Quad strain how long

A quadriceps strain happens when you overstretch, or pull, the quadriceps muscle. This big muscle runs down the front of your thigh. A strain can happen when you exercise or lift something or if you are injured. You may feel pain and tenderness that's worse when you move your injured leg. Your thigh may be swollen and bruised. If you have a bad strain, you may not be able to move your leg normally. A minor strain often heals well with rest and other treatment.

But a severe strain may require medical treatment. If a severe strain isn't treated, you may have long-term problems. Follow-up care is a key part of your treatment and safety. Be sure to make and go to all appointments, and call your doctor or nurse call line if you are having problems.

It's also a good idea to know your test results and keep a list of the medicines you take. Post: our addresses. We are open Hide All Show All.

Email us now office physio. Contact us by post Our addresses. Find Out More. Massage Services. Case Managers Solicitors Individuals. After an injury, chemicals released from the damaged tissue cause blood vessels to open and leak blood and fluid into the surrounding area.

This is the primary reason for swelling and pain immediately after an injury. Anti-inflammatory medications such as aspirin, acetaminophen, ibuprofen, and naproxen may provide some much-needed pain relief. Avoid all activities that involve lower body strengthening, such as squats, lunges, running, or jumping activities. Apply ice or cold packs for 15 minutes multiple times per day on the area of pain.

Always wrap the ice in a towel to avoid direct contact with the skin. Try using an elastic bandage around the swollen area, or use a compression sleeve that covers the top portion of the leg.

Elevate your leg when possible to help decrease swelling and pain. You can do this by propping your leg up on a pillow while lying in bed or on the couch. The goal is to get the injured leg above your heart so that gravity can assist with moving fluid away from the site of injury.

Full recovery can take up to six weeks or more. For a mild strain or sprain, most people feel better after a week or two of rest.

During this time, a gradual rehabilitation program is beneficial. Before stretching, apply a moist heat pack to the area for 15 to 20 minutes to warm up the muscles. When warm, you can do some gentle stretching of the legs and hips. Try doing a quadriceps stretch by lying on your belly and pulling your foot up toward your buttocks until you feel a stretch. The coloration is seeming to fade away some on Weds.

Trying to decide about that race on Saturday. What are your thoughts on all of the above and my best course of action. Appreciate any advise you can give. From your description it sounds like a grade II partial tear.

The small divot is likely the area where the quad tore and then of course the bruising helps confirm there was actual tissue damage. It is a very good sign that you have been able to stay so active and not have severe pain, but I would caution you to be easy with the area as further tearing could occur which may lead to more pain and significant disability. So from your description I would back off on some of the activity and be a little more conservative.

Allow the area to start the healing process then slowly work into a strengthening program. I would give it at least 2 weeks then slowly start a strengthening program and taper back into activity. Hope that helps some. Hi, thanks for the question. That tells me then the pain is likely from over use. This typically happens either due to a muscle imbalance, an issue with gait mechanics or just increasing running volume too quickly.

You are going to have to dig a little deeper and try to find the route cause of the pain. But I would start by looking into one of those three things. A true quad strain or pull will usually have a very specific incident where the person knows that a strain has occurred. If it was a motion control shoe and you tend to over pronate then it maybe that you have weakness in her deep hip external rotators that needs to be addressed for example.

You could always have a PT evaluation and have him or her give you a home exercise program to address any potential issues they find. I am suffering from Quadriceps strain from one month and pain increases when ever I play soccer especially while kicking the ball strong. There is no swelling in the leg but there is pain. Hi Radha, good question. If it hurts to kick the ball then you need a few more weeks recovery. I would think weeks then wear the ACE wrap and slowly taper into activities.

In the mean time work through the suggestions in the post working on mobility and strength of the quadriceps. As a result, I often rely on my right leg more due to pain in the left leg. Last weekend, while at a wedding and dancing, I was relying on my healthy right leg a little too much and felt a strain in the right quad.

However, this morning, while walking the dog, I felt a pull in my left quad muscle near the knee and further up the quad. Hi Tim, good question. Yes it can be common to experience pain in other areas either opposite side or just a different muscle group on the same side. This typically occurs due to compensation trying to avoid the injured area, you change how you typically move and the normal alignment of the body and end of straining something else.

The most common example of this is hurting a knee or hip causing a person to limp which then leads to low back pain. So for now I would treat both quads and slow down your movements to help normalize any movement patterns while you recover.

Hi Ben, i was doing some soccer training and felt a sharp pain in my vastus medialis. It sounds like you may have suffered a significant muscle tear. If you do not have access to care then I would start a very slow but steady range of motion and strengthening program.

If the pain worsens then you will definitely need additional assistance. If you can go slow and slowly improve your strength and the thigh starts to gain in muscle bulk you will know you are headed in the right direction. I hope this helps. George, There are exercises listed in the article. Please refer to the Strengthening and Rehabilitation Exercises for the Quadriceps. Hey Ben, I am a 65 year old runner and run about 40 miles a week. For the last two months I have had pain in my right quad on the inside of the leg above the knee.

It gets really bad if I drive all day in a car between braking and hitting the gas. There is no noticible swelling bruising or anything. Any ideas? Should I tape it, Lay off, and can I possibly ride a bike if I lay off.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. Larry Stone. HI Larry, Thanks for the question. Its difficult to say just based off that description. If the pain is closer to the knee joint then it is possible that the quad pain is referred from the knee itself. For now I would taper back the running and yes biking can be a good alternative as it provides needed range of motion. Thinking of it more like range of motion and improving circulation, not trying to get an intense work out.

Give it a week or two then re-evaluate. Also slowly work through the suggestions here or check out my web site or the MTA site and look at Meniscus injury. It might have some helpful advise for you. For the past four weeks my quadricep has been strained including a knot that runs through my mid quad. I took the last week and half off from doing no kicking, went to a physical therapist for treatment which included building up a tolerance level strengthening , stretching, stem, massage, using foam roller, etc.

The only thing that I improved was lessening the size of the knot in my leg. Unfortunately it was still there but very minimal. I guess my question for you is, why do you think the knot it my quad is still there and not going away?

Any suggestions would help. Yes, I think you are correct. Likely a partial tear which is leading to the knotting. Kicking too soon will just re-aggravate the injury. The fibers that are growing and repairing are fragile and need time to heal. The muscle simply knots up as a self protection mechanism. So even as the knot shrinks you need to be careful.

It may be closer to weeks depending on the severity. I would take at least 2 weeks and continue with the PT, then if pain is improving go really slow in your progression of strength training for at least 4 weeks then start kicking, but you will have to slowly progress up to full speed. IF you try to push it too fast you are likely just going to re-injure.

What did your PT say? They think I should go get an MRI soon…I was able to get some acupuncture done and the specialist thinks that I have a hematoma. Definitely keep working on strength and be sure to slowly taper back into kicking once the pain and strength has returned. Quickly too hard to quickly can cause re-injury due to the amount of force involved when kicking. Best of luck!!!! I strained a quad last week training for a trail race. Doing sprints after a half mile jog.

Ran 2 gentle miles after that to see how bad it was. Thankfully it was not too painful after but definitely not right. My race is Sunday and I am nervous because I have not run on it all week. Weight bearing on stairs brings it to my attention but only at a mildly annoying level. Hoping to survive the hills and finish my race without further injury.

Sorry to hear about your injury. You mention that you can feel the strain when going up stairs. That is a sign that the tissue is definitely still injured. You may consider wearing a compression sleeve to offer support and to keep the area warm. If the weather conditions are cool you will need to take extra caution. In situations like this the rate of re-injury is high, especially if there are hills in the race.

Best of luck!!! The injury was more painful on the ribs throughout these weeks, but after three weeks I started to be worried sick about my knee. Next week I will make ultra sound examination, because the doctor believes I might have torn the muscle.

I can walk now, my other muscles seems to be working, but when I try to bend my leg, the knee area becomes super stiff and a small bump appears near the patella on the inner side as I try and bend it more, so I have to extend my leg quickly because it feels as if that bump will pop out from the skin.

It sounds like you must have taken a very hard fall. From your description it does sound like there could be a significant injury. Based off the information you have provided I would also suspect a possible vastus medialis tear or possibly a fracture of the patella. Either way additional medical follow up should be taken. If things were going to improve on their own I would suspect 4 weeks to be long enough. I encourage you to get the follow up so you will have adequate information to know how to progress in your rehabilitation.

I am here to update about my knee injury. So I went for ultra sound yesterday and according to the doctors who conducted the ultra sound I have a few tears in my vastus intermedius muscle, seemed like the tears are in the muscle belly, not the tendon itself. And the bump on the knee, they believe, is a muscle and it pops out near the patella when I try to extend the knee. Now I have to wait for appointment with my traumatologist-orthopaedic on December 20th next Thursday where he will inform me on possible treatment options.

Do you have any suggestions in the mean time? I also put some muscle pain relief gel, if the muscles get warm I put some ice for a few minutes. Have you ever heard of a vastus intermedius tear?

You are correct that this is a more unusual type of injury. The vastus intermedius is deeper into the leg. In most cases the typical treatment is conservative physical therapy treatment. Depending on the severity of the tears it may take many months to fully recover. I would suspect not surgery and conservative management. Once you start physical therapy and can have a proper evaluation then more specific advice can be given.

Best of Luck!! As a firefighter I suffer injuries from time to time but I strained my quads less than 72 hours ago and I need to recover quickly but I know rest is what I need but any quick fixes? Hi Aaron, That is a tough one. It really depends on the severity of the strain. If it is a Grade I or small Grade II strain you could alternate ice and heat to promote increased blood flow and use a compression wrap to keep the area supported.

If you getting a lot of sharp pain be very cautious. If it is just a dull ache you may get away with a little more activity. But always use common sense. Best of Luck! Hoping to survive the hills and finish my race without further injury Thanks. I am marathon training for a race in May May 11th and I think I strained my quad or hip flexor squatting a 45 bar without warming up. There was a sudden pain like a cramp in my right leg on the outside of my quad by the hip.

Air squatting and stretching feel okay but hurt after. It looks like I need to rest the muscle for at least a week or two, is there anything I can do to keep up cardio conditioning?

Is it still reasonable to expect to run a marathon in 3 months time and if so how would you recommend ramping up the running once I am no longer in pain? It does sound like you may have strained the quad. Take time to rest and work on maintaining the range of motion in the leg.

Focus on getting the leg healthy. Once you can start to jog without pain just tapper back into the running plan. In the mean time work on your core strengthening and other cross training that does not cause too much soreness. I waited about 10 days from the original injury when I could walk briskly without pain and after a mile warm up I lightly jogged a mile without pain.

I rested the next day and then warmed up and tried for two miles. There was no warning other than the usual symmetrical burn from running. I iced it last night and it still feels tender and sore on the front of my leg and back by the hip. Is It possible that I worsened the injury even though I stopped when it hurt or should I be back to normal once it quiets down? I am uncertain if this is normal or if it means I am attempting too much too soon. Should i go back to resting and light walking for another week or longer?

Based off the information provided it does sound like you re-strained the injury. It depends on the severity but with you re-straining after approximately 2 weeks I would suspect a grade 2 tear. Now grade 2 tears can vary wildly on severity but I would be very cautious with an early return to running. At this point I would target at least 4 weeks of rehab and no running and it maybe up to 8 weeks depending on how it is feeling.

Then it has to be a very slow and gradual return to running. But first you have to have full range of motion and pain free use of the leg with squatting and the rehab exercises. Just to confirm that I understand the timeline is it best to wait 4 weeks from today before I try running again or did you mean from the initial injury?

I feel much better after a day of total rest and the quad is no longer tender and walking is pain free. However, my hips are tender and lower back is sore on both sides, is is possible that I strained that too or is it common to experience tightness due to compensation? Do you think hip focused yoga would be okay if I avoided painful stretching or should I stick to the rolling mentioned in the article?

I will stick to walking and swimming for now, would the elliptical or biking also be good options or do you think that would be too straining?

It is tough to give specific advice without a thorough evaluation. In general you need to be pain free for several days before you return to running. Especially since it re-strained so easily the first time.

The additional muscle soreness is common. During this time try to address any pre-existing issues that may be contributing factors to your injury. I would not over stretch the injury site but I would want to see full range of motion prior to your return to running. I would suggest at least a 2 week break before you taper back into running.

In the mean time continue with the rehab including swimming. You could try the elliptical but I would be hesitant about yoga for the short term. The timing is only loose guidelines based on how you feel. But it is always better to taper back into things slowly and not rush. Best of luck. Hi Ben. I was performing forward lunges in my body pump class when I felt a loud pop at the top front of thigh.

As it was near the end of the class I finished off and everything was fine. Did exactly the same thing this week. Loud pop, same place, near end of class. Went home and put ice on. Big red mark where the pop happened and slight swelling.

Warm thigh and slight pulling when I walk but no restriction in movement and not really any pain. I thought a loud pop meant it was a grade 3 tear but I have none of the symptoms of this. Hi Chris, There are lots of reasons to feel or hear a popping sound.

If you are feeling this at the the top of thigh I am assuming you are meaning hear the front of the hip or hip flexor area. In this area you can get popping from the tendon as it slides over the bone, or even popping from inside the hip from a small labral tear. If a true Grade 2 or 3 muscle tear has occurred you are likely to not only see swelling but likely bruising and I would suspect there would be loss of motion and pain when using the muscle.

Great article I appreciate your help. I just had the same thing happen today doing walking lunges. What side of the bone should the hip flexor be on the outside or the inside?

Thanks in advance. Hi Robert, with a hip flexor strain the pain is most typically in the middle or towards the inner thigh.

You may also have some discomfort deep into the lower abdominal area. I felt something similar today… It was high in front and felt like it moved from center of thigh laterally to the outside.

Loud snap I could feel inside. No swelling minimal pain infrequently. Have you found out anything else? Hi Robert. Snapping and popping in the front of the thigh is very common and often nothing to worry about.

A true hip flexor strain will typically be quite painful and will tend to be very tight in the area of injury if you sit for long periods of time. There is rarely significant swelling in this area. Hope that answers your questions. Hi, Ben. Great article. I felt a pop in the mid-quad area, I was able to finish the push-jerk though. The immediate feeling of pain was minimal, maybe 5 out of I continued with the workout which included 6 strict pull-ups, 10 dumbbell snatches, 13 sit-ups for 5 rounds.

Ive also been applying pressure when ice isnt applied. Icing has been on for min every hour. The vastus medialis area is sore, no apparent bulge but there is swelling. It does hurt on the interior side when I try to squat body weight.

Any recommendations on a quicker recovery? I was planning on taking it easy no lower body workouts for the next weeks. You need to keep the range of motion in the leg but do not be too aggressive with stretching.

It has to be a balance of motion and not too much pain. For the first week or two no aggressive foam rolling but you can definitely massage and foam roll above and below the injury. Continue with icing and compression for at least the first week. Your first goal should be able to perform a partial body weight squat no pain.

Then progress to a bicycle with low resistance for the range of motion and to promote blood flow. Be very gentle as you test your limits. If you push too hard too fast it will re-injure and prolong the recovery. Once you can body weight squat full squat then slowly start loading the bar.

Depending on the severity this may take weeks. If there is any pain with slow movements then definitely avoid quick motions. Typically its a quick motion that will cause a re-injury. I felt a pull on my quad on Wednesday night playing football soccer felt perfectly fine after words and never thought anything of it, until Monday night back at football and I felt a much worse pull on the same quad, and it now feels very right and painful, could I have done a lot more damage to myself?

Sounds like you had an initial mild strain and likely now re-strained the area but possibly worse. I would anticipate several weeks at least for a recovery and follow the advice in the article. If you push it again it could lead to an even worse injury….. Hi Ben Shatto, Strains can range from a mild discomfort to a full blown tear of most of the muscle which can result in severe pain and the inability to run or walk.

One exercise is a straight leg raise with a 1 kilo weight strap on my ankle. I reckon this is what has caused the pain in my right thigh that occurs after walking about 20 meters and forces me to stop. From studying your posts above, I reckon it is the overuse that has caused this. Two questions: 1. How long would I need to recover from this? How often should I do muscle strengthening exercises?

Thanks for the compliment. From your description the injury is likely overuse in nature. Because of the nature of the injury there is likely not a lot of muscle fiber disruption but more likely an inflammatory process that is causing more of the pain. I would suspect weeks on the short side up to weeks on the long side for recovery. This of course assumes that the exercise was the actual source of the pain and there are not other complicating factors.

True strengthening exercises do not need to be done more than times a week. Though it is critical to engage in some form of activity daily. And daily range of motion is critical for arthritic joints. Hi ben, i had a mid thigh muscle strain 3 years ago while sprinting. Not entirely sure of your question but it does sound like you may have injured your quad.

If it is still bothering you after 3 years it is likely due to a lack of adequate rehabilitation. I would recommend a slow and steady approach to strengthen and mobilize the area, while loosing weight to take strain off the lower extremities.

I was doing spin cycling at the gym about one month back and felt a mild pain near the hip specially when im lifting my leg. I saw a doctor later and he told it was a quad strain. I had been resting for a week after, while keeping ice twice a day. Then i started brisk walking and got the pain back again while lifting my leg i can walk without an issue. Does this mean i have re-injured my quad? How long should i rest and how do i know its fully healed?

Hi Mani, Most likely this means the injury has not fully healed and though you are now able to do low level activities the muscle is not yet ready to handle activities that require more load or speed. I would keep with the incing and follow the exercises noted. Every week slowly test your limits to see how you are progressing.

But be careful to not over do or you do risk re-injury. My son injured his hip playing soccer back in February.

After the initial injury, he tried to play through for a few weeks but eventually the pain was too great, so he rested for a few weeks. He tried to slowly resume activity but he was still really uncomfortable with any hip movement, running, squatting, etc.