Hurdlers Pose Yoga
• Sharp strong pain can indicate the early stages of a stress fracture. Take time off from training and see a doctor.
• Swelling and pain during daily walking indicates a more serious injury that requires rest and diagnosis.
• Pain that gradually begins during a yoga pose or workout is common and usually can allow for continued training. If the pain is strong, use common sense and stop if necessary.
• Continuing to train regularly with strong pain is risky because muscle injury can progress and eventually evolve into a much more long-term injury, such as a stress fracture.
NOTE: Since you lose no conditioning by resting for as long as 5 days, it is always better to take extra days off if you suspect a serious problem.
CALF PAIN
• The calf is a large, fleshy group of muscles on the backside of the lower leg between the knee and the Achilles tendon. Pain on the inner side is called “medial” while “lateral” refers to the outside and back of the calf.
• Pain may be felt throughout the calf muscle, or in a specific place. Since the Achilles connects directly into the calf muscle, pain may be noticed in that tendon. If this is the case, look at the Achilles Tendinitis section in this blog.
• A single episode of calf soreness is of no concern if there is a reason and it goes away.
Hurdlers Pose Yoga Photo Gallery
1. The pain is often a mild general ache that appears after a yoga in both calf muscles. This is usually minor training soreness if associated with a change in distance, effort, shoes, or an increase in hilly terrain. It is also common for one calf to be more sore than the other.
2. Another type of pain may occur during a run, usually to one calf. Sometimes pain gradually increases but can also be sharp and sudden. The calf may remain sore after the run, when walking. Sometimes the pain appears unexpectedly after it seemed to have gone away. This can be during the next yoga or several runs later. Many runners are susceptible to frequent episodes several times a year. There may or may not be swelling in the muscle, a thickened spot, a “knot” or a defect.
3. Cramping is the sudden contraction of the calf muscle which can restrict or prohibit use of the muscle. This may occur at night or during a run, and usually goes away with rest. Cramping may become chronic and last for weeks when training is suddenly increased, or continuously increased over days or weeks without adequate rest. Inadequate use of walk breaks from the beginning of a yoga is another common cause.
