quads hurting.

[Raglan]

hey everyone, i've reacently decided to start getting back into shape, and have been jogging a half mile to a local field, then doing 50 yard sprints. Before jogging back.

Now this is a new approach for me, i've on and off for years done long slow endurance runs (four or five miles every other day usually) but i wanted to try something different as i've always found it hard to sprint.

Today i jogged there fine like usual, had a short strech, again as usual, but then when i went to sprint i found that both my legs really hurt. Not the mild discomfort of tired legs, but a pain that makes you say 'owe' outloud. It was in my quads, and it was really quite disconcerting. Its something i've never experienced before, i wondered for a while if i'd managed to pull them, but i've pulled muscles before and it felt different. Plus that it was both of them at the same time.

I did a couple of sprints (3) half hoping that it would go away, before totally giving up and walking the half mile home again. Now the walking was fine, though my quads felt very tight while doing it.

I got home and had a loose strech out, not really wanting to over do it, and can still feel it in my legs now, an hour after the run. Though its just uncomftable, rather than actually painful like while i was sprinting. Any thoughts on what this is?

 

[summer123]

I am not a physio so please bear this in mind but maybe you could have an injury (iliotibial band syndrome) which is often caused by running and if your doing something new and working your body in a different way its likely your brain is saying "I can handle this- I've worked to a harder level before!!" whilst your body is saying something along the lines of "waaaaiiit a minute..." whilst it tries to play catch up.

I'd get some medical advice, the best thing you can do with most injuries is RICER and massaging can often help musclar injuries so long as the main bulk of immediate pain has died down. But do get some advice as the last thing you want is to be bedridden as a resulf of a serious injury because you didn't rest.

 

[Raglan]

thank you for replying, it's been several days now and i've been for one run since. It was a much slower job over a longer distance, and though my legs felt slightly tight during it there was no repeat of last time. As to you suggestion about the iliotibial band i think that might be spot on after doing some research on the internet.

Though i'm yet to see a doctor i shall if the problem reoccurs. It was just annoying cause i really hadn't done much when it happened. Oh well, such is the battle to get fit again.

 

[summer123]

Just remember to stretch- there are multiple quad stretches you can be doing, the quads are big muscles and can move in many directions. For this reason alone they need to be flexed and stretched in different directions in order to retain their felxibility.

Its their flexibility which will help keep your muscles working properly (evenly rather then stressing one part of the muscle by overloading it as the other parts of the muscle are too weak or inflexible to do their job and other larger muscles in the quad take over). Flexibility alone is not the only reason for stretching, it can really make a difference longer term.

Remember, prevention of injury is better then cure. (Cure much of the time means cooling off and resting much more- it can be very frustrating trust me!)