I apparently pulled something in my back. I have pain and sensitivity about 4 inches left of the spine above the hip. I play about 8 hours of racketball a week and I want to be ready to play Wed. What is the quick cure, ice or heat. Should I be stretching?
Ice and NSAIDs, you want to reduce the inflammation, heat will make it worse.
If you can stretch it, wait a couple of days then stretch gently. You only want to encourage extra bloodflow, you’re not looking for flexibility.
No quick cure, skip the Wed. game. This is your back, mess up now and you could have a lifetime of trouble.
Ice (or a pack of frozen peas or the like) for the first two days, then revert to heat. Ice reduces the inflammation and the swelling as it reduces blood flow. After that stage, use heat so you can promote blood flow to promote healing. Ice it for 20 minutes four times a day. There is no “quick cure.” No stretching while you are using ice.
Seriously, skip it.
Racquetball is not very forgiving of bad backs, nor are opponents.
During tournaments I would start doping with tylenol by day 2 to stay limber. It might help alleviate some of the stiffness during the game, but it might also make you overconfident of your flexibility and hurt you more in the long run (clearly I am not a doc).
If you’re intent on playing, I’d recommend grabbing a doubles partner and sticking to only lob serves and ceiling balls. You could try singles, but once opponents see you stiffen up, they’ll just cream you with drive serves and a power game.
Recently I have found an old remedy to be very effective: Epsom salts.
Put 4 cups into a bath and soak at least 30 minutes.
I am 68 so I play more doubles than singles nowadays. I played a little yesterday but could not get down to the ball and left it high . I quit after 1 singles and 1 dbles game. I stiffened up.
I iced it a little while ago. i will do it again soon.
FYI, Gonzo, we try to stay away from actual medical advice here. Word of mouth remedies have their value, of course, but please don’t think you’re getting anything more than that. xo, C.
I know, but a sore back is the kind of thing home remedies are for. It is not a problem with the sackercrackerjack, but likely a muscle pull. Don’t pulls just go away after a while?
Moving this one to the “opinions welcome” forum.
samclem Moderator
Well, sure, but what is “after a while”? A pull is a strain and a strain may take quite a while.
It still feels tight today but less pain than before. I iced it. I suppose I should skip playing tonight. How do I know when it is time to play again?
Honestly, wait until it doesn’t hurt. Then wait a little longer.
I play squash, and throw out my back in a way similar to what you describe. Honestly, I try playing through the pain and it just aggravates it. I didn’t want to give up on my league night, so a slipped disc from September was nagging me until after Christmas. When a similar thing happened three weeks, I stopped cold turkey, popped a few Robax Platinums, and did no exercise save some stationary cycling. Two weeks off, and I’m good as new.
The trick is to wait until you are close to pain free, and then slowly introduce the game back. Don’t start off with a marathon from the get go; do a few drills, practice your forehand, make sure all the motions are right, THEN if you’re feeling ok, try a game. As soon as something hurts, full stop. I know a lot about this, having graduated from the school of “Do what I say, not what I do…”
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