Cardio with a hamstring injury - what should i do?

[Iron Nick]

Yeah dawg, sounds like mild sciatica to me if it's on and off wierdly for a while and you not sure of the cause , any aches or sharp nervy pain with your back, glutes or soles of your feet?
IF it is then cycling and stretches and squats will help loads ! Its the one area I know about having seen a bunch of doctors and physios about my own issues after fucking my back pretty major... Try a pidgeon stretch and if it feels really wierd but also kind of nice and relieving on the pain.

EDIT: But yeah obviously you'll need to find out certainly from a professional.

I wouldn't let anyone diagnose you over the internet. You explaining that it doesn't hurt that much and isn't debilitating, that's a good sign. I would visit a physical therapist or an orthopeadic doctor and let them figure out A) what's bothering you and B) how to best deal with it.

In regards to exercising, you mentioned walking and running only bothers you after the fact. What about strength training? Are you doing any lower body or full body work?

Appreciate the input of both of you, so first of all: thanks you two!

When i've got the slight pain, i notice it also a bit in my feet and a bit in my right hand (so on the same side).

I try to avoid a doctor right now for personal reasons, but if it's not getting better, it'll be the best option i guess.

I'm currently working out all muscles except my legs, as of now, this means:

• Push ups
• Neck exercise (lying flat on the floor, and pressing the back of my head against the floor for 30s)
• Lateral raises
• Overhead extensions (dumbbell)
• Pull ups (only with negative ROM, will mention why below)*
• Leg raises
• Lateral planks
• EZ curls

I train red on one day, rest the day after (usually i did cardio on the rest days) do blue, have another rest day and start again with red.
*(I only do the negative ROM of pull ups because since having a cervical disc protrusion in my neck, going all out when pulling myself up can result in me pinching a nerve or sth. like that, making me unable to turn my head for a few days.)

Apparently (Wikipedia says this) a cervical disc protrusion could be a reason for a possible sciatica too, although i'm not 100% sure if a protrusion this far up in my spine can influence the sciatic nerve, but then again, it wouldn't surprise me if it did.
I went to physiotherapists and got a MRI done on my neck as well and according to them, an operation doesn't make sense (plus my neck isn't problematic, as long as i'm halfways careful).

 

[Sano]

Appreciate the input of both of you, so first of all: thanks you two!

When i've got the slight pain, i notice it also a bit in my feet and a bit in my right hand (so on the same side).

I try to avoid a doctor right now for personal reasons, but if it's not getting better, it'll be the best option i guess.

I'm currently working out all muscles except my legs, as of now, this means:

• Push ups
• Neck exercise (lying flat on the floor, and pressing the back of my head against the floor for 30s)
• Lateral raises
• Overhead extensions (dumbbell)
• Pull ups (only with negative ROM, will mention why below)*
• Leg raises
• Lateral planks
• EZ curls

I train red on one day, rest the day after (usually i did cardio on the rest days) do blue, have another rest day and start again with red.
*(I only do the negative ROM of pull ups because since having a cervical disc protrusion in my neck, going all out when pulling myself up can result in me pinching a nerve or sth. like that, making me unable to turn my head for a few days.)

Apparently (Wikipedia says this) a cervical disc protrusion could be a reason for a possible sciatica too, although i'm not 100% sure if a protrusion this far up in my spine can influence the sciatic nerve, but then again, it wouldn't surprise me if it did.
I went to physiotherapists and got a MRI done on my neck as well and according to them, an operation doesn't make sense (plus my neck isn't problematic, as long as i'm halfways careful).

Cervical disc protrusions wont affect your sciatic nerve directly no. Yeah sometimes surgery isn't the best option, and symptoms can subside without it. It's assessed on a case by case basis.

The reason why I asked about lower body training is because I was wondering why you weren't doing any. What happens when you do?

Again, this is just cursory conversation. You might have personal reasons for not going to see a doctor and if you don't feel very inhibited by your injury, well then that makes sense. However, I would suggest that you do go and get it checked out. Or directly to a physio. It would go a long way in getting through it in the most sensible way.

 

[Iron Nick]

Cervical disc protrusions wont affect your sciatic nerve directly no. Yeah sometimes surgery isn't the best option, and symptoms can subside without it. It's assessed on a case by case basis.

I don't know whether i should be happy or not about it, but since my disc protrusion doesn't feel like going away anytime soon, it not being a reason for the nerve pain means that the latter doesn't depend on that, so i guess that's kinda good.

The reason why I asked about lower body training is because I was wondering why you weren't doing any. What happens when you do?

Oh! So before it was doing lower body training! Did mostly deadlifts, sumo deadlifts, jump squats and some variant of hip thrust but with my back on the floor and only raising my hip with one leg at a time.
Like this, but with one leg:

Aside from that, i went running regularly, although that's obviously not strength training in the classical sense.

Again, this is just cursory conversation. You might have personal reasons for not going to see a doctor and if you don't feel very inhibited by your injury, well then that makes sense. However, I would suggest that you do go and get it checked out. Or directly to a physio. It would go a long way in getting through it in the most sensible way.

