Hamstring injury

[Joanne]

I think that I pulled a muscle in my hamstring (left leg) because it has been hurting whenever I stretch and even walk. It's been over a week. I have been trying to do stretches on it but it hurts even when I try. The pain runs from the back of my calf, behind my knee and up to the back of my thigh (almost shooting into the groin area). This usually occurs when I'm lying on my back and pull my leg towards me (with a band around my foot). I have been stretching after my workouts and even on my days off but stretching the leg where the pain is occuring is really difficult at times. I can't hold the stretch for very long. Any suggestions?

[threenorns]

yeah - stop stretching.

leave it alone until it heals - do NOTHING. apply heat or cold, whichever feels better, maybe use anti-inflammatories judiciously.

[keam02]

Stay off of it and ice occasionally at the very least. Do you a specific time when you know you messed it up? When I pulled mine (a nasty pull) I felt a horrible pop and I was in instant, bad pain. I could not walk normally for about 2 weeks and I could not run for over a month and the first day back (too early of course) I tweaked it and was out another week. After that I kept it wrapped for another month until I could feel no pain. It is still tighter than my other hammy...


I can tell, is not that bad, just ice, heat if possible, and try not to use it too much. Im no expert, if that doesnt work, contact someone who knows more. I just know from personal experience.

[Joanne]

Hi,

I don't remember exactly what day it happened but I do know that it was about 1-1.5 weeks ago. I have been doing exercises that included power lunges, regular lunges and hamstring curl (with the stability ball). I'm pretty sure it was on one of those days that I was not focused and as a result, I did not use proper form in some of those exercises. I noticed that my hamstring was bothering me but I just thought that it was because I didn't stretch well in my warm-up and cool-down. I continued to work out that week (stupid mistake) but I didn't think that it would be injured. It felt more like a pull at first and like I said, I just thought that I needed to stretch more so I did but I quickly realized that it was something more when I felt pain, and still do. Even when I am sitting, I can feel a bit of a throb and it travels down to the lower part of my leg. I have experienced pain in the back of my leg before but nothing this extreme. I haven't iced it or applied heat to it but I will. It was a mistake to workout that week but I didn't realize the extent of the injury. I might have made it worse by working out. It sort of sucks because I was just getting the third week of a new routine and I was feel good about myself and noticing a change in how I felt. I know that it would be wiser to stay away from working out so that my leg will heal properly otherwise, I will end up going through this again, just like you did. I am estimating that it will take about 2 weeks for it to heal.

Thanks for your advice keam02 and threenorns.

[maverick]

Don't follow gcs's example on how to heal a hammy. Thinking about going to a doctor and then instead doing squats with 1.5 times his bodyweight instead!



Just messin' with ya gcs.

[Joanne]

Is there anything that I can do while my hamstring is healing, besides nothing? I'm bored. I would usually go to the gym after work but now I find myself coming home and eating and too much! I am trying to keep my mind busy and focus on something else but I'm having a hard time. I teach elementary kids so once I leave school, I need that calm feeling and working out gave me that. The workouts were beginning to make me feel better especially during this time of year. I figure that I could probably do upper body workouts on my stability ball. I have some hand weights at home and a stability ball as well as a medicine ball. Any suggestions?

[Lady C]

You can still take walks, just don't make them aggressive.

[Joanne]

Thanks. I was thinking about taking a walk today but I wasn't sure. I feel like I need and want to do something until my hamstring completely heals.

Thanks again. It made me feel better knowing that I can do some type of activity.

[Pelon]

My thoughts:

1) If this is the first time you've had this injury, you should go to the doctor or a professional atheltic trainer. It MAY be a routine hamstring strain, but it could also be something else. Some injuries get worse with time, not better.

2) If you're pretty certain it is a hamstring strain, here is a link that might help you with recovery: http://orthopedics.about.com/cs/spra.../hamstring.htm

3) If it is a hamstring injury, it is going to take quite a few months for it to completely heal. It is not uncommon for people to still notice tightness in a strained muscle even after a year. You will have to ease your way back into exercising it, and don't be surprised if you aggravate it a few times on your road to recovery.

4) The hardest part about recovering from an injury is figuring out if you are doing too much or too little. A good medical professional can really help you with this process.

Good luck! I hope it heals quickly for you. :