[Chaos]

i have recently gotten a bad pain in my left leg. i goes from above the left knee to the bottom of the left side of back. it hurts like HELL!!! i need to get this fixed quick because i have a track meet on tuesday. if anyone knows any streches that might can you post them? thanks.

[bobzero11]

it sounds like it may be a nerve impingement... i unfortunately do not know all of the signs and symptoms of a specific diagnosis, nor would i be able to diagnose you without an evaluation, but it def. sounds like something with your nerve... i hope its not sciatica ... just kidding, i doubt it is, that is for older and gayer people (i stereotype not, gay men are more likely to get sciatica for reasons not discussed here)

i would recommend heat to relax it, try to watch how you sleep (as hard as that is)... pretty much do not do anything that can impinge it, im sure your track coach can aid you and any training staff you may have at your access... as far as stretches make sure you are warm before you run and stretch each muscle for at least 15 seconds and i dont know your level of experience but even the best trained athletes need to be careful with ballistic stretch (stretch where you bounce back and forth), you may want to do more static stretching with gradual progression (slow stretch where you hold the stretch as deep as you can and breathe and progress to a deeper stretch)
types of stretching:
http://www.bath.ac.u...retching_4.html

if it hurts before the meet i would recommend not running because you could damage it further (if it is nerve that could be permanent, i dont want to scare you because i do not know exactly what you have, but it is a possibility) and if it is a muscle you could rupture it
to avoid this, heat as much as you can... i assume it was not one particular thing that caused you to have this pain like a "trauma" but more of a gradual build up, so heating is the best bet... you should ice if it was a traumatic event that you can identify, but only within 48 hours of the injury happening... if you use ice, a good thing to do at home is use a bag of vegetables like peas or corn out of the fridge, they form-fit better... another idea is to put a hole in a tennis ball and fill it with water and freeze it so you can masage yourself rather easily with the ice... but that is if ice is necessary

more likely than not heat is your best bet... good luck in any event, run forrest run!

[Chaos]

thanks a lot man

[Chadforpresidentin08]

It could be arthritis, do you dive a lot of the knee? It can cause arthritis, so stay somehwhat aware of that.

[bobzero11]

arthiritis is localized youngster... it would not be shooting all the way from a knee to the back... plus arthritis requires many years of beating on the joints and most people still in sports do not experience it that greatly... especially younger people...
in any event it is not arthritis i can almost gaurantee that, and what does "dive a lot of the knee" mean? where you going with that man? keep swinging though lil nom, you learn each day... it only makes you stronger

and jetsfreak i hope anything i said helped, hit me back with any other q's you may have

[Chadforpresidentin08]

I meant diving or hitting it, like falling off a bike hard or diving on it in baseball. It can happen.

[bobzero11]

it is very unlikley that it wold be arthritis, i know it is possible but a single trauma or even a few would not lead to the breakdown of bone that is arthