I think what I have is a tear of the gastrocnemius muscle. Around New Year’s Eve I pulled my calf muscle. About a week later I tried running on it…was good for about 1/2 mile…then BAM…I thought I pulled it again. But this time I had no soreness or pain to the touch as I had with the pull. I laid off again for a week, and tried to go for 10 minutes or so. No luck. Started bothering me after 5 minutes. I’m seeing a chiroprator for ultrasound and massage therapist for deep tissue, but any other advice would be appreciated. I’m guessing that I’ll be off it for another 3-4 weeks. I’m a hammerhead when it comes to training…so I usually don’t give injuries enough time to heal (see above).
If you’re lucky it’s just a strain. Sidelined me (from running) for two months. Deep massage ultimately worked. Also, running on an elliptical machine helped keep me from going crazy while I couldn’t run for real.
I had a similar incident that I’m just getting over. I went to a couple of deep tissue massage treatments and so far so good for about two weeks now. I actually had some micro tears with the fibers in my calf muscle. From what I understand the tears bleed and cause something like a clot that needs to be massaged out. it worked like a charm. My mileage is between 3-5miles 3-4 times a week. Once you are running again and even now if you can warm up the muscle stretching will also help it along. There was another post last week I think it was for lower leg pain and a post for it had a good article maybe you can do a search for that. Hope it works out…
I’ve had a similar chronic calf tear injury for about 10 years now. Physio, strength training and stretching should help. Also I suggest ‘cross friction’ massage which breaks up the scar tissue preventing the re-injury process.
Try not to increase your training load or add intervals/ hills too quickly. Losing weight helps a lot too if you’re a tad overweight.
I think what I have is a tear of the gastrocnemius muscle. Around New Year’s Eve I pulled my calf muscle. About a week later I tried running on it…was good for about 1/2 mile…then BAM…I thought I pulled it again. But this time I had no soreness or pain to the touch as I had with the pull. I laid off again for a week, and tried to go for 10 minutes or so. No luck. Started bothering me after 5 minutes. I’m seeing a chiroprator for ultrasound and massage therapist for deep tissue, but any other advice would be appreciated. I’m guessing that I’ll be off it for another 3-4 weeks. I’m a hammerhead when it comes to training…so I usually don’t give injuries enough time to heal (see above).
PatD
I tore my calf muscle in late November. First go see a sports Dr ASAP!
I was told to. Don’t do anything for 10 days. After 10 days cycling OK.
No running for four weeks. After four weeks start back slowly and no hills for 8 weeks.
It takes 18 days for the muscle to heal properly. So a week won’t help. My Dr said people get into the, stop running for a week and re-tearing trap. This could go on for months Don’t! Go see a Sports Dr. and don’t run until after seeing the Sports Dr.
I might be able to contribute: 1.) orthopedic surgeon and 2.) I’ve had a similar problem for many years.
Typically it occurs during eccentric contraction: that is, when the muscle is firing but getting longer at the same time. Running is a common cause, but it also happens during basketball or tennis - in fact, it’s commonly called “tennis leg.” Usually it’s a pain in the medial (inside) head of the gastroc muscle. Rest is the prescribed treatment, and in the past I used to refrain from running for 5 weeks when I had it. Otherwise, it just recurred as soon as I tried to run. I have dealt with this problem on both sides for at least ten years.
But here’s the thing: finally, I got sick of nursing the thing a few times a year, and it was limiting my ability to gain fitness. So - in classic doctors-are-the-worst-patients fashion - I decided to ignore it and run right through it. For about 10 days, it hurt, with every stride. But I kept running. And - whoa - finally it went away, without any decrease in my training regimen.
Running through an injury is always risky, and as a physician I can’t recommend it. But as a triathlete with a dedicated schedule every season and the need to gain fitness, I have found that running through it is working for me.
Do a Google search for “tennis leg” and you will learn a lot more. Keep us apprised of your status/progress.
Thanks everyone. Good stuff in here. I’ve had chronic tight calves for a few years. It seems that I pull one every year. I think that I’m going to take the “not running” approach for 4 weeks (w/alot of rehab and treatment). If that doesn’t do it, maybe I’ll take el guapo’s approach…run through it. Fortunately, running is my strength, so this will give me an opportunity to really work the bike and swim. Although it doesn’t make “not running” any easier.