Hammy!

Damion

posted: 10/11/2005 at 9:58 AM

I tweaked my hamstring last night and wondering if anyone has any wonderful treatment for a speedy recovery. Rest is obvious! I don't think it is a full fledged pull, but maybe a mild strain. Thanks in advance for any thoughts!

Mile Collector

Abs of Flabs

posted: 10/11/2005 at 2:21 PM

Damion, I don't have any experience with hamstring pulls myself, but I presume that you can use the same treatments for other running related injuries. Obviously, this only applies if it's a mild strain. Otherwise, you should see a doctor. I would ice it for the first 48 or so hours to reduce inflamation. If the pain does not go away after several days, alternating between heating and icing might help. When the pain goes away, you should start stretching it out, followed by stregthening so it won't happen again. Other than that, rest is always a good idea, but you may ignore rest. I know I would ;-) Good luck!

Beantown Runners | On the Bench

gwingham

gimme some sugar, baby

posted: 10/11/2005 at 8:17 PM

after you take that initial rest, you may want to make sure you're doing some walking and light running before you stretch to help the hamstring heal correctly. You want to make sure you stay flexible.

George: Runner/Law Student
www.gimme-five.com

Tim T

posted: 1/4/2006 at 7:51 PM
modified: 1/4/2006 at 7:52 PM

Damion, The good news is that you just tweaked it. The bad news is that hams take a long time to heal. You and everyone else is spot on regarding rest. If you try to run through it you risk making it worse. When you do start running again, avoid speed work. Keep your runs at an easy pace. Many training programs include some speed work, and for good reason: it will help you maintain a faster race pace. Trouble is that speed work work can also lead to injury. I have found this to be even more true as I get older (I"m 47). Good luck. Tim

Trent

posted: 5/27/2007 at 6:02 PM

Strange thing. My left hammie has been bugging me for 6 months. The past few weeks, I have increased my milage but substantially decreased my intensity and my hammie seems to have cured itself. No pain! Hooray!!! You may want to try that, if your hammie is still bugging you that is.

I'm running somewhere tomorrow. It's going to be beautiful. I can't wait.

Poor baby

Berner

posted: 5/27/2007 at 7:44 PM

Echoing Tim's comment: hammy strains suck, and take longer than anything to heal. I've tweaked almost every muscle than can be tweaked: hamstring, quads, hip flexor, calves, back and achilles ... and the hammy is the slowest to rebound.

How To Run a Marathon: Step 1 - start running. There is no Step 2.

tbarton

posted: 5/28/2007 at 11:43 AM

Rest would be good. Tongue

I tweeked my hamstring about 2 months ago. Didn't hurt *really* bad so I kept running. In fact I popped a few ibuprofen and slathered on the Biofreeze to be able to run a really hilly 80-mile relay. We did great. Got third in our division and a guaranteed entry for the race next year but OUCH! I reduced my miles for the next two weeks (but kept running) and then ran a half marathon. So basically everything you *shouldn't* do on a pulled hamstring. ::sigh:: Had I taken a few days off in the beginning, everything probably would have been fine but I have this slight addiction problem. I can't seem to stop myself. Wink

It felt good a couple weeks ago so I got a few runs in. All was great as long as I went *slow*. I tried a couple strides at the end to see how it felt and *POP* down I went. I was lucky. It didn't tear. In fact, the pain was gone by morning. The doc is now letting me run a little. Very slowly and hopefully after another week, I can start getting back to normal. If not, then he said it will be *no running at all*. Shocked

Take it easy. Ice. Heat. Rest. Lay off speedwork and big hills. Wink

Teresa

I'm Running to Eat

Hammy! (Read 1010 times)