Emergency Hammy Help (and vote) (Read 829 times)

I am trying to get a realistic (if not optimistic) perspective about my hamstring. Here is the short story: I am 40 years old and I am (or was) trying to qualify for Boston in five days. Yesterday, I was doing a really easy "just to keep the cobwebs away" 4 miler, and about 1 mile in, just as my right foot hit the pavement, I felt a little "twing" just to the left and behind my right knee. No better word to describe it really. It wasn't a "pop," or "bang," or "snap." It was noticable, though, and it hurt right away, such that I had to pull up. I pretty much am a believer that I can run through any kind of pain, but I could not run through this. The funny thing is that it did not (and still does not) hurt to walk, to extend my knee, or to resist pressure when bending my knee. However, I did find a very tender spot, about two inches above my outer knee on the hamstring. From looking at hamstring anatomy online, it looks like the biceps femoris hamstring, just before it enters the tendon. Anyway, I have been icing, resting, compressing, and elevating while I have been bumming mightily that I will not be able to run on Sunday. Interestingly, in almost 30 years of running, I have never had a hamstring injury before; so, I have little anecdotal experience to draw on. So, that's why I am asking anyone who wants to toss in their 2 cents: Should I bag it? Should I run it? Does anyone have any miracle cures? All feedback is appreciated.

But did you qualify? Just kidding. How badly was your hamstring injured when you ran, and did you feel ok the morning of the race? I've got no brusing, heat, nor obvious swellling. Though there is still point pain when I press on it. I am just going to keep icing and compressing and resting until Thursday and re-assess.

There will be other races, more chances. 5 days is short for a hammie pull to recover. That said, don't run until Sunday, alternate ice/heat until then and start the race slow, then speed up and for the best BUT stop after a couple of miles if it seems ineveitable that there will be trouble if you go further. Hopefully a real doctor will swing by here soon and offer proper advice though...

But did you qualify? Just kidding. How badly was your hamstring injured when you ran, and did you feel ok the morning of the race? I've got no brusing, heat, nor obvious swellling. Though there is still point pain when I press on it. I am just going to keep icing and compressing and resting until Thursday and re-assess.

I did finish it. I felt ok the morning of the race, as I had rested and not run for the entire week prior. It flared up about 2 miles into it, but I was able to run through it and it loosened. Then I think I was compensating alot because my uninjured right hamstring cramped up at mile 5! Anyway, it didnt hurt to run slower so I just jogged the rest of the race after that. Managed to finish in 3:40.

Post-Race Update: I am an idiot. As it turns out, running with an injured hamstring is not an altogether bright thing to do. It was a miserable, not fun, worthless waste of a lot of money, and it will set me back at least a month while I really try to heal it. Also, as predicted by some other posters, I was so forced to favor my left leg (especially after my right hamstring went "POP" 11 miles in), that now my left calf and achilles are very painful. Oh, and I missed my finish time by more than an hour. Other than that, the race was oodles of fun. Thanks for all of the advice (that I ignored). It was a learning experience.