Re: Upper hamstring problem - help please?
Michael B
The hamstrings are on the back of the thigh, so nothing
with the word "anterior" is going to be likely. And the
tibialis anterior is also below the knee, as are the
peroneals.
Lay on the floor, both legs straight. With your low
back on the floor, lift one leg as high as you can, and
you should be able to aim your toes at the ceiling. Without
having to bend your knees or arch your back.
Initial muscles of interest could be the biceps femoris,
semitendinosus, and semimembranosis. I'm guessing
biceps femoris, and also that you have trigger points that
can be dealt with using a tennis ball at the most tender points.
On May 7, 9:57 pm, Gas Bag <shazl...@yahoo.com.au> wrote:
> X-No-Archive:
>
> I am hoping someone can help me here. I have a real problem with a
> nagging tight upper left hamstring – only a few inches below my
> glutes. I have tried doing typical hamstring stretches where I lie
> flat on my back with my right leg straight and I slowly pull my left
> leg up vertically and stretch it (with my knee straight). This stretch
> really hurts like hell and seems to target the back of my left knee
> and the very top of my calf. It doesn’t target my upper hamstring.
> When I try the same stretch, but with a slightly bent leg, I
> experience painful tightness EXACTLY on the lateral (outer) side of my
> left calf, right at the very top, just below my knee. It’s either my
> Peroneus longus, or my Tibialis anterior. Basically I just cannot
> target my upper hamstring, no matter what I try. As an aside, I do
> wear orthotics, and I also see a physio regularly.
> I really need some advice here. Thanks.
Richard Corfield
news server is quite fussy about newsgroup count)
Fibromyalgia sounds quite challenging. General muscle pain?
From Wikipedia
Studies have found exercise improves fitness and sleep and may reduce
pain and fatigue in some people with fibromyalgia. Many patients
find temporary relief by applying heat to painful areas. Those with
access to physical therapy, massage, or acupuncture may find them
beneficial. Most patients find exercise, even low intensity
exercise to be extremely helpful.
A holistic approach--including managing diet, sleep, stress, activity,
and pain--is used by many patients. Dietary supplements, massage,
chiropractic care, managing blood sugar levels, and avoiding known
triggers when possible means living as well as it is in the patient's
power to do
So I wonder if something like yoga could help, if this is the condition,
because it gives gentle exercise of the whole body and taken further
also includes things such as the whole food diet which should manage
sugar levels.
For the specific area, for more upper leg and side of upper leg I've
found things like the various "hip opening" exercises good, possibly
because these muscles are fairly tight for me, possibly from cycling. I
can only guess that the same area is needed here. There is muscle above
the hamstring. I wonder if it's so sore though whether there may be
injury which needs care.
"Happy baby" or "squashed bug" as different teachers have called it,
which done one side at a time involves lying on your back grabbing the
inside of the foot and pulling the knee to the armpit. If you take the
foot headwards too it becomes a hamstring stretch. Really bendy people
can probably get their knee past their armpit in which case they'd have
to do it another way or get their foot above their head. Not a problem
if you can't. (I can't yet).
Also some of the seated hip twists, the "cow lips" position, "king
pigeon" work those areas for me. Some of these are quite strong
stretches, especially if you have knee weakness.
Your physio should be able to help you and would really know what muscles
to target and how. You're best talking about any yoga exercises you want
to do and showing him/her of you can. When I was having physio I talked
about yoga and got helpful tips on how to do some of the poses properly
and why. I was working on core muscles and it's actually quite easy to
go wrong on them.
I hope this helps
- Richard
--
_/_/_/ _/_/_/ _/_/_/ Richard dot Corfield at gmail dot com
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D Stumpus
"Gas Bag" <shaz...@yahoo.com.au> wrote
First off, I'm just a runner who studied neuromuscular anatomy in college,
and who has about 100k miles on his legs, and has had just about every
injury (it seems) that it is possible to have...I'm assuming you're a
runner, but I think the tightness issues you mention would benefit from my
multi-stretch outlined below...
> I am hoping someone can help me here. I have a real problem with a
nagging tight upper left hamstring – only a few inches below my
glutes. I have tried doing typical hamstring stretches
I had a tear up there (tripped on a root when it was already partly
injured), and it took a couple of months to heal.