Ha, i just realized now through your signature that you're a physio, lol.
But you're right in that it's the most sensible approach
But you know what? Considering that it really seems to be a nerve thing and not a muscle thing, i try to incorporate things that put light stress on my hamstrings in my workout routine back again. Also miss training my lower back.

Now if you don't wanna give tips to me because you don't feel you can assess my situation good enough i understand that, but if you don't mind me asking, do you think stretching makes sense?

 

[Iron Nick]

@Sano physio/physiotherapist is by the way half german half english, which i only now noticed. It's physical therapist in englisch, but i mixed it up with the german word physiotherapeut, lol.

 

[Sano]

I don't know whether i should be happy or not about it, but since my disc protrusion doesn't feel like going away anytime soon, it not being a reason for the nerve pain means that the latter doesn't depend on that, so i guess that's kinda good.

Oh! So before it was doing lower body training! Did mostly deadlifts, sumo deadlifts, jump squats and some variant of hip thrust but with my back on the floor and only raising my hip with one leg at a time.
Like this, but with one leg:

Aside from that, i went running regularly, although that's obviously not strength training in the classical sense.

Ha, i just realized now through your signature that you're a physio, lol.
But you're right in that it's the most sensible approach
But you know what? Considering that it really seems to be a nerve thing and not a muscle thing, i try to incorporate things that put light stress on my hamstrings in my workout routine back again. Also miss training my lower back.

Now if you don't wanna give tips to me because you don't feel you can assess my situation good enough i understand that, but if you don't mind me asking, do you think stretching makes sense?

@Sano physio/physiotherapist is by the way half german half english, which i only now noticed. It's physical therapist in englisch, but i mixed it up with the german word physiotherapeut, lol.

Physiotherapist can also be used in English. It's a more international term though. In Danish we use fysioterapeut, which is close to the German one.

Yeah I don't feel comfortable giving specific advice to someone I haven't looked at myself, if there's an undiagnosed injury. Stretching might help, it depends. Whatever you choose to do, including exercise selection, just go slow and feel it out. What you feel, including what you feel later or the day after, is usually a decent guide. Hope it works out.

 

[Iron Nick]

Physiotherapist can also be used in English. It's a more international term though. In Danish we use fysioterapeut, which is close to the German one.

Yeah I don't feel comfortable giving specific advice to someone I haven't looked at myself, if there's an undiagnosed injury. Stretching might help, it depends. Whatever you choose to do, including exercise selection, just go slow and feel it out. What you feel, including what you feel later or the day after, is usually a decent guide. Hope it works out.

Nice to know, lol.

That's understandable and from my point of view, probably the mos professional thing to do (or to refuse to do, depending on how you look at it).
I'll try stretching and will definitely go slow, thanks for your advice.

 

[JinKazama]

I had a grade 1 hamstring tear a year ago which isn’t the worst (grade 3 is where it’s avulsed off the bone) but I remember not being able to walk that first day and limping for a few days after

did PT for 2-3 months and it healed up fine, did have to take it easy though

did it during a live roll in bjj, spazzing white belt ripped his arm free out of my spider lasso and my leg bent in a real awkward position, heard a couple of pops in a row which had me worried, but it healed quick in hindsight

 

[Deleted member 580830]

Swimming ?

 

[Iron Nick]

Swimming ?

you'd use your hamstring as well to an extent.

My hamstring isn't injured though, it's a nerve thing and i've been doing a lot cardio and lower body strength training without problems - probably also thanks to the stretches i do since then.

 

[ChickenBrother]

you'd use your hamstring as well to an extent.

My hamstring isn't injured though, it's a nerve thing and i've been doing a lot cardio and lower body strength training without problems - probably also thanks to the stretches i do since then.

I won't presume to diagnose you but based only on my own experience, and remembering your earlier thread about hitting the wall while running full marathon distance for a training run, what you describe sounds like overuse injury. Running the distances you're doing is a lot of cumulative impact on your knees, ankles, hips and that takes time to build up tolerance for. I know it's hard when you're as passionate about running as it sounds like you are, but you have to ease off/stop running until the pain goes away, before phasing back into it.

Again speaking only from my own experience, light cycling is one of the best rehab motions if you can do it without pain. A regular bicycle or exercise bike is fine, but IME the best for leg rehab are the supine exercise bikes where you're sitting down with your legs in front of you. I've rehabbed ankle, knee and hamstring injuries on one of those and always felt better after the session and I'm convinced it accelerated healing. Gets blood circulating, clears out lactic acid and gets light cardio work in without any impact.

 

[j123]

Is there a cardio exercise (which i can do for 45-60 minutes) that does not involve the hamstrings in the slightest?

Sex

 

[JimRussel]

Is there a cardio exercise (which i can do for 45-60 minutes) that does not involve the hamstrings in the slightest?

