hip flexor strain

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What bay are you from..?

i just like the name, i am from the midwest

STOP RUNNING NOW. This is not a good injury to try to run through because you aggravate it with every step. Ice, advil (3, 3X/day, for a week), GENTLE stretching, and if you can get deep tissue massage (yeah, kind of an awkward place I know, but I've had that) that would be good. Make sure you're pain free before you get going again, I've seen those get strained and torn repeatedly if you're not patient.

If you have a hard ice pack (like one that is encased in plastic) use it to massage the area. Dig in kinda deep. It worked pretty well for me.

girlie, how long did it take for your strain to heal with proper treatment, and how did you aquire it? Was it acute, like mine, or the result of overuse?

I got mine doing short repeats-- it was acute, a sharp pain. I stupidly finished the workout and then even more stupidly kept trying to train on it after only a day or two off. As a result it took a couple of months for it to get to the point that I didn't have to run carefully with a shorter stride, and I had sporadic trouble for the next six months. The biggest thing to watch out for is sudden starts/stops/pace changes-- those will kill you.

anyone else out there every experience this from running through snow, or any other acture onset?

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I had a hip flexor strain (or maybe even a tear) something awful a few years ago. I got it from a big increase in mileage from hs to college and then reaggravated it by coming back too soon and running in the snow. What worked for me was rest, ice, cross friction massage (hurts like hell). Cross training was difficult because most aerobic cross training involves lifting your knees. When it is no longer in excruciating pain it can be strengthened and stretched then return to running slowly and on the flat.

bay runner wrote:

anyone else out there every experience this from running through snow, or any other acture onset?

Yep, multiple times, all ice/snow related. Requires rest.

a good active release technique for this is to lie on your back in sit up position and find the area where your hip flexor attaches to your spine by pushing in your stomach. You'll feel it when you push on it. Then hold it down and bring your knees from sided to side. About 10-15 times before you go to bed and get up in the morning. I do it every day and it really helps. Be sure to stretch out your hamstrings really well too as if they are excessively tight, it will put more strain on your hip flexors. Also if you warm your hip up with a heating pad before you go out and wear a hamsting brace, that seems to help aswell, at least for me.

Be very careful with this "hip flexor" strain. Make damn sure it is not a stress fracture of the femoral neck! The only way to find out is with a MRI, the sooner the better. If you are taking a few days off and following some of the suggestions already posted and the pain persists, please see a good sports doctor soon.

today was my first day off. i cross trained on an elliptical trainer for a little over an hour with little to no pain. it does not hurt when I walk or jog very slowly (probably becuase this is whith vitually no knee lift). i wil try the ART method. thanks for the tips.

In response to dpcc, what are other symptoms of a femoral neck stress fracture? This came on very quickly, the day after I had done two consecutive runs through hilly snow routes, and is starting to go away, but very much still there. I want to be as proactive as possible.

To give you an idea, I run 95-100 mpw in singles, and am 21m

The stress fracture came on very quickly but occured while running a very fast workout. If the pain is letting up or even going away, you are most likely safe from the stress facture. The pain of the femoral stress fracture did not let up for weeks and weeks and was a grabbing pain in the pelvic region. Hope this helps, sounds like your going to be OK.

My advice is to start seeing a sports chiropractor and or physical therapist to work on flexibility and strengthening of your hip flexor as it heals. I strained my hip flexor sprinting up a hill to the finish of a cross country race in September. I kept training on it, not knowing what it was. This was a big mistake as I partially tore it. I've been getting weekly massage and chiropractic care and it is slowly getting better. Rushing back before you are ready will only cause you more grief as many tendons in the knee will compensate for a tight hip flexor leading to tendonitis or other complications. I tried to get back too soon in my preparation for the Olympic Marathon Trials and now I'm also seeing a PT to fix my knee. So again, take plenty of time off.

-Art

Thanks for the advice guys. I plan on taking tommorow off, and then even if it feels 100% on saturday, taking that day off too. I do not want to rush things, as I know that is a horrible idea with way more harm than good. I know that missing a weeks training will not hinder my indoor success, but a month battling this thing will. Tonight it does not hurt when lifting my knee all the way up, but still feels a little weak. Again, I appreciate all the advice, keep it coming. Any other insights are also appreciated.