You hear it all the time. I was working out and I “pulled a muscle”. We all know the feeling, but just what exactly does it mean to “pull” a muscle? Is it a tear? A stretch? A cramp?
And what’s the best way to treat it?
Ranges from an overstretch to a small partial tear.
Treat the same as any injury.
Rest, elevation, icing as soon as possible. Elastic wrap and/or tape to support the injury.
There has been a recent rethinking of continued icing to aid healing but it’s still good for immediate treatment.
There’s some studies that show extended icing will actually slow healing.
Once the injury has healed, light workouts and light to moderate stretching just short of pain can be resumed.
Any pain is a signal to stop.
PRICE seems to be the current mnemonic (having recently suffered a full quad tear in two stages… sigh).
Protect the injured part.
Rest.
Ice.
Compression.
Elevate.
Okay. Got it. Thanks all.
It’s worth adding that muscle strength and bulk are added by gently damaging the muscle. By overstraining it and causing microtears throughout its structure, the body heals it and adds reinforcement (more cells and stronger bonds) to increase mass and strength. It’s overdoing it in any one step that’s bad.