Neelanjan Banerjee
Muscle injury can happen due to a muscle strain. This happens when you overstretch your muscles. This happens mainly due to weakness, not using your muscle properly, or abuse. Strain can occur in any part of the muscle gatherings.
The most common muscle strain parts are the lower back, neck, shoulders and, hamstring. Muscle strain can tear your muscle. This can harm little veins.
Muscle Strain can cause a lot of pain and cutoff development. Moderate strains can be treated at home. Serious strains require a specialist’s guidance.
Table of Contents
Muscle Strain Symptoms
Muscle strains can cause a variety of uncomfortable symptoms, including:
• Bruising
• Muscle cramps
• Difficulty moving the muscle
• Muscle spasms
• Muscle weakness
• Pain, which usually worsens with movement
• Swelling
A person may also hear an audible snapping or popping when the muscle strains.
Muscle Strain Causes
A muscle strain occurs when your muscle tears suddenly. Such tears happen due to either injuries or trauma. This can be due to:
• Not warming up properly before physical activity
• Poor flexibility
• Poor conditioning
• Overexertion and fatigue
Many people assume that heavy exercises and high-intensity workouts cause muscle strains. Strains can occur from walking also. An acute strain can happen when you:
• Slip
• Jump
• Run
• Throw something
• Lift something very heavy
• Lift something while in an awkward or uncomfortable position
Acute muscle strains are common in cold weather as muscles are stiff in lower temperatures. That is why it is always suggested to warm up before doing anything strenuous. Chronic muscle strains are due to:
• Sports like rowing, tennis, golf, or baseball since they require a lot of hand movements
• Holding your back or neck in an awkward position for long periods of time, such as when you work at a desk.
• Poor posture
Best Home Remedy for a Muscle Strain or Pain
1. RICE Method
RICE is an acronym of treatment for muscle strain, tendon, or ligament. This method is recommended mainly for soft tissue injuries. RICE stands for:
Rest
Do not use your muscle for a few days when movement causes an increase in pain. Also, note that not using your muscle can cause weak muscles. So it is advised to use your muscle very lightly. After few days, slowly start using the affected muscles. But do not overdo.
Ice
Applying ice to the injured muscle will minimize swelling. Never put ice directly on your skin. Use an ice pack or wrap ice in a towel. Keep the ice on your muscle for about 20-30 minutes. Repeat it as much as can. For the next several days, apply ice every four hours.
Compression
To reduce swelling, wrap the affected area with an elastic bandage until you see a decrease in swelling. Do not wrap the bandage too tightly. This can reduce your blood circulation.
Elevation
Keeping the area raised above the level of the heart can help reduce swelling.
Self Care for Muscle Strain
• Apply heat to the muscle several times a day after 2-3 days. This will help with blood circulation thereby healing it faster
• Do not rest your muscle for too long. This can cause stiffness and weakness. Begin light stretching as soon as possible. You can slowly increase your activities.
•Warm ups and stretches should be compulsory after you have healed. This will help increase blood flow to your muscles and decrease your risk of injury.
• Try to stay fit always
12 Best Nutritional Remedies for Muscle Strain
1. Protein-Rich Foods
Protein is the basic component for muscle and many tissues. Muscle strain generally reduces strength and muscle mass. So, it is advised to increase your protein intake. Not only this, a good protein diet may help prevent increased inflammation which can slow down your healing process. Increasing your protein intake after you have healed and started training can help rebuild lost muscles. Make sure to include protein-rich foods like meat, tofu, fish, poultry, beans, green peas, nuts or seeds in your daily diet. Studies also suggest that eating a protein-rich snack before sleeping may help accelerate your body’s muscle-building process while you sleep.
2. Fiber-Rich Foods
Since you are in the resting periods during muscle strain or injury, you tend to gain unwanted body fat. That’s why it is important to eat in moderation during this period. Best way to keep your calorie intake in check is by consuming a high-fiber diet. Along with this, consume protein rich food which will help you eat less making you full in a short time. Some fiber-rich foods are vegetables, fruits, legumes and whole grains. Apart from being rich in fiber, these foods are loaded with other nutrients essential for your recovery.
3. Vitamin C
Vitamin C is necessary for making collagen. Collagen is a vital nutrient for building muscles and recovery. By the time we hit 25, our collagen levels start reducing. This means your healing time increases after that age. So, getting enough vitamin C from your diet is important for the body to rebuild tissues after an injury. Vitamin C has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. It accelerates your healing process by preventing increased inflammation. Vitamin C is found in citrus fruits, red and yellow bell peppers, dark leafy greens, broccoli, tomatoes, mango, kiwi, berries and papaya.
4. Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Muscle Strain and injury lead to inflammation. If the inflammation remains for a long time, it may slow down your healing process. Eating enough omega 3 fats will help in shortening the recovery process. Omega 3 is generally found in foods such as fish, algae, walnuts, flax-seeds, and chia seeds. Research says that having lots of omega-3 fats from supplements may reduce your body’s ability to regain muscle mass once you return to training. Therefore, it is better to increase your omega-3 intake from foods rather than supplements.
5. Zinc-Rich Foods
Not having enough nutrients in your body can slow down your recovery process. Zinc is one nutrient made up of enzymes and proteins. It is needed for wound healing, repairing tissues, and growth. So, consuming zinc-rich foods such as meat, fish, pulses, seeds, nuts, and whole grains may help you recover more effectively from an injury. Getting enough zinc from your diet is important.
6. Vitamin D & Calcium-Rich Foods
You must be hearing how important calcium is from your childhood. Calcium is essential for good bone and teeth health. During recovery, it is very important to include calcium in your diet. Some Calcium-rich foods are dairy products, green leafy veegtables, sardines, broccoli, ladies finger, almonds, seaweed, and calcium-fortified tofu and plant milk.
Vitamin D is very important for calcium absorption. Soaking yourself in sun is a good way to improve healing process.Together with calcium, it plays a role in recovering from a injury.
7. Magnesium
Magnesium is required for the flexibility of muscles. If you don’t have enough magnesium in your body, your muscles cannot relax which will give rise to muscle cramps. Magnesium is found in almonds, potato skins, cashews, brown rice, kidney beans, black-eyed peas, peanuts, lentils, and milk.
8. Silicon
Silica is vital during the formation of bones. They help in rebuilding your joints. Best sources of Silica include cereals, whole grains, carrots, and beans.
9. Vitamins K1 and K2
Vitamin K is important for blood clotting problems and reversing blood thinning. Vitamins K1 and K2 help improve bone strength. Best sources of Vitamin K1 and K2 include leafy greens, Brussels sprouts, prunes, fermented foods, organ meats, egg yolks, and organic dairy products.
10. Arginine
It is an essential amino acid required to heal your wound. Studies have shown that they can quicken the healing process. Arginine becomes important during physical stress hence it is better to increase your intake of Arginine during this period.
Best sources of Arginine include Spirulina, spinach, Turkey, organic dairy products.
11. Inositol
Inositol helps improve calcium absorption in bones. Found in cantaloupe, grapefruit, oranges, and prunes.
12. Glucosamine
This compound is found in connective tissues and healthy joints. It is important for tissue repair and growth. You must have heard this in supplement form for arthritis and osteoarthritis treatment. Studies have also found that Glucosamine can help to speed the healing process by improving mobility in joint injuries.
When to Consult a Doctor?
For mild to moderate strains, home treatment should be enough. Seek medical attention if any of the following happens:
• The pain does not subside after a week.
• The injured area is numb.
• Blood coming from your injury.
• Cannot walk.
• Cannot move your arms or legs.
Takeaway
Recovery time depends on the severity of the injury. For a mild strain, you may be able to return to normal activities within three to six weeks with basic home care. For more severe strains, recovery can take several months. In severe cases, surgical repair and physical therapy may be necessary. Many elements play a role when it comes to recovering from a sports injury or muscle strain. One factor you can control is the nutrients you provide your body.
Also Read: Teenage bodybuilding nutrition
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This is really helpful for me…I do get these kind of muscle strains during long workouts…thanks for sharing this amazing post..
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Awesome article on muscle strain . Presently I have muscle strain. Very useful for me since remedies are also shared.
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Tremendous article on muscle strain. Presently my aunt has a muscle strain. Will forward this to her since remedies are also shared.
Ty for sharing this wonderful article about muscle strain, RICE method and the nutrient rich foods which we can include in our diet
Now a days many people facing the muscles strain or pain problems and they took this problem so lightly but they should know the reason behind that and should take a positive action on that this article really help them to get rid of muscle strain ✅❤️❤️
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Such detailed information about muscle strain… At times I face this problem and as previously I was not aware about the remedies this problem used to make me suffer a lot but now I know the remedies so I can easily cure myself and help others’ as well.
My mum gets painful muscle cramps all the time. So this information about relieving muscle pain is sooo useful for her. Ill definitely share with her
O my god mussels strain maks me really irritating ans it’s painful too but your article is so helpful about this thanks for sharing knowledge with us ❤️
Superb article… Now a days muscle strain is very common and this article will definitely help us.
Everything put together so well!! I made a note key points too! Thanks!!
I usually suffer from Muscle strain.. have to try the RICE method explained in this article..
These remedies are so helpful for me as I am a dentist and I’m always stressing my neck .
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This is a very important article about the muscle weakness we can just get then right by eating right food. For Thanks amazing information
The article is really beneficial as it gives a complete information about muscle strain and it’s remedies..Thank you dear for sharing this!
Rice method is what I’ve done everytime I bruise my muscles or get cramps. It works the best!
I am on Rise method now as I have muscle spasm and it’s so painful my orthopaedic has suggested the same as your post …. this is really informative
This is a wonderful Article coz now a days many people facing the muscle pain..also my mom !! I will forward this to my mom!!
Wow your work is beyond appreciation. Amazing and so helpful ….
This is quite helpful. Loved reading it ❤
First of all big thanks to you for writing this article on muscle strain, once in a month i suffer from neck strain and that remains atleast for 3 days and very painful too, I’ll try to implement the methods you shared in this article ❤
Love your article, you explain everything so good! Nice to lear more about the remedies!
Love your article so useful didn’t know all the remedies so it was nice to learn more.
Thanks
Amazing article…great and quality information about muscle strain and remedies
I sometimes have muscle pain very bad ..this was really helpful for me
These are actually very effective tips for muscle pull, and be carefull for back abdomen pains as they are corona specific! Take care everyone!
Wow this is gold right here … love this .. thank u so much
That was a very helpful piece of information, everyone needs to know remedies and causes of strain.. thanks for sharing
Wow this article seems good for me, thnx for sharing this blog. ❤️ I think heating pad helps me
Wow this article is not informative…thankx for sharing
You know I was always confused about the hot and cold compressor when to apply. This article is very useful for me as I do suffer from muscle strain very frequently
This article has made my so many doubts clearloved reading it thankyou for sharing ❤️
Wowww this one is so amazing thankuuu for sharing ❤️ This is so helpful for us
Great info Shweta and Neelanjan! Yes muscle sore happens due to so many reasons but workout n proper stretches give soso a relief! Good to know about the food that can help too. Did not know about this fact. Thanks!!
Musle strain has become a part of our routines specially in corona time and for those have to work for hrs on laptop or phones and even for those who are still working from home…thanks for sharing a great insight on the same.. extremely useful post!! Kudos!!
This article is very informative…thankx for sharing
This was soo perfectly explained. It’s definitely gonna help alot. I totally loved your research.
Nicely written article and valuable information on muscle strains and remedies. It happens more commonly than we would think☺️
Very nice topic thank so much
Very informative article..I have heard a lot about ice and rice method . Thanks for all the valuable knowledge.! ❤️✨
Hey very informative article. It seems u did very much research to write it
To be honest it is not just informative but a thoroughly researched blog. For me its a definite valuable post as I seriously face severe muscle pain and cramp. Great post
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This is very informative article. We made mistakes unknowingly and suffered with serious injuries. This article help us to understand what to do when we have muscle pain.
This is very informative!! People should take when doing streches!
This article is very informative. Well explained thanks for sharing
Very helpful article .I myself suffering through muscle pain n strains so m definitely gonna try these.thanks
This is really useful and sorted many questions I had
Hei Shweta, I really appreciate the way you covered mostly all points…I wrote on same topic and I completely agree with your all points…Some new points I can see and will advise further… Thanks Mate ❤️
Great one. I do strength training 5-6 days a week and have experienced this. I will try these tips for sure. Thank you for sharing this one.
Wow..the article is very well described and written. Gives a lot of insight.
Very informative article Mr. Neelanjan !! I have seen a lot of people suffering badly from muscle strains without enough information and knowledge about it !!
Wow this is a wonderful article……full of information. U have explained in details. Thank u for sharing❤Sharing the page with my friends❤❤
Very nice informative article love reading your articles
Thanks for sharing this detailed n helpful information about muscle strain
Interesting article, I loved how you explained the RICE method and the best nutritional remedies for muscles strain!!thanks for the effort you put to share this valuable and useful information ❤️
Is a very complete article, love to read about the remedies is so often to have some I injure, had not thought that food can also be a remedy. Very nice article keep writing!!!
This us much needed and very complete article . Muscle strain is so tough to handle sometimes.
Very nice and informative post is this..
Thanks for share it with us..
#Deep_Arts
Absolutely grateful,i needed this information,so helpful,as i often get muscle strain and cramps,due to long hrs standing n working,diet plays a vital role indeed.
Thankyou so much for this valuable article.
Very well written! You have highlighted each point in detail about role od got d and calcium as well.
Such wonderful and explained in detail article! Good work!
This is a very well researched article and I am sure many will benefit out of this
Muscle strain is very common, I too suffer alot from muscle strain. But drinking water will help to relief muscle strain. ❤️
This is very informative article. I will try these remedies and will also share them with the needy ones.
Thank you for such well written post..I badly needed this,due to workout am suffering from muscle strain ,this is really helpful..
The article is Perfect for ppl like me since keep having muscle pain n sprain n m gonna try all tips now