Chronic Calf strains (Read 1357 times)

I’ve been going thru the same thing for years. The latest suggestion to me has been to do the E-cies in Pain Free by Pete Egoscue. The theory (as I understand it) is that the calves are taking on a role that they weren’t built for because of a bio-mechanical problem elsewhere and while they can do it for awhile, eventually your going to strain/pull them. Haven’t been doing them long enough to know if they help or not (currently nursing a sore hamstring), but I think they borrow heavily from yoga.

Found this link on another website and it’s about lower back pain, but explains the Egoscue philosophy. http://www.roadrunnersports.com/rrs/video/video.jsp?videoCatId=vidcat60002

live4running: I pulled my calf muscle a couple weeks ago, and am just healing, and ran for the first time in weeks last night. Since I've not been running, I've had a bit more time for other things, such as reading. About running. Heh. Anyway, I checked Lore of Running by Noakes out of the library, and read what he had to say about calf strains, and he believes there is two types. One is a normal pull, which is what I have (hopefully), and the other is what he calls chronic pulls, where it recurs again and again. I'm hoping I'm not in the second category, as this is my first pull, but your description sounds exactly like what he calls the second type. Specifically, he said they recur, and over time you can feel a tender knot in the muscle. He claims that the only way he has found to eliminate these is to get the area massaged 'vigorously' for a week to 10 days. And from his description, it doesn't sound pleasant. Something along the lines of 'if you aren't crying by the end of the massage, they are probably not doing it right'. Basically, he thinks that when it knots up like that, the muscle doesn't heal right, and just becomes a more likely candidate to tear again later. By really attacking the area with massage, you let the muscle get back to a healthier configuration when it heals. His anecdote indicates he has seen the massage technique resolve this issue for others multiple times. Anyway, I have no experience with sports massage, nor chronic calf pulls so I cannot vouch for this personally, but you might consider looking up his book in the library if you want the specifics. Literally there's only like 3 paragraphs describing it, but your description matches his, and he is fairly direct about other treatments no being sufficient. Hope that gives you something to go with.

According to the CDC and the GSP, "E-cies" can also induce candicing lasting longer than 4 hours.

Thanks Trent and Tanya. I was going to start those tonight. Maybe I'll hold off and opt for the massage.

Careful....massages have been linked to blindness.

And to "Happy Endings."

Dude, "E-cies" have been linked to dilligaf syndrome, a serious malady characterized by worsening calf pain, blood clots, diaphoresis and sphincteritis. You really need to be careful.

Dilligaf? Is this the kind of advice you dispense at the clinic? Deep tissue massage isn't that bad. If you want pain, there’s always rolfing…