Injury question for experienced runners/walkers

[pjlla]

I mentioned on the BL challenge thread last week that I thought I pulled a hamstring muscle.... but now I'm not sure.

History... entire back of right leg was very stiff and sore last Friday. I had run/walked on Thursday evening. I stretched on Friday and it felt a bit better, but I was having pretty decent pain on walking (mostly had trouble raising the front of my right foot to lift it off the ground during normal walking gait).

Felt better by Saturday and Sunday, but didn't run those days. Did a 2.3 mile up hill walk and 2.3 mile downhill run on Monday evening. Leg hurt for about the first 1/2 mile but felt okay after that. Stretched well and sat in the hot tub that evening.

Sore again Tuesday so skipped walk and run. Still sore yesterday, but I did a short flat brisk walk followed by a good stretch. Still sore today.

Everything I've read about hamstring injuries indicates that I should have trouble fully extending knee (which I don't) and it should be sore in the thigh region... but I have pain when I run all the way to my ankle. I am not absolutely positive that this IS a hamstring issue... but not sure what else it would be. No pain on the front of my leg, no back pain, no foot pain.

My main questions are... does this in fact sound like a hamstring injury? How many days should I take off from walking/running..... or can I at least walk while this heals? It was suggested by a very wise runner that I ice this, but I haven't yet.

I know, I know.... you're not a doctor and you don't play one on TV. But I KNOW if I called my PCP I would be lucky to get an appointment in the next 14 days.... plus I am not a frequent visitor to my doctor's office and my PCP recently left and I haven't yet picked a new one... so I wouldn't be seeing anyone with whom I have any type of relationship. Just want to handle this on my own for now.

Thanks for your help..............P

 

[lisah0711]

No words of wisdom, just a and a wish that you feel better soon.

 

[crewmatt]

So off the top of my head, the pain travelling down to the ankle leads me to believe its not a pulled hamstring. Usually when its a musclular injury its fairly localized. Now there is a band of muscle (ITB) that runs down from your hip to your ankle, however in my experience, problems with that usually appear as knee pain.

I tend to think you have some kind of a pinched nerve or something. Chances are its being pinched in your hip region, the impact of the running is aggrevating it.

In general RICE (Rest Ice Compression Elevation) is the best way to go with an injury that isnt preventing you from dealing with day to day tasks. The other thing I'd look into is: 1) how are your shoes 2) shorten your stride a little bit to reduce impact as you hit the road surface

 

[geaux_half]

With injuries in general, you will often see the R.I.C.E. method recommended - rest, ice compression and elevation. Regarding your symptoms, pain all the way to the ankle doesn't sound like a hamstring. Your IT band runs from your hip to your lower leg on the outside of your leg.

I've also found a foam roller to be useful in treating leg injuries.

Good luck and hope you're back on the road again soon!

 

[wtpclc]

Is it a burnign pain that feels more like it radiates or shots all teh way down or just hurts.

A burnign pain i slikely the nerves.

I believe IT ban is more on teh outside of the back of your leg.

I have Hammy issues and the pain will go all the way from hip down to teh achillies.

Nerve issues seem to progress all the way to the toes.

Just my experoience. things that have helped me are yoga (down dog adn pigeon are great) and "The stick". http://www.thestick.com/

Hoever, you want ot let it heal before you stretch too much. The rule of thumb I know is take 3 days off, try again. If it still hurt, 3 more days off. If it still hurts, see a doc. HTH!

Good luck!

 

[pjlla]

Thanks for the replies. I don't think it is nerve pain.... I have had sciatica in the past and I know what that feels like and it definitely isn't that. To be more specific, the pain originates in the middle of the top of the back of my thigh, where it meets my behind. It kind of goes down the back of my leg from there (mostly stops behind my knee). I get the most pain upon lifting the front of my foot when striding. As my toes rise, I feel a pulling type pain on the back of my thigh.

I can walk briskly on flat even surfaces with minimal discomfort, but even casual walking on uneven surfaces (like in a field or the woods) is very uncomfortable and incline walking is very painful, especially in my ankle region.

I did 30 minutes of brisk walking (almost flat) on my TM tonight. It was a bit more sore when I was done, but not terribly so. I stretched well and will just do arms and abs for the rest of the evening.

Thanks again for your suggestions.............P

 

[evhorizon]

Thanks for the replies. I don't think it is nerve pain.... I have had sciatica in the past and I know what that feels like and it definitely isn't that. To be more specific, the pain originates in the middle of the top of the back of my thigh, where it meets my behind. It kind of goes down the back of my leg from there (mostly stops behind my knee). I get the most pain upon lifting the front of my foot when striding. As my toes rise, I feel a pulling type pain on the back of my thigh.

I can walk briskly on flat even surfaces with minimal discomfort, but even casual walking on uneven surfaces (like in a field or the woods) is very uncomfortable and incline walking is very painful, especially in my ankle region.

I did 30 minutes of brisk walking (almost flat) on my TM tonight. It was a bit more sore when I was done, but not terribly so. I stretched well and will just do arms and abs for the rest of the evening.

Thanks again for your suggestions.............P

In general, using the hot tub/jacuzzi is a bad idea for injuries. The heat increases the inflammation in the injured tissue. If anything, ice it.

From my running experience, I would make sure you are stretching your calves and your hips. You also do not want to stretch cold muscles. IMO, always stretch after a walk/run and not before. If you're going to stretch without a workout, a heating pad for 5-10 minutes on the problem area(s) is reasonable (but still take it easier than after a workout).

 

[pjlla]

Thanks for all of the replies.

I have taken the entire weekend off from exercise of all types and will resume exercising tomorrow morning with a brisk walk of at least 30 minutes. I'll see how it feels after that and take it from there.................P

 

[HockeyKat]

I hope that it is feeling better!!

FWIW, I went to a seminar given by Jeff Galloway about a week ago. He said that you should never stretch an injured muscle. It will give temporary relief due to released endorphins, but you are actually damaging/tearing the muscle even further by stretching it past it's normal range of motion.

A trained Physical Therapist friend of mine verified this. She went through all of her training over the last 5 years.

He said that stretching after a run or walk isn't really recommended either, unless it is working for you with no injuries. Recent research has suggested that there really has been no scientific benefit from stretching, and it can cause injuries. The only stretching he (and PT friend) said is good for you is pilates/yoga type stuff, or stretching specifically for a sport that doesn't use normal range of motion (like arms for softball pitching, etc.).

They recommended R.I.C.E. (Rest Ice Compression Elevation) for injuries, or massage (professional or "the stick").