Quad strain 😬

[shadowfaxer]

Hi, I did half of day one the other day (4 runs, 4 walks and took it v slowly) and the day after I noticed horrible quad pain after going to the gym and using the leg press/extensor. I can’t tell if it was the run or the gym.

A few months ago I had knee ligament surgery but I’ve been going to the gym for ages and my quad and hamstring strength is really good now so I’m a little surprised. I thought I was really careful, I warmed up, didn’t do too much and so on. I’m resting and icing but am pretty dismayed that I won’t be able to do my normal rehab schedule of walking and gym sessions for a couple of weeks.

Any advice to avoid this in future? I feel pretty dispirited about it, there’s a lot of pain and tightness in the quad when I walk.

[Afrobob88]

Hi Shadowfaxer (great name). I had terrible pain in my legs the first week that came on the following day. There are a couple of post on here that recommend warm up and warm down stretches that have really helped me. Or just have a google on post run stretches.

[shadowfaxer in reply to Afrobob88]

Hey, thanks! That’s pretty reassuring; will check out those stretches and have a look.

[sallenson Graduate]

I wouldn't stress too much tiger. Sounds to me like a bad case of Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS). Kicking ass on gym machines is nothing compared to what you put your legs through when you're running.

Unless it's cripplingly painful (in which case it's a visit to the Doc or a Sports Physio) then it's likely to a bad case of lactic acid build up. Drink plenty of water and try to keep moving about. That will get the blood circulating and flush your legs out. Best way to deal with soreness is to keep walking. Lots of walking.

If you're running uphill that can cripple your quads too, so look for something flat and grassy to run on if you can.

Hopefully you'll be as right as rain in a couple of days. Just take it gently and slow it down...

[shadowfaxer in reply to sallenson]

Thanks. It’s been about 3 days, definitely not DOMS, I lift heavy weights and do a lot of squats/stepping/jumping stuff as part of rehab so I know what that feels like. Pain is a lot sharper than muscle soreness. But I totally get the point that running is far more of a strain than gym type stuff. I am doing lots of walking for sure, always best to keep things moving. Hopefully will be better soon, thanks for the advice.