Oh, Sciatica — you strike with the subtlety of a lightning bolt. If only we could send you back to the gods who summoned you — Thor, Zeus, whoever’s responsible.

That sharp jolt down your leg isn’t divine punishment though — it’s your body’s way of warning you that something’s off in your alignment. Let’s break down what’s really happening and how to fix it.

What Is Sciatica? Understanding the Pain and Nerve Behind It

Sciatica isn’t a condition on its own — it’s a symptom of irritation or compression along the sciatic nerve, the largest nerve in your body. It runs from your lower back through your hips and glutes and all the way down to your feet.

When something presses or tugs on that nerve — like a herniated disc, tight piriformis, or misaligned pelvis — it can set off pain that feels like an electrical current shooting down your leg.

Common symptoms include:

• Sharp or burning pain down the butt, thigh, or calf

• Numbness or tingling in one leg

• Weakness when standing, walking, or bending

• Pain that flares when sitting too long or twisting your spine

Here’s the catch: sciatica pain doesn’t start in the leg. It starts in your movement patterns — how you bend, twist, sit, and walk. When those are out of alignment, your body compensates, tension builds, and the nerve gets caught in the crossfire.

At MoveU™, we fix that by retraining how you move. Once your posture and mechanics are aligned, the nerve calms down — no surgery, no endless “don’t lift that” rules, just control over your body again.

Symptoms of a Sciatica Flare-Up

Sciatica symptoms can range from mildly annoying to downright debilitating. Here’s what to watch for:

• • Pain: A burning or electric-shock sensation that shoots down one leg. Often flares when you cough, sneeze, bend, or lift your leg while lying on your back.

  • Tingling or “pins and needles”: That classic “my leg fell asleep” feeling.

  • Numbness: Areas of your leg or back lose sensation — nerve signals aren’t reaching your brain.

• • Muscle weakness: When the nerve signals to your leg muscles get blocked, they can’t fire properly.

  • Loss of bladder or bowel control: If this happens (and it’s not from a stomach bug), it’s serious. Seek medical attention immediately.

Primary Causes of Sciatica Pain

Sciatica isn’t random — it’s a result of pressure, misalignment, or irritation along the sciatic nerve. Here’s what can set it off:

1. Herniated Discs
Your spinal discs are like jelly-filled donuts cushioning your vertebrae. When your spine rounds too much, pressure builds unevenly — the disc bulges, pressing on the sciatic nerve. ZING — lightning down the leg.

2. Spinal Stenosis
A narrowing of the spinal canal that squeezes the nerve roots. It’s often tied to aging, past injuries, misaligned joints, or excess weight.

3. Piriformis Syndrome: That deep hip muscle (the piriformis) can act like a boa constrictor, clamping down on the sciatic nerve. Sometimes it’s tight, sometimes it’s just overdeveloped — either way, it’s crowding the nerve and mimicking sciatica.

4. SI Joint Dysfunction: The sacroiliac joint connects your spine and pelvis. When it’s not moving right — from misalignment or muscle imbalance — it can mimic or even trigger sciatic pain.

What Causes Sciatica Flare-Ups?

Even after you’ve cooled the fire, sciatica can sneak back in. Here’s what tends to wake the beast:

• Muscle strain or overuse: Irritated glutes or low back muscles inflame the nerve. Zing-zing, futhermucker.

• Prolonged sitting: Especially with sloppy posture. Move often — variety is the spice of spine health.

• Obesity: Extra weight adds constant compression to your lower spine.

• Diabetes: High blood sugar can damage nerves, increasing risk of sciatica.

• Sudden awkward movements: If your body isn’t trained for control, random twists can trigger pain.

• Heavy or improper lifting: We love lifting heavy — but not when form falls apart.

• High-impact activity without stability training: Running and jumping are fine if your body’s aligned; risky if it’s not.

The MoveU™ Approach: Fix Yo Sh!t and Find Real Relief

Sciatica pain can feel scary — but it’s not your enemy. It’s feedback. A signal your body sends when something’s off in your alignment or movement patterns.

Instead of masking symptoms with meds or stretches, we help you fix the root cause:

• Strengthen your support muscles

• Realign your spine and pelvis (yes, even when you sleep!)

