losing sleep over aching hamstrings? ideas?

[lizajane]

yes, i have been running lately. but after several months of working out on the treadmill, this week my hamstrings started to wake me up at night. they ache like i haven't stretched, but when i try to stretch, it doesn't help. i am so uncomfortable! any thoughts about what might be going on from my fellow runners? i can take advil, but it won't help from the nightwaking, as it would be too early to take it when i go to bed for it to help me when it wakes me at, say, 4am.

[ritacheetah]

A hot bath and some Ben Gay or Icy Hot? Maybe go get a massage. And eat lots of bananas.

[casey0729]

My Dad is a marathoner and started to have ham problems a few years ago. He got the book "Running Injury Free: How to Prevent, Treat, and Recover from Dozens of Painful Problems" by Ellis and Henderson. It's on Amazon if you want to take a look. Solved a lot of his problems by showing him how to stretch things out properly.

HTH

[MontrealMum]

Eat more bananas - they can counteract the lactic acid buildup. There may be other foods too but I have forgotten what they might be. It's possible to stretch adequately and still have this problem. DH wakes up at night because of it when he's training really hard. Gatorade might help too, but has tons of calories and additives, so bananas and lots of water are a better way to go. Your kids are old enough that I assume you're not b/f ing, so you might try rubbing Arnica gel/lotion over the sore muscles. It's homeopathic, but I don't know about it getting into milk. Someone else may know more about the safety of it, it's been awhile since I used it, and things are changing daily regarding what's safe and what's not!

[elizabethkott]

ITA with PPs. DH has had many problems with his hamstrings from tennis, and once he started taking potassium suppliments, his problems became less frequent. The bananas contain potassium which help with the lactic acid. Broccoli works well, as do blueberries. DH takes the suppliments because he's very picky food-wise. :D
I'd also recommend tiger balm. That stuff is a miracle in a jar! Just don't use too much - a little goes a loooooooong way. And wash your hands really, really well after application. A friend put some on his shoulder in college, didn't wash his hands well after, and then went to use the bathroom... it wasn't a pretty sound coming from the bathroom about thirty seconds after he went in... :D

[lizajane]

ITA with PPs. DH has had many problems with his hamstrings from tennis, and once he started taking potassium suppliments, his problems became less frequent. The bananas contain potassium which help with the lactic acid. Broccoli works well, as do blueberries. DH takes the suppliments because he's very picky food-wise. :D
I'd also recommend tiger balm. That stuff is a miracle in a jar! Just don't use too much - a little goes a loooooooong way. And wash your hands really, really well after application. A friend put some on his shoulder in college, didn't wash his hands well after, and then went to use the bathroom... it wasn't a pretty sound coming from the bathroom about thirty seconds after he went in... :D

where can i find tiger balm? i thought about the bananas. i usually do eat them, but ran out early this week. i used to have lactic acid build up issues when i was a high school athlete. so i will check into potassium supplements! thanks everyone!

[kedss]

you can usually find tiger balm at health food stores, and I'm pretty sure I've seen it at Whole Foods, not sure if they sell it at regular grocery stores.

[tylersmama]

And wash your hands really, really well after application. A friend put some on his shoulder in college, didn't wash his hands well after, and then went to use the bathroom... it wasn't a pretty sound coming from the bathroom about thirty seconds after he went in... :D
Somewhat related funny story from my working days as a high school athletic trainer...I had a giant pump bottle of Flexall in the training room that the kids would just come in and help themselves to. There was a particular football player that always came in on gameday and would get two or three big pumps and then go off to the locker room to apply. One day, he came in as usual, heads off to the locker room, then a couple of minutes later comes SCREAMING back in to the training room. Begging me to help him. Why? Because he was putting the Flexall on his groin area, and got it a little too close to the, ahem...goods, shall we say. And wanted me (the 20-something female athletic trainer) to do something about it! :ROTFLMAO:

Um, yeah, I told him to go find some soap and water and be more careful next time. ;)