9 Ways To Treat Pulled Leg Muscles

A pulled leg muscle can be exceedingly painful and traumatic. A pulled leg muscle could occur in the calves, quads or the hamstrings. This is a common fall out of over training or doing too much too soon. Doing sudden sprints and weight training with very heavy weights and improper technique are some of the causes of a pulled leg muscle.The leg muscle is large and a strain to it can make walking very difficult. A pulled leg muscle requires extensive recovery periods in order to help it heal. Here are some of the ways to treat a pulled leg muscle.

How To Treat Pulled Leg Muscles

Give It Rest

A pulled leg muscle can be excruciatingly painful. Giving it rest is very important. Stay off your feet as much as possible. Trying to engage in strenuous workouts can strain the muscle further and cause extensive damage. If swelling has occurred in a particular area, try to keep your leg elevated.

Ice It

Any muscle pull can be treated with ice. Apply cold ice compresses on the muscle pull area. This will help to reduce the swelling and redness that is typically seen in a muscle pull. Wrap the ice in a clean towel and gently press it down to the affected area. Keep repeating this treatment throughout the day for relief. Ask a caregiver to help you out.

Bandage It

If the muscle pull is severe, you may need to immobilize the affected muscle in order to allow it to heal. In such cases, wrap the muscle in a compression bandage. The bandage should be fairly tight but not so tight that it cuts off blood circulation.

Hot Fomentation

At times, a combination of ice and hot fomentation may help the muscle to recover faster. Use a hot water bottle and rest your leg on the bottle to give the muscle warmth.

Do Gentle Stretching And Light Walking

Once you start to feel better, you can start doing gentle stretching exercises. This will help the muscle to recover faster. Not exercising the muscle can prolong recovery and make the muscle stiff. However, do so only after consulting with your doctor.

Use Analgesic Ointments

Certain joint and muscular pain ointments are now available for muscle pain relief. Apply these ointments soon after the ice treatment. These help to numb and diminish the pain.

Pain Relief Medication

Severe cases of pulled leg muscles can be relieved by taking over the counter pain relief medication like ibuprofen and aspirin. However, it is wise to consult your doctor.

Surgery

A severe ligament tear may require surgical intervention. This sort of condition is very rare and is generally seen in sportspersons and professional athletes who have to undergo rigorous training and often succumb to muscular trauma. In such cases, surgery may be performed to help repair the tear. The recovery is very slow and prolonged and often requires intense physiotherapy.

Warm Up And Cool Down

Leg workouts require stretching and light cardio workouts before exercising them. Most of the time people forget to stretch their leg muscles after a lower body workout. This leads to a high risk of muscle pulls and tears.