• Retrain how you move every day

When you move better, you feel better. It’s that simple.

3 Simple Exercises to Relieve Sciatica Pain (No Equipment Needed)

Since a major cause of sciatica is misalignment in the spine, one of the best things you can do is to strengthen your body into better alignment. However, we hear some of you asking, "What can I do to relieve my pain now?"

Supine Leg Over

Dr. Mike says this is “the best release movement of the lower back” he knows! Here’s the “how to”:

• Step 1: Start by laying on your back. 

• Step 2: Bend your right knee and grasp it with your left hand.

• Step 3: Keeping your right knee bent and shoulders on the ground, cross the right knee over the body toward the floor. You can keep the left leg straight or you can hook your right foot behind your left knee as shown in the above picture.

• Step 4: Reach your right arm out to the side and turn your head toward to face it.

Aim for 5 repetitions on each side, holding the position for 30 seconds each and remembering to breathe.

Pelvic Tilts

Being able to fully flex and extend your lower back is essential for maintaining your range of motion. Once you’re familiar with your body’s end ranges, you can use joint centration to find your aligned “middle space” between the extremes. 

This is always a good “go to” exercise when experiencing a pain flare up in the low back. Work within your pain free range of motion.

•  Step 1: Set up on your hands and knees in tabletop position. Knees should be stacked under hips and wrists under shoulders. You can remain here or, if you find it difficult to keep the upper spine still, you can lower yourself down to your elbows.

• Step 2: Gently brace your core. Now imagine a metal rod running through your hips from one side to another, pinning your pelvis in place. This is an isolation exercise. Slowly ‘swivel’ your pelvis around that imaginary rod, tucking your pelvis under as much as you can without moving the rest of your torso at all. You should feel a contraction in the lower abdominals. Hold this position for 2-3 seconds.

• Step 3: Now slowly swivel the pelvis the other direction. It’s very important to keep the mid and upper back completely still so the movement is isolated to the pelvis only. You should feel a contraction in the low back muscles. Hold this position for 2-3 seconds. Repeat this cycle 10 times.

Tip: You can also do these lying on your back with your feet flat on the floor.

Figure 4 Glute/Piriformis Stretch

Stretches aren’t technically “exercises'', but can still offer temporary relief. This one will help relax the piriformis muscle and the muscles in the low back. If you lack flexibility, you may need to modify this slightly. Look to feel this in the glute area.

• Step 1: Lie on your back with legs bent. Raise your right ankle, and rest it on your left quad just above your knee. 

• Step 2: Using both hands, lace your fingers behind your left thigh and gently pull it toward you, keeping your head and back on the floor.

• Step 3: Hold for 20 to 30 seconds. Remember to breathe, which will help your muscles relax.

• Step 4: Repeat with the other leg. Do 2 to 3 repetitions with each leg.

If you can't reach your thigh easily, you can loop a towel around the thigh and use it to pull your thigh toward you. 

Things to Avoid When You Have Sciatica

• Sitting all day without breaks
• Lifting heavy with bad form (or skipping your warm-up)
• Worrying constantly — stress feeds pain
• Rounding your back when bending (learn to hip hinge instead)
• Staying in bed all day — quality movement is medicine

How MoveU™ Helps You Fix Sciatica for Good

• Helps You Activate the Right Muscles
  Weak or “sleeping” muscles can’t support your spine. We help you wake them up and take control of your movement again.
• Teaches You Posture and Alignment
  Once you learn to recognize and correct your posture throughout the day, your sciatic nerve finally gets the space it needs.
• Guides You Step by Step
  The MoveU™ Sciatica Program shows you exactly how to move, strengthen, and heal — no guesswork, no doctors, no quick fixes.

Ready to Take Control? Align It. Heal It. Let’s Go.

If you’re tired of chasing symptoms, it’s time to fix the root cause.

The MoveU™ MoveU Disc Bulge, Herniation & Sciatica Program helps you:

✅ Realign your spine and hips
✅ Retrain your movement patterns
✅ Build strength where it matters most
✅ Finally heal — and stay that way

The best part? It’s included in your MoveU Membership™ — no extra fees, no surprises.

Start your membership today or, if you're not sure which program is right for you, check out our free MoveU Program Finder.

Control your body. Ditch the pain. Move free.