Sex

1. That’s a bit long.

2. I have definitely had hammy issues during sex.

 

[Iron Nick]

I won't presume to diagnose you but based only on my own experience, and remembering your earlier thread about hitting the wall while running full marathon distance for a training run, what you describe sounds like overuse injury. Running the distances you're doing is a lot of cumulative impact on your knees, ankles, hips and that takes time to build up tolerance for. I know it's hard when you're as passionate about running as it sounds like you are, but you have to ease off/stop running until the pain goes away, before phasing back into it.

Again speaking only from my own experience, light cycling is one of the best rehab motions if you can do it without pain. A regular bicycle or exercise bike is fine, but IME the best for leg rehab are the supine exercise bikes where you're sitting down with your legs in front of you. I've rehabbed ankle, knee and hamstring injuries on one of those and always felt better after the session and I'm convinced it accelerated healing. Gets blood circulating, clears out lactic acid and gets light cardio work in without any impact.

Thank you brother, but it seems as if it's a thing with the sciatic nerve. Stretching has really helped me and i could amp my cardio and lower body exercises up significantly without problems; just yesterday i did a 5k with pretty much maximum intensity and afterwards i did some deadlifts (amongst other exercises).
Now i'm damn sore, but other than that i feel good, hehe.

 

[ChickenBrother]

Thank you brother, but it seems as if it's a thing with the sciatic nerve. Stretching has really helped me and i could amp my cardio and lower body exercises up significantly without problems; just yesterday i did a 5k with pretty much maximum intensity and afterwards i did some deadlifts (amongst other exercises).
Now i'm damn sore, but other than that i feel good, hehe.

Glad to hear it. Happy training!

 

[Zarate]

Brather you should make a stretching / flexibility routine every other day. I am working on my core for 10 - 15 minutes (only plank variations) and than stretching for about 30 - 45 minutes every second day.

It's a great way to stay healthy (no back pain, tennis elbow, hamstring issues etc) and also to improve da gainZ.

I had a lot of issues with my hamstrings (eingeklemmter nerv) and just ignore the fuck out of it for years bc I am a lazy fuck but as I got older I understand the importance of warm up, stretching and flexibility. As a young boi you don't need to think about that but now it's absolutely neccessary for me.

 

[Iron Nick]

Brather you should make a stretching / flexibility routine every other day. I am working on my core for 10 - 15 minutes (only plank variations) and than stretching for about 30 - 45 minutes every second day.

It's a great way to stay healthy (no back pain, tennis elbow, hamstring issues etc) and also to improve da gainZ.

I had a lot of issues with my hamstrings (eingeklemmter nerv) and just ignore the fuck out of it for years bc I am a lazy fuck but as I got older I understand the importance of warm up, stretching and flexibility. As a young boi you don't need to think about that but now it's absolutely neccessary for me.

Yeah, i really do a lot of stretching since finding out how much it can help, it really is useful!

Train my core as well, be it the front, side or back of it.
I think taking its training seriously is actually something more people should do.
A strong core works wonders for spinal health etc. and that's really an area where you want to be healthy, if you ask me...

 

[Volador]

Hello folks, so as the title says, i've got a problem with my right hamstring, but still don't wanna miss out on cardio at all.
My goal, so as long as i'm injured, is to just maintain or maybe slightly increase my aerobic cardio.

Is there a cardio exercise (which i can do for 45-60 minutes) that does not involve the hamstrings in the slightest?

If not, then is it sufficient to to just shorten the breaks between my strength training exercises*, to increase the intensity for my cardiovascular system? Is that maybe even the preferable option for me to a possible separate cardio exercise?
*(currently doing mostly push ups, leg raises, pull ups and a few dumbbell exercises)


Thanks in advance to y'all.

Hey bro, how's your hamstring doing? Seems like you're doing better. I just wanted to say, the idea that avoiding anything that hurts is going to help the healing process, or that pain always symbolizes something that's "broken" isn't necessarily accurate much of the time. I used to be very paranoid about aches and pains, would avoid certain movements immediately if anything started hurting, but after a while I started changing my perspective and realized that a lot of things I considered injuries went away if I kept training with appropriate loads/intesities. The presence of pain or aches doesn't necessarily mean much by itself all the time, and if it doesn't prevent function/movement, I'd try to train as normal as possible, maybe starting at light loads/slow pace unless the pain is getting dramatically worse. Did you ever get a diagnosis? If things get bad, I wouldn't hesitate to see an actual specialist. By the way, I don't think stretching helps much most of the time.

I've started following these guys, this dude in particular is an MD with a 700lb deadlift at 190lb bodyweight, and this kind of perspective about pain really helped me lately:

https://www.barbellmedicine.com/blog/pain-in-training-what-do/

This is also good:

https://www.barbellmedicine.com/blog/recovering-from-an-injury-embrace-the-process/

Maybe it can help you in the future like it helped me. Glad to know you're doing better.

 

[aus101]

Walk for cardio.

 

[Queen B]

 

[funcrusher2007]

I found swimming laps was great cardio while babying my bad knee.