[Han123]

My right thigh really aches at the moment. It comes and goes, and at first it felt like the pain was just at the front, but I attempted a run just now and I had pain all the way up the outside of my thigh at the side of my pelvis. I decided to be sensible and rest it for two days.

The thing is, it has been aching for a couple of weeks now, but once I get warmed up it's fine so I have pushed on with training. I really don't want to stop training at all, and have even got a tubigrip and been rubbing deep heat into it twice a day, but so far that hasn't made a lot of difference.

I was wondering if anyone else has had anything like this, I looked it up and it sounds like a pulled quadriceps muscle, but can I continue training with it? In other words, is two days enough?

Plus, I had the twinge since my first long run, and think it might just be because I put more emphasis on my right leg than my left one. What can I do about that?

Would really appreciate any help because it is really starting to worry me

 

[richardsimkiss]

I think there's the aspect of pain Vs discomfort which you need to work out first... is it a pain? I'd consider a pain to be something where my body is actively telling me to stop or i'll do some serious damage (pain being quite intense) - Discomfort is what I'd consider aches etc to come under... the body doesn't feel comfortable, but it can carry on if needs be.

If it's a pain, you need to stop training and aid recovery. If it's a discomfort, whihc is more likely, then you should be able to continue but should bare in mind a few things.

Muscle aches and discomfort are all part of the training process - the shorter the period of time someone has been running, or the bigger the demands placed on the runner, the more likely they are to suffer with these aches etc... Another thing which is easily overlooked (in my opinion) is muscle imbalances and biomechanical flaws - these being to do with the fact that very few people run with perfect symmetry - there are imbalances in muscle strength between your left hand side and your right hand side, and as such you put extra strain on certain muscles while you're running. The best thing you can do to combat this is work on strength exercises that will help even out any muscle imbalances.

Another consideration is the surface you run on... is it road/pavement? do you always run on the same side of the road? road camber means your feet will be at different levels while you run, and after doing this for longer periods of time is likely to fatigue muscles unevenly.

Hmmm... I'm starting to waffle on a bit now eh! Personally I'd cut back on the training a bit and try to work on some strength exercises a bit... also try to Ice the painful area after exercise, and of course be sure to stretch properly

 

[hot foot]

As RSK has mentioned, decide whether it's pain or discomfort.

I had trouble recently and added a few more stretches to my routine that helped.

If you're not already stretching your quads, take a look at this site for some tips.


Leg Stretch | Hip Flexor, Glute, Calf, Inner Thigh Stretches @ ABC-of-Fitness

 

[Han123]

Thanks very much for your help, much appreciated!