Yo all,
I just got back from leg day today and for the second week in a row, I wasn't able to finish my squat sets because of a strange pain in the right side of my hip, where the thigh bone meets the pelvis socket. It seems to lessen the narrower I keep my stance, but once I'm at 225 and beyond it gets bad enough to where I feel I have to stop squatting immediately.
Has this ever happened to anyone? I used to train powerlifting style, and my squats are in text book form; thighs at least parallel with the ground, looking up, properly aligned spine, so I know that sloppy form isn't my issue. I keep my feet about shoulder with apart for more focus on the quads and less on the ass, which puts even less stress on my hips.
Here's something else that's weird about this whole thing. I noticed a couple of weeks ago, right around the time that my hip started bothering me (either just before or just after), I had a stiffness right in the socket that seemed like it could be relieved by cracking it. Now, I've never cracked a leg/hip socket before, but all it took was a small rotation in an office chair while keeping my leg still. It was a disgusting, hollow sounding 'thump', but it felt unbelievably good and I seemed to have better flexibility afterward. But then of course, next leg workout, that same area wasn't doing so great during squatting, and I had to stop.
Did I pinch a nerve or something? Any ideas would be great.