With temperatures rising, how do you know if what you're feeling is a muscle cramp or a muscle strain?

A muscle cramp “charley horse” is a sudden, unexpected tightening of one or more muscles. It can last for several seconds up to minutes, and usually, light stretching will help to relieve the symptoms. But once the “cramp” goes away, you can usually continue about your day with no issues. If you google why muscle cramps occur, you will find that we really don't know why, but a lot of research attributes it to a combination of dehydration, electrolyte imbalance or muscle overuse.

PT Tip: Does stretching the muscle provide relieve or cause more pain? If it provides relief it’s likely a cramp, if you can’t feel a “good stretch” or it causes more pain, STOP stretching! It’s likely a strain and we don’t want to further “strain” the muscle.

A muscle strain is micro-tears within a muscle and are classified into three grades based on the amount of muscle fibers involved.

Signs and symptoms of a muscle strain include:

• Gradual tightening sensation in a muscle or sudden “sharp” pain during activity

• Pain at rest

• Swelling, bruising, or redness

• Weakness of the muscle or tendons

• Inability to use the muscle (difficulty walking, stairs, etc.)

Personal story: It was the last 50 meters of a tempo run, and out of nowhere I felt a “gradual tightening” in my right calf. I’ve never strained “pulled” a muscle so this was a new sensation. I tried to finish the last few meters, because it had been a great workout, but I knew that if I took one more step my calf would not be forgiving. Cue in my first ever muscle strain. I was out for about 4 weeks with ZERO running, and then I gradually introduced run/walks while continuing to rehab the calf with strengthening exercises.

Often times a muscle strain isn’t properly rehabbed, resulting in a high risk of recurrence. If you’re unsure if what you experienced was a muscle cramp or a muscle strain, we recommend seeking guidance from your healthcare provider. Thank you for taking the time to read! If this sounds like something that you might be dealing with and you’d like to learn more schedule a complimentary call today!

References:

Green B, McClelland JA, Semciw AI, Schache AG, McCall A, Pizzari T. The Assessment, Management and Prevention of Calf Muscle Strain Injuries: A Qualitative Study of the Practices and Perspectives of 20 Expert Sports Clinicians. Sports Med Open. 2022 Jan 15;8(1):10.

Stern LZ, Bernick C. Muscle Cramps. In: Walker HK, Hall WD, Hurst JW, editors. Clinical Methods: The History, Physical, and Laboratory Examinations. 3rd edition. Boston: Butterworths; 1990. Chapter 53. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK376/

Muscle Strain https://www.physio-pedia.com/Muscle_Strain