hamstercaster 2 Report post Posted July 5, 2006 3 weeks ago I pulled my hamstring playing football on an uneven field. It was actually during a picnic organized by my Government Department. I had played a couple of softball games, had lunch and had been sitting around till we decided to toss the football. So I did not stretch or anything and went for it and as we were playing a game of 3 on 3, I sprinted and pulled my hamstring and just face planted as it was the fastest way for me to stop as it was too painful to slow down to a stop.Now, all seems to have healed properly and am ready to get back into action and will be playing my first game in 3 weeks. It's actually the first time of my life I've been sidelined that long because of injury. I played through quad pulls before, abdominal pulls etc. but that one, I was not able to play through it as it was too painful. The thing is, I'm a bit apprehensive with that first game back tonight. I'm afraid to pull my hamstring again for some reason but at the same time I'm really psyched to start playing again tonight and try my new gear lol. Besides stretching really well before and after, are there any other precautions or drills I should do before the game. I will warm up on the ice skating lightly and all before I stretch as it is safer to stretch your muscles when they have warmed up, but besides that, anything else I should do... Perhaps play at 70% of my capacity making sure that I position myself so I don't have to skate to my max etc. Like I said it's the first time I really had any serious sport injury that I wasn't able to play through and I'm a bit weary on to what to expect but damn I'm happy to be back though!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tsanga 0 Report post Posted July 5, 2006 Wrap it up tight with a compression bandage or wear compression shorts. Warm up gradually and go 70% (I know, it's easier said than done in the heat of competition). Do NOT fool yourself into going 100%...every time I've pulled something, it's actually been after I've warmed up and been going full speed for a while, but starting to fatigue (even before actually feeling fatigue) and decided to give it bit of a push.Oh, and definitely, definitely stretch then ice down afterward if you want to speed up recovery for the next game.Edit: Haha, one word makes a huge difference. Don't go 100% the first time! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hamstercaster 2 Report post Posted July 5, 2006 Thanks Tsanga Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tsanga 0 Report post Posted July 5, 2006 Did I say go 100%? :o I mean don't....Damn, I need to read what I'm writing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hamstercaster 2 Report post Posted July 6, 2006 lol.. the first time I read it I read it as don't go 100% so that means that I have to learn to read lol... I'm actually just back from the game and all went really well. Did not feel any pain but did feel a bit of disconfort when pushing harder but nothing serious. I'm pretty happy about how things turned out. My hamstring's feeling really good right now and I think it won't even be stiff in the morning when I wake up.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tsanga 0 Report post Posted July 6, 2006 Glad to hear it's working out. You can just ramp yourself back up to 100% speed gradually over a series of sessions.People always talk about how it's easy to re-injure a pulled muscle and then it becomes a nagging injury, but that's because they don't rehab right and have scar tissue that's not aligned properly which results in weakened muscles. Rest alone only gets you so far but without proper exercising the muscle will easily pull again. Do it right and you won't have any issues, and that means gradually working back up to full strength. If you are real serious about it you could incorporate some hamstring curls, but with very little weight (maybe a 5-lb ankle weight) and do 30-50 reps daily to encourage the scar tissue to realign with your muscle fibers.And most importantly listen what your body's telling you - know the difference between a tight muscle and a tweaked muscle, and know when to stop. It's taken me way too much time in a sports therapist's clinic to learn this. I have seen people ignore the small indicators only to prolong their recovery from pulled muscles.I had to deal with a pulled groin myself earlier in the winter this year.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
top 0 Report post Posted July 9, 2006 i pulled my right leg hamstring when i got hipchecked and i missed over two months of hockey.. i would do everything.. it wouldnt hurt and then i got out skate for 10 mins and it would hurt like a mother again.. and i stayed off it for almost 1.5 months and then it started going back to normal i took everything slow.. a hamstring injury is very unpredictable.. it can take either 2 weeks or 2 yrs.. i was lucky enough i had the right treatments right away but i recomend going to see a psysio or something so he or she can help you re enforce your hammy :P .. i say start off slow give it more then 3 weeks even thow its tempting to go back. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
