Pulls occur when the small fibers within a muscle are stretched beyond their limits, which leads to a partial or complete tear (rupture).There are three grades for muscle pulls: Grade I, Grade II and Grade III.Most mild-to-moderate muscle strains heal within a few weeks, but if you follow some tried and true home remedies or seek professional treatment, your recovery may be quicker and more complete.
Step 1: Rest your strained muscle and take it easy.
Most muscle pulls are caused by either lifting too much weight or doing something too often.Resting a muscle strain is the first step.If you take a few days off work or away from the team, the muscles will recover quicker if you give them time to rest.If your muscle pull takes longer than a few weeks to recover, then either a significant proportion of the muscle fibers are torn or there's involvement of a related joint and ligaments.There are two types of pain: dull, achy and sharp and/or shooting.A moderate-to-severe muscle strain will usually cause a bruise to form quickly, which indicates some blood vessels that feed the muscle are damaged.
Step 2: If the injury is serious, apply cold.
Inflammation is an issue if your muscle strain is acute within a few days.The immune system sends a lot of fluid when the muscles tear.White blood cells clean up the debris from the damaged cells and lay the framework for a healing response; however, too much inflammation creates pressure, which causes more pain.Ice or a frozen gel pack wrapped in a thin towel should be applied to muscle strains as soon as possible because it dilates blood vessels and reduces inflammation.Cold therapy should be applied for at least 10 minutes every hour if the muscle is large or deeper.Compressing the ice against the muscle pull with the help of an elasticized bandage will help to further impede the swelling.
Step 3: If the injury is recurring, apply moist heat.
Inflammation control is not a pressing issue if your muscle strain has lingered on and become chronic.The muscle is weakened, too tight and lacking in normal blood flow, which leads to inadequate nutrition.The application of moist heat can decrease muscle tension and spasm.Use a microwavable heat pack and apply it to your sore muscles for 15 to 20 minutes at a time, three to five times per day.Herbal bags usually contain bulgur wheat or rice, as well as soothing herbs and essential oils.If you have a strained muscle, soak it in a warm salt bath for 20 to 30 minutes.Warm water and magnesium in the salt are thought to help the muscles relax.Don't use dry heat, such as heating pads, on your strained muscles because you risk dehydrating the tissue and making the issue worse.
Step 4: It is a good idea to take anti-Inflammation medicine.
Taking over-the-counter anti- inflammatory pills during the initial stages of an injury is a good strategy.Don't use anti-inflammatories for more than two weeks because they are hard on the stomach.When it's appropriate, anti-inflammatories can allow you to resume work or other activities in more comfort.Ibuprofen is not appropriate for young children, so always consult your doctor before taking any medications or giving them to your kids.If you have chronic muscle issues, consider taking a muscle relaxant such as cyclobenzaprine.
Step 5: Light stretching is a good idea.
It is thought of as an injury prevention strategy, but it can also be used during injuries.After a few days, it's a good idea to do some light stretching to keep the muscles flexible and prevent spasm.Start with two to three times a day and hold the stretches for 15 to 20 seconds.If you have a chronic muscle strain, increase it to three to five times a day and hold for 30 seconds until you feel better.If you stretch correctly, you won't have more muscle pain the next day.It may be an indication that you need to go easier by reducing the intensity of the stretches.Warming up the muscles is a common cause of over stretching.If you want to stretch it, make sure to get your blood flowing or apply moist heat to it.
Step 6: Go for a massage.
If your home remedies don't seem to be impacting your recovery as well as you hoped, or if you just want to enhance what you're doing, then consider seeing a professional massage therapist.For mild-to-moderate strains, a deep massage is helpful because it reduces muscle spasm, combats inflammation and promotes relaxation.Allow the masseuse to go as deep as you can tolerate during the 30 minute session.Trigger point therapy focuses on the injured muscles.It's important to keep hydrated after a massage in order to get rid of inflammatory by-products.You may experience a mild headaches if you don't.If your budget doesn't allow for professional massage therapy, you can use a tennis ball or foam roller.Roll over the tennis ball or foam roller with your body weight until you feel better.
Step 7: Get some treatments.
The sound waves produced by the machines are not audible to people, but they have a therapeutic impact on soft tissue and bone.Although it's been used for a variety of injuries for over 50 years, the exact ways it impacts tissue is still not fully understood.It produces a thermal effect on certain settings, which is of benefit to chronic muscle strains, but it also seems to reduce inflammation and promote healing on entirely different settings which can help with acute injury.It's great for shoulder and low back strains if the frequencies are altered so that they penetrate the body on the surface or deeper.If the injury is acute or chronic, the treatment is painless and lasts from three to 10 minutes.For acute injuries, treatments may be repeated one to two times daily.It will take three to five treatments to notice significant results, even though a single treatment can sometimes provide substantial relief to a strained muscle.
Step 8: Consider stimulation treatments for muscles.
Both acute and chronic muscle strains can be treated with electronic muscle stimulation.Electronic muscle stimulation involves the placement of electrodes over injured muscle tissue in order to transmit electrical currents and cause contraction.For acute strains, muscle stimulation devices can help pump out inflammation, reduce pain and desensitize nerve fibers.For chronic strains, electronic muscle stimulation has the ability to strengthen muscle and "re-educate" the fibers, allowing them to more efficiently contract in unison.Sports physicians are most likely to use electronic muscle stimulation.It is possible to purchase electronic muscle stimulation devices from medical supply and rehabilitation stores as well as online.They are more affordable, but should only be used under the supervision of a healthcare professional.
Step 9: Consider therapy that uses the sun's heat.
Irradiated radiation is also in the realm of frequency therapy.The use of low-energy light waves can speed up wound healing, reduce pain, and decrease inflammation.It's thought that using a hand-held device or within a sauna can help improve circulation because it creates heat and dilates blood vessels.Depending on the injury and whether it's acute or chronic, treatment times can range from 10 to 45 minutes.Significant pain reduction can occur within hours after the first treatment, but your results may vary.Pain reduction can last weeks or even months.Physical therapists and massage therapists are most likely to use the therapy.