The Definitive Hamstring\Muscular Recovery Post

Expert Discussion Recovery and Regeneration
1

I have been looking through the archives for some advice to give to friend with a Hamstring injury and it’s kinda hard to find - it’s all spread out over the Forum and very vague … so this is an attempt to gather as much as possible on hamstring injuries or infact any muscular injury …

Please contribute …

NB: None of this is attemtping to replace common sense or the advice of a qaulified therapist - just a guideline.

Recovery Protocols for Hamstring injuries.

Types:
Muscle Knot
Mild strain
Grade 2 Strain
Rupture

Muscle Knot
Usual causes: Overtraining, Minerial imbalalnce, dehydration,
Treatment: Massage, Stretching, Release of Muscular tension
Professional Treatment: Massage,
Self help: Heat? Pulsed EMS can be applied now ABOVE the injury site to promote blood flow/drainage.
Estimated Recovery Time: 2 Days?
NB: May lead to more serious injury if not corrected

Mild strain
Usual causes: Overtraining, maybe dehydration, overstretching, incorrect stride pattern
Immediate Treatment: Rice, 3 days total rest - no heat
Ice at 20 mins intervals
Treatment: Self Massage after 3 days, Stretching, Release of Muscular tension at insertions and other muscles e.g. Hip flexors etc.
Professional Treatment: Therapy
Self help: Hot and Cold treatment gentle self massage
Pulsed EMS can be applied now ABOVE the injury site to promote blood flow/drainage.
Estimated Recovery Time: min 10 Days more normal 14 days to 3 weeks?
Recovery begins with on fourth day (with the affected leg in a tensor), start one leg drills raising the healthy leg only.
Depending on the level of recovery by day 5, you might be able to start with some easy 10 m accels.
For these drills, always stand on the mark and accel only to the designated mark,
to ensure that you don’t over-extend the affected muscle, with a walk back recovery.
Start with 2 to 3 sets of 10 x 10 m accels,
and advance the distance by 2m increments, as able.

Grade 2 Strain
Usual causes: Overtraining
Treatment: Massage, Stretching, Release of Muscular tension
Professional Treatment: Massage,
Self help:
Estimated Recovery Time: 21 Days

Grade 3 Pull
Usual causes:
Treatment:
Professional Treatment: Massage,
Self help:
Estimated Recovery Time:

[Work away … comments changes addtions etc.]

2

Nice post, 23!

Another to include is referrral pain in hamstring.

Causes: Trigger points referring from other source (e.g Glutes, Piriformis)
Treatment: Ice, treatment on actual source, stretch/ release of source
Professional treatment: Massage etc. by skilled practitioner.
Recovery Time: Depends on accurate diagnosis

3

Good one GF - forgot that one,
Actually the one thing I really want to find out is - what we can do outside the Physios room?
Things like stopping creatine.
Hot and Cold treatment in the evenings.
Cold bath before sleep to increase blood flow?
Mineral supplements to speed recovery?
etc.

4

Good thread 23… but I hope I never have need of this info!

xlr8

5

Any comments on the use of aspirin to reduce inflamation and improve blood flow immediately after injury?

6

Aspirin, DMSO can both be used for anti-inflams… DMSO is probably best suited for cramps, and mild strains

7

Don’t use aspirin immediately after an injury as it can promote additional bleeding into the injury site, creating more waste products to remove. Aspirin is great for relief of muscular pains on normal occasions.

8

Aspirin reduced testosterone levels.

Hamstring injuries - make sure there is no problem with the lower back, which may be causing this.
Also, the hip flexors and quads have adequate flexibility.

9

Aspirin reduces T levels? Who says and at what dosage?

10

Check out: (bottom half of the article)

http://www.johnberardi.com/articles/hormones/bigt_2.htm

The first part can be found:

http://www.johnberardi.com/articles/hormones/bigt_1.htm

11

I think I remeber reading an study posted on the Supertraining site several months ago that demonstrated aspirin can indeed reduce testosterone levels. Might be worth doing a search of the archives

12

I just want to send this one to the top. I would like to see the blanks filled in from the first post. I know I could use the info. Thanks

13

well I just found this information a little too late…strained my hamstring for the millionth time the other day. I had tigtness along one band and I was icinig everyday and taking my vitamins and such and during a 150…bam, it cramped up and slightly strained. What could have been done to prevent it? Every time I’ve strained my hamstring, it’s felt the same, tightness down one band for about two weeks, then all of a sudden it’ll cramp and strain. THis time i was right on top of things trying to get rid of it, icing every day, stretching, and plus I was already on prescrition anti inflammatory indomethacin for my knee. What else could have I done to get rid of that tightness? Our trainer refused to give me a massage saying that all I could do was stretch 6 times a day if it’s tight. Thanks for the input.

14

Don’t use aspirin immediately post injury as it can increase bleeding at the site. Use Ibuprofin or Acitominiphen initially. I like aspirin for general muscle pain at other times. (You’d have to use a regular pile of aspirin to lower your testosterone levels! Like all these scare articles, the alternatives they push you into are usually worse- like acitominiphen, which can increase liver damage, when combined with alcohol or other hepato-toxic drugs. )

15

Charlie what are your thoughts on blood loss and NSAIDS? I have seen studies where up to 1 pint of blood can be lost everytime you take them?

16

A pint of blood is a tad extreme- (maybe it was Butazoladin- or “Bute”) and is usually from the GI tract and not the injury site. Aspirin causes further bleeding at the injury site initially.

17

Your not joking its extreme! Do you believe there is any validity at all though?

dr.sprint

18

[QUOTE=Charlie Francis]I like aspirin for general muscle pain at other times./QUOTE]

Yea?.. Could you give an example? I’ve always told myself that pain-killers only mask the real problem. Would you take aspiring to get over the soreness of one session inorder to complete another?
Thanks

19

I used to use 1 aspirin in the PM to alleviate soreness during the competitive period.

20

Charlie -
How a period long would you take it over?
It’s simply to prevent inflamation in the pm?
Any long term aspirin issues one should consider?