Pulling your hamstring while chasing around your nephew is nothing to be proud of, but it does happen.  I know lying is not a good thing to do, but if anyone asks, it happened making a game saving tackle in your work football league.  If you have read the previous two articles, you know that you should have prepared better before chasing your nephew, but proper warm up and hydration were never an option after he crushed your Lego house.  Luckily, a small hamstring strain is a short-term injury where your ego is hurt as bad as you are.  This time, I will go over what to do in the event of a short-term injury (lasting less than a month) so that you can get healed and back to chasing Usain Bolt Jr. in no time.

You’re running down the field then all of a sudden you fall over in pain.  The first thing you need to do is get an idea of how bad the injury is.  If you can’t move without pain, don’t try to be Superman and walk off like you tripped over a shoelace and just need some water.  My general rule is, “If your body doesn’t want you to do something, you probably shouldn’t do it.”  If you feel like screaming every time you put weight on your leg, don’t do it!  There is no need to make an injury worse by acting tough and trying to impress the blonde that probably has a boyfriend anyway; get help off the field if you need it.  That way you’re not being an idiot, plus sympathy can also help get you a boyfriend or girlfriend.

From here on out RICE is your best friend.  Not the stuff that comes in sushi, but Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation.  Most of these are pretty self explanatory. 

Rest means, don’t do anything that may aggravate or worsen the injury.

Ice the injured area as often as possible. A safe guideline is to put an ice pack on the area for 15 minutes every hour. Your body’s natural response to an injury is to swell to protect the injured area.  Swelling reduces range of motion and can slow overall healing time. Icing not only reduces swelling, but also helps control pain as well.

Compression is also aimed at reducing the swelling, but also helps provide support for the injured area.  An elastic wrap (or tensor bandage) is usually the most common way to provide compression. The important thing to remember with compression is not to hinder circulation. If your toes start looking like purple grapes, you should loosen the wrap if you don’t want your foot to fall off.

Elevation is the last part. This doesn’t mean, take the gondola up to the top of Grouse Mountain (there have been no studies proving that a beautiful view will increase your recovery time…yet, anyways).  This simply means, keep the injured area elevated above your heart.  This technique uses gravity to help reduce swelling in the affected area. If at any point after your injury you think it’s a good idea to see a doctor, go see one. If an injury is more than a minor one, the longer you wait, the harder it may be to fix the problem.  RICE applies to the vast majority of injuries both short and long term.

After an injury, the best way to recover is often using active rehabilitation.  A chance to sit on the couch, watch TV, and have your friends and family be your servants is hard to pass up, but doing nothing will only prolong your recovery. I am not saying to attend your next hockey practice, but the longer you do nothing, the more of a lasting impact your injury will have. Active rehabilitation entails exercises that build up to a return to your activity.  For example, active rehabilitation for a sprained ankle would include things such as, drawing imaginary ABC’s with your foot.  This helps work on the range of motion, increases muscle, and increases circulation to the injured area without putting any force on the ankle that could further injure the damaged ligaments.

Active rehabilitation is simple way to ensure that a person starts slowly reintegrating themselves back into their activity. I cannot stress how important it is to work your way back into your sport at the right speed; simply resting for 3 weeks before going back into a game will likely result in further and possibly worse injury to the same area. If at any point after your injury you think it’s a good idea to see a doctor, go see one.  If an injury is more than a minor one, the longer you wait, the harder it may be to fix the problem.  When you find yourself with a minor injury, hopefully these tips can help speed up your recovery because next time your nephew breaks your Lego masterpiece; you want to be able to catch the little bugger without tearing your hamstring again.  No one wants to be the uncle that failed twice at catching a 4 year old.

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