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Hamstring help!

fishonjazz

fishonjazz

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So my hamstring is hurting pretty bad right now. What should I be doing to help it heal?
Also what types of lifting can I do on leg day while my hamstring is bad? Can I do squats? Deadlifts?

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fishonjazz said:
So my hamstring is hurting pretty bad right now. What should I be doing to help it heal?
Also what types of lifting can I do on leg day while my hamstring is bad? Can I do squats? Deadlifts?

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Broad question without specifics. See a Dr. and a PT.

One thing is light stretching, and stretch your quads too. Don't stretch if you feel pain. I wouldn't do squats or lift until you know what is the issue. I tore my calf (micro tear) in playing basketball in college. Trainer checked it, iced a bit and put me back in. Full tear that still bugs me to this day even after extensive rehab.

So my advice is take it easy until you have a full medical diagnosis.
 
I’m not fully sure how to explain this but when I was playing basketball in high school I used to "almost" pull my hamstring. I would feel pain but not unbearable. I could still run on it and everything. Only thing that would make the pain go away was staying off of it. Only ever happened with sudden fast movements too. My suggestion would just be resting it.
 
TheGoldStandard said:
Broad question without specifics. See a Dr. and a PT.

One thing is light stretching, and stretch your quads too. Don't stretch if you feel pain. I wouldn't do squats or lift until you know what is the issue. I tore my calf (micro tear) in playing basketball in college. Trainer checked it, iced a bit and put me back in. Full tear that still bugs me to this day even after extensive rehab.

So my advice is take it easy until you have a full medical diagnosis.
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Thanks.
I was stretching it tonight and it hurt pretty bad to do that. When I feel my hamstring with my hand I can feel some bumps too. Almost like little waves. Like a ruffle potato chip or something.

Man I hate going to the doctor.
I think I will just skip leg day for a week or two and hope it goes away. If it still hurts at that point then I will suck it up and go to the doctor.

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White Chocolate said:
I’m not fully sure how to explain this but when I was playing basketball in high school I used to "almost" pull my hamstring. I would feel pain but not unbearable. I could still run on it and everything. Only thing that would make the pain go away was staying off of it. Only ever happened with sudden fast movements too. My suggestion would just be resting it.
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My pain isn't that bad either and I think I could run on it if I wanted to. That's why I was asking about lifting cause I feel like I could work out the top of my thighs and glutes and calves, just not the hamstring.

But I guess I will try the rest approach and wait and see.



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Anyone know if ice or heat would help?
Would wrapping it with ace bandage help?
Icy hot/gold bond stuff?

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Rest is the best thing you can do for it.

There are some exercises you might be able to do but it depends on if it causes pain or not. Some weighted hip raises in a bridge position, calf raises, quad extensions, and gluteus medius exercises would be good to do while you are recovering. I would suggest doing a 6 week cycle of low weight high rep exercises and work on all the different leg muscles. Dont do anything that will aggravate it though. Start with no weight and see how it feels before loading up. I would avoid deadlifts, squats and any hamstring exercise for a month or so until its all the way healed. Then ease back into them slowly. Creams, wrapping it, icing it, and other stuff might help with the pain but it isnt going to help it heal faster.
 
Rest it. That’s all you can do. I’ve blown mine out or have had lesser tears 3-4x before and had a ton of strains.
 
Also, I’m curious what @Ron Mexico thinks about this but I’ve always wanted to incorporate walking backwards 3-4x a week to help strengthen them. I’ve read it’s an Asian thing (it might be specific to Japan, I forget) but really helps with the lower back and hammies. I’ve done it a few times but nothing longer than about 400 meters as I feel like a tard and it takes longer to do. Also, it’s freakin’ tiring.
 
Wes Mantooth said:
Also, I’m curious what @Ron Mexico thinks about this but I’ve always wanted to incorporate walking backwards 3-4x a week to help strengthen them. I’ve read it’s an Asian thing (it might be specific to Japan, I forget) but really helps with the lower back and hammies. I’ve done it a few times but nothing longer than about 400 meters as I feel like a tard and it takes longer to do. Also, it’s freakin’ tiring.
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I think it's fine for rehab. Ive done it before after my acl surgery and it helped. It gets used a lot to get your knee track correctly or to help you walk without a limp. I think there's better ways to strengthen your hamstrings and lower back though, if you're not having issues. But it's probably somewhat helpful.
 
Be careful with stretching, it could make it worse. I've had hamstring issues many times over the years and it's a bitch. Rest and being very careful with your training/activities is the only solution. All it takes is one little mistake and you're back to square one. Light controlled cycling(exercise bike) is something you can get away with after the initial rest period but be careful not to over do it.
 
fishonjazz said:
Anyone know if ice or heat would help?
Would wrapping it with ace bandage help?
Icy hot/gold bond stuff?

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Click to expand...
Ice can help limit the inflammation. Heat can help loosen it. Icy hot won't do anything but distract you from it hurting because instead of focusing on the pain of the hamstring, you'll focus on how your skin is now burning.
 
Definitely no heat if it's been less than 48-72 hours since initial injury. Cold/compression every two hours for twenty minutes for the first 24/48 hours produces incredible results despite obvious inconvenience. Complete rest from a lifting/muscular exertion program for the lower body for at least two days. Flexibility tests to help determine which part of your musculoskeletal system is likely responsible for your problem. Typically hamstring issues originate from a chronic imbalance of strength (quads/hamstrings) or limited flexiblity/tightness in your posterior chain (low back/gluteus/psoas/hip flexors). Identifying the problem and correcting it should be the goal. Cycling is an excellent way to get work in (massive calorie expenditure) while limiting excessive strain on the hamstrings (correct saddle height is critical). One important caveat to this is make sure you do not attach yourself to the pedals (clip in). Because of the involvement of the hammies in everyday living/locomotion, understand this is not going to fix immediately. If there is actual physical deformation, a real doctor with actual knowledge in muscular injuries/biomechanics should be consulted.
 
Lots of great posts, thanks guys.

I think I will just try to rest it as much as possible and on leg day (tomorrow) I will just do calf's and quads and more shoulders than normal (I combine back and biceps, chest and triceps which I'm doing today, and legs and shoulders) and try to let it heal.

It's just hard not to work out hard when you are in a groove and doing good and don't want to lose the gains you feel you are making.

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I wouldn’t do anything on leg or upper body day. I’d just take a week off altogether. Then maybe a week of just upper. Then rehab. But only you know the severity of it.
 
Wes Mantooth said:
I wouldn’t do anything on leg or upper body day. I’d just take a week off altogether. Then maybe a week of just upper. Then rehab. But only you know the severity of it.
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I did chest and triceps today and it was ok with the exception of decline bench press. That one hurt the hamstring a bit.

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Douchebag K said:
i'd rest that leg and go crazy doing single leg squats and leg curls for a fortnight with the good leg See how bizarrely different you can make your legs look while you heal up
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Lol I think there is an m night shamalan movie like that. Lady on the water or something

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