If you've got an injury high in your hamstring, stretching is not the best
therapy, especially if it hurts at all. If the injury is a tear or strain
at the tendon (the white stuff with a limited blood supply), it's going to
take awhile to heal. You should try heat and deep massage mainly, and only
very gentle stretching (no pain). Ultrasound is great, but expensive if you
don't have insurance. I sat on a heating pad and had ultrasound for the
first few weeks. You can do a good self-massage of the area: I just put my
closed fist below the sore area and move around above it. The knuckles do a
good job of massaging the area.
> where I lie
flat on my back with my right leg straight and I slowly pull my left
leg up vertically and stretch it (with my knee straight). This stretch
really hurts like hell and seems to target the back of my left knee
and the very top of my calf.
This implies that the entire complex of muscles and tendons in the back of
your leg are very tight. Tight muscles are much more prone to injury. I'd
advise a stretch which gets the whole area from the Achilles, the calves,
and hamstrings. Work into it gradually until there are no particular tight
areas:
Stand on a stair step with your feet parallel and your heels hanging over
the edge (balls of feet on the tread). Let the heels sink down an inch or
so (gradually). Put your hands on the tread a couple of steps above where
your feet are. Now with back straight, and knees straight, slowly bend
forward at the waist. You should feel stretching in the tightest areas in
the back of your leg. Go to where it feels like a good stretch, not so far
that there is any discomfort. Hold for 30 seconds or so. Do this several
times a day.
Eventually you will feel an even stretch from the Achilles to the upper
hamstrings. It may take several days or a week for things to loosen up to
where you can feel the stretch all the way.
> It doesn’t target my upper hamstring.
My guess is this is because you've got other tight areas that need to be
loosened up first. Eventually, the multi-stretch I outlined above will let
you get a good hamstring stretch.
> When I try the same stretch, but with a slightly bent leg, I
experience painful tightness EXACTLY on the lateral (outer) side of my
left calf, right at the very top, just below my knee. It’s either my
Peroneus longus, or my Tibialis anterior. Basically I just cannot
target my upper hamstring, no matter what I try. As an aside, I do
wear orthotics, and I also see a physio regularly.
I really need some advice here. Thanks.
You sound like you're as tight as a drum. When you get the whole posterior
area loose, I think you'll be less prone to injury in the future.
In my opinion, a high hamstring injury doesn't primarily want stretching, it
wants improved blood flow that heat and massage can give it, and time.
Whatever you do, don't stretch to pain, or run if it causes any pain. With
my more severe injury in that area, I found that I could eventually hike
fast uphill without bothering it, then could jog slowly uphill as it got
better. The last thing that came back was running flat and downhill.
Doug Freese
"Gas Bag" <shaz...@yahoo.com.au> wrote in message
news:3a2fa09a-1a6f-4c87...@i36g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
X-No-Archive:
>>I am hoping someone can help me here. I have a real problem with a
nagging tight upper left hamstring – only a few inches below my
glutes. I have tried doing typical hamstring stretches where I lie
flat on my back with my right leg straight and I slowly pull my left
leg up vertically and stretch it (with my knee straight). This stretch
really hurts like hell and seems to target the back of my left knee
and the very top of my calf. It doesn’t target my upper hamstring.
When I try the same stretch, but with a slightly bent leg, I
experience painful tightness EXACTLY on the lateral (outer) side of my
left calf, right at the very top, just below my knee. It’s either my
Peroneus longus, or my Tibialis anterior. Basically I just cannot
target my upper hamstring, no matter what I try. As an aside, I do
wear orthotics, and I also see a physio regularly.
I really need some advice here. Thanks.>>
All of what Dan said especially don't try to stretch a muscle if it is
torn and it is not clear whether you know this or not. You have a physio
and he/she hasn't told you if it is torn or where it is tight? Doesn't
give me much comfort with this person. I'd find a sports massage
therapist for some deep muscle work. While self massage can work but you
sure as hell need to know the right sport and the correct pressure, etc.
A MT can find the exact problem area and be able to tell it is healed
enough to stretch. Ham string muscles can plague you for months and
months if you don't take the correct action now.
-Doug