I've recently taken a month off for a stress reaction in my femur. I just started running about 10 minutes a day for the past week. Although I feel no real pain (like before) I do feel a dull achy feeling in my quad after my run. It last only about five minutes, but I'm worried. Is this a normal reaction or do a need a few more weeks off? How long do very mild stress reactions take to heal??
bump...please help me!
Consult with your doctor!
While it's normal to feel an achy sensation after coming back from a stress fracture, I wouldn't push it. Who decided it was a mild stress fracture? Depending on the fracture people have take anywhere from 4 to 12 weeks off. However, if a month was the diagnosis from a knowledgeable guy, then I would just take precaution and not worry about it too much. I've had 4 sets of stress fractures and after each come back I feel that dull ach that you are describing. Come back easy, homey.
I had a femoral stress fracture near the end of the track season and was off of it for a good bit of the summer. 12 weeks off is what they prescribed for me, and when I did start running again, it was only for 1/2 mile, every other day, so I started with .5 mile mon/wed/fri. My guess is you are aggravating your old injury by doing too much too fast. you might want to back it down a little and start building a little more slowly. Not sure if this is true for your situation or not, just something to think about.