If you are an active person you will inevitably sustain an injury…unfortunately, torn or strained hamstring injuries are among the most common areas of the body for athletes or highly active people to injure.
I recently tore my hamstring in my left leg while doing an aerial silks performance. I have been dealing with this injury for over a month now and I have some tips for anyone who may be experiencing a hamstring strain or tear.
Get a Proper Diagnosis
This is by far the most important advice I can give. If you do not receive a proper diagnosis by a trained physician you are really just guessing what is going on. This could lead to doing more damage to the area and as a result a way longer recovery time. Go to the doctor and get checked out. They will likely do an MRI and then refer you somewhere to receive physical therapy. I did not go in for 3 weeks after I sustained my injury and I really regret it. I definitely did more damage in that time period and likely extended my recovery time significantly.
Go to the doctor and get checked out. They will likely do an MRI and then refer you somewhere to receive physical therapy. I did not go in for 3 weeks after I sustained my injury and I really regret it. I definitely did more damage in that time period and likely extended my recovery time significantly.
Follow Orders
After you get a diagnosis, follow the doctor’s orders. This will likely involve doing physical therapy, resting, icing the area etc. Listen to what your doctor tells you. Far too often active people tend to push through pain and injuries. Sometimes this is good advice, but with a torn or strained hamstring you do not want to push through anything.
Rest
This is by far the hardest part of having an injury, resting. I am used to working out multiple times a day, taking intense fitness classes, and doing a wide range of cardio and strength training almost everyday of the week. Since I sustained my injury I have been unable to workout normally and it is killing me. In the beginning, I pushed myself and continued to try running, and working out as normal. Terrible idea, don’t do it. I definitely did more damage than good and feel like if I did just take the time to rest initially my injury would have healed way faster. It sucks, but rest will help you recover faster.
In the beginning, I pushed myself and continued to try running, and working out as normal. Terrible idea, don’t do it. I definitely did more damage than good and feel like if I did just take the time to rest initially my injury would have healed way faster. It sucks, but rest will help you recover faster.
Torn or Strained Hamstring Injuries – Simply Put…They Suck!
I could go on and on about my hamstring injury experience but in the end if you feel that you may have injured your hamstring go in and get checked out right away. From there simply follow doctor’s orders. I tried self-diagnosing, asking friends for advice, and reading a ton on the internet about how to treat my injury, but in the long run, I received so much conflicting advice I ended up improperly caring for my injury. Also remember the sooner you get diagnosed the sooner you will be on the mend and back to your normal routine.