TLDR: Hip misalignment (off of the bike) resulted in one leg being effectively shorter than the other, caused saddle sores, and resulted in decreasing power output as noted by numerous failed workouts. Remedies have included a temporary heel insert to make the legs even, additional stretches, and a couple of visits to a chiropractor.
I’m posting this in case others have similar symptoms. It took me quite a while to realize that all of my seemingly separate issues were due to my hips being out of alignment. I’m only two weeks into an expected eight-week treatment plan and will periodically post updates.
Symptom 1 - saddle sores. I’ve been battling saddle sores for the last three months. I originally thought it was due to switching from Shimano to Look cleats since the stack height and location where the spindle crosses the cleat are different. I did ultimately lower my saddle 4mm and that helped, but the saddle sore returned.
Symptom 2 - bike tilt. I have a homemade rocker plate for my trainer. Over the last couple of months I started noticing that I was not sitting vertically on the bike. It was tilted to the left.
Symptom 3 - uneven peak power phase. I have a dual sided power meter and left / right balance was never worse than 48/52%. However, there is a larger discrepancy between peak power phase start. I tend to end my peak power phase at the same angle on each leg but my left leg starts the peak power phase more than 5 degrees sooner than the right leg. YMMV but, in hindsight, this was another data point that I missed.
Symptom 4 - lower back pain / fatigued muscle. The internal / external lower oblique muscles on the right side are working extra hard to try to compensate for the misaligned hips.
Symptom 5 - curved spine, hips bones not even. When looking at myself in a mirror my hip bones were not parallel. The right side was noticeably higher. Likewise, I also noticed a small left / right curvature in my lower spine.
Diagnosis. I finally went to the chiropractor. After reading my medical history and describing the hip / spine symptoms he had a good idea of what the problem was. However, to verify, he had me lie face down on a table and examined the length of my legs. As seen below, the right leg was effectively shorter than the left. He then had me ‘curl up’ my lower legs while keeping my thighs on the table. The right leg became longer than the left due to the hip misalignment.
Treatment. The chiropractor adjusted my hips during that first visit. There was a little movement but not too much. I’m going back every 1-2 weeks.
He also gave me a heel insert to balance the distribution of weight across both legs. While I can’t see a difference in hip alignment right now I can feel that the insert is working because my right leg feels longer than the left with the insert in my shoes. The legs felt even when I first got the insert. I’ll ask for a smaller insert during my next visit.
He also has me doing stretches. I can’t find an image / video online right now but lie on your back. Cross one leg over the other with the ankle resting just above the knee cap, making the shape of a number 4 with your legs. Extend the other leg and reach through to grab the hamstring of the extended leg, and pull. The stretch can also be done with someone pushing on your legs instead of pulling yourself.
Hopefully no one else has similar problems but, if so, I hope this helps. However, if you have had similar experiences, I’m interested in what else worked for you. Thanks!