What can you do if you have pulled your hamstring and you have an important running event in one month? Should you even still consider attending the event? Here are some tips how to recover from a hamstring strain as quickly as possible.
First, you have to establish how severe your hamstring strain is. You should see a physiotherapist to get some early treatment, which will boost your recovery time.
In the first week, use heat and gentle stretching to reduce the muscle spasm. Also, do some endurance exercise, something like swimming or cycling, that allows you keep your fitness up without injuring your hamstring further.
After the second week start running a little. But be careful, start with easy running and increase the intensity and duration over the next week. Before the race, make sure you do a couple of kilometers at race pace to test how your hamstring is working.
But keep in mind, race only if you feel 100% confident that your hamstring is ok. It’s much better to get a good result a couple of weeks later than to experience a hamstring strain again and start recovering all over.
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