would need much down time or therapy. Wrong! For a year after my DX, I did physical therapy (I tried 3 different PTs), I saw a chiropractor, took a round of prednisone, tried different NSAIDs, supplements, massages, had two cortisone shots, tried pilates, strengthening core, lots of gym work, no impact workouts, etc. I was just getting worse and worse. It got to the point where it hurt to sit, stand, walk, everything. I even ended up herniating a disc trying to do a "walk run" progression while in PT, because my therapist thought I could try running again...nope! Not to scare you -- but hip injuries are not to be taken lightly. This is definitely not a "push through the pain" kind of injury. I finally opted for surgery a year later, after failing conservative measures. When they got in there, it was a mess. I had acquired grade 3 chondromalacia (damage to the cartilage that coats the bone) in addition to the labral tear. That can lead to arthritis if left unchecked. They scraped that away, then shaved the femur and acetabulum down, reattached the labrum with 5 anchors, and released my psoas. It was a shitty recovery...that I had to go through twice! My other hip, as it would be, also had both kinds of FAI and a tear...our bodies love symmetry :). That side had synovitis and "bone craters" from where the bones had rubbed together. Nasty. I'm 3 months out from that second hip arthroscopy and very glad I had the surgeries. The joint pain is gone, however I still have a ton of muscular imbalances/compensations and tightness that I'm working through. I can bike on my trainer no problem (which was a cause for pain before surgery), I haven't tried swimming because of COVID, but running is totally out of the picture for a while longer... impact sports are the last to come back post op. I can't even walk one full mile yet! Hip arthroscopy may not seem like a huge deal but it really is -- it takes upwards of a year to fully heal. Mind you, both of my hips were really bad, so I'm probably at the extreme end here. My mom had bad hips, so in my case, it likely had some genetic component to it.

Anyway, if there's one thing you take away from this -- please please listen to your body, try different therapy modalities and give running a break for a bit. Find what works for you. Fire your PT if they aren't helping. Get many different opinions. Get a CT scan to check for "versions" and dysplasia. Make sure you get the full workup of what's going on in there. I had 4 different opinions before I decided to get surgery. And surgery really should be the last resort. Take care and feel free to message me if you have any questions!

Hi! After 6 years I was finally told that I have a hip impingement. cam and pincer. It doesn't cause me pain however I do get tight adductors. My question is this, I've never ran a full and it's my dream to do it. I no longer do speed work as to not aggravate it but I'm wondering if anyone has managed a full with FAI? I'm 40 years old. I've spoken to different surgeons but they all different opinions - one told me to run 3 times a week and not more than 15km. another one told me to go up in mileage slowly and to continue as long as I don't feel pain. Hip arthroscopy is not done on the island where I live and since i'm not in pain I've been told not to do it...would love some opinions pls :)