What Can I Do to Help a Strained Muscle

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A pulled or strained muscle is ane that has been overstretched due to physical activity, resulting in swelling and pain. Pulled muscles are common injuries that can usually be effectively treated at home. Larn how to care for your pulled muscle and decide when medical intervention is necessary.

1. 1

   Rest the musculus. When you lot strain a muscle, stop doing the activeness that caused it to be strained. Pulled muscles are actually rips in musculus fibers, and further exertion could cause the tear to grow larger and lead to a serious injury.^[1]

   • Permit the corporeality of pain y'all feel be your guide. If a pulled musculus occurs while you're running or playing a sport, and you have to end and grab your jiff due to the severe pain, the all-time matter to do is sit down the balance of the game out.
   • Have a few days to recover from the pulled muscle earlier resuming the action that caused it.

2. 2

   Water ice the musculus. Icing the area reduces swelling and helps ease the pain. Make full a large food storage handbag with water ice cubes. Wrap it in a thin towel, to protect your skin from getting damaged by direct ice. Agree the water ice pack to your sore area for xx minutes at a fourth dimension four to viii times a twenty-four hours until the swelling has gone down.^[two]

   • A bag of frozen peas or another vegetable also works well as an ice pack.
   • Avoid using heat, which won't reduce inflammation caused by a pulled musculus.

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3. 3

   Compress the expanse. Wrapping the site of the pulled muscle tin reduce inflammation and provide support to prevent further injury. Use an ace bandage to loosely wrap your arm or leg.

   • Don't wrap the area too tightly, or you might inhibit apportionment.^[3]
   • If you don't have an ace bandage, cut an quondam pillowcase into one long strip and apply information technology to compress the area.

4. 4

   Elevate the musculus. Raising the inflamed area can aid the swelling get down and provide it with the proper rest it needs to heal.^[4]

   • If yous pulled a musculus in your leg, residual it on an ottoman or chair while you're sitting.
   • If yous pulled a muscle in your arm, you can elevate it using a sling.

5. 5

   Take a painkiller. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) such as aspirin or ibuprofen reduce pain and assist you move around more easily with a pulled muscle. Be sure to take no more than the recommended dosage, and never give aspirin to children.

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1. 1

   Monitor your hurting. Resting the muscles and using ice packs should take care of a pulled muscle within a few days. If you experience severe pain that won't dissipate, see a doctor. You may have a severe injury that needs medical attention.

   • If your doctor determines your injury needs extra care, you may be given a pair of crutches or a sling and then that the pulled muscle can rest. Prescription-strength painkillers may also be administered.
   • In rare cases, a pulled muscle requires concrete therapy or surgical intendance.

2. 2

   Run across a doc if y'all have other related symptoms. Sometimes muscle hurting is related to something too overexertion.^[5] You lot may think you pulled a muscle during a physical activity, but if yous experience these other symptoms at the same time, brand an appointment to see a dr.:

   • Bruising
   • Swelling
   • Signs of infection, like itchiness and ruby, raised skin.
   • Seize with teeth marks in the area of soreness.
   • Poor circulation or numbness in the area where the muscle pain is felt.

3. 3

   Seek immediate attending if your symptoms are astringent .^[6] If your muscle soreness is accompanied past any of these severe symptoms, go to the emergency room or immediate care center to observe out what's going on:

   • Your muscles feel extremely weak.
   • You take shortness of breath or dizziness.
   • You lot have a potent cervix and a fever.

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1. 1

   Warm upwards. Pulled muscles happen when your muscles get overstrained, which tin can often occur every bit a issue of exerting yourself before y'all've properly warmed upwards. Take the time to stretch and get your muscles warmed up before yous participate in a physical activity.^[seven]

   • If yous enjoy running, have a lite jog before doing sprints or faster running.
   • If you lot play a team sport, you can jog, play take hold of, or do light calisthenics earlier diving into the game.
   • Utilize a foam roller to stretch out the muscles in your legs, back, and shoulders. This can help y'all warm upwards your body meliorate.

2. 2

   Stay hydrated by drinking at to the lowest degree 8-11 spectacles of water daily. Dehydration increases your risk of straining your muscles. Make sure you're drinking plenty of water throughout the 24-hour interval, including during your workout. Don't await until y'all feel thirsty to drink water, as you lot're already getting dehydrated by the fourth dimension you feel thirsty.^[8]

   • If you exercise a lot, make sure you're drinking more than water. Y'all might also drink sports drinks, since depression electrolytes can also increase your take chances of pulling a muscle.

3. 3

   Do strength training. Incorporating weightlifting and other strength preparation into your exercise routine can assistance prevent the chance that yous'll pull a muscle during an activity. Use free weights at dwelling house or work out in the weight room at the gym to build a solid, strong cadre and keep your muscles limber.^[nine]

4. 4

   Know when to end. Information technology's like shooting fish in a barrel to get caught upward in the moment when you're doing a physical activity and force yourself to proceed going even when the pain in your leg or arm indicates you should stop. Remember that putting more strain on a pulled muscle will just make things worse. If you crusade a deeper tear, you may have to sit out for an entire season instead of just one game.

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Stretches and Exercises for Pulled Muscles

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• Question

  Do yous go confronting the hurting?

  

  Luba Lee, FNP-BC is a board certified Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) and educator in Tennessee with over a decade of clinical feel. Luba has certifications in Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS), Emergency Medicine, Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), Team Edifice, and Critical Care Nursing. She received her Master of Scientific discipline in Nursing (MSN) from the Academy of Tennessee in 2006.

  

  Chief's Degree, Nursing, University of Tennessee Knoxville

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  Support wikiHow by unlocking this good respond.

  When you do, don't get past the bespeak of being uncomfortable. You shouldn't be in pain. Your body hurts considering it's telling you not to go past your range of physical activeness. Warm up before yous practise, then be mindful of how your body feels. If y'all're already hurt, avert exercises that worsen your hurting. Until you heal, scale back your workouts to a lower range of concrete activity.

• Question

  My gluteus musculus is really sore. Exercise I ice it, heat information technology, or both?

  

  Luba Lee, FNP-BC is a lath certified Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) and educator in Tennessee with over a decade of clinical feel. Luba has certifications in Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS), Emergency Medicine, Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), Team Edifice, and Critical Care Nursing. She received her Main of Science in Nursing (MSN) from the University of Tennessee in 2006.

  

  Master's Degree, Nursing, Academy of Tennessee Knoxville

  Expert Answer

  

  Support wikiHow by unlocking this skilful answer.

  At kickoff, it'south best to ice the surface area, which volition assist reduce pain and swelling. As you recover, such as around the 3rd or 4th day, you can utilize oestrus. If your pain is moderate or intense, you tin can continue to use ice.

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• Try hot/cold balms to ease musculus hurting. They don't reduce swelling, only they make the area feel amend.

• Later on the swelling has gone downwards, utilize a heat shrink to assistance warm upwards your muscles before exercising.

• Take a nice warm bathroom to relax the muscles.

• Put a rut pad on the pulled muscle to relieve pain.

• Go for a deep massage in order to reduce musculus spasms, but not before 48 hours after the injury.

• Brand sure you haven't experienced a more severe injury, like a bicep tear, and run across a doctor if you experience prolonged hurting from what you thought was a pulled muscle.

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Article Summary 10

When you take a pulled muscle, it's important to rest information technology as much as possible for several days so it can offset to heal. Keeping the injury elevated will help decrease your swelling and give the muscle the balance y'all need. Apply an ice pack to the area for about 20 minutes at a fourth dimension, several times a twenty-four hour period, in order to help reduce swelling and pain. You tin can also help reduce swelling and provide extra back up past wrapping the pulled muscle loosely in an ace bandage or strips of fabric. If the pain persists for more a few days, see your doctor. Read on for tips on preventing pulled muscles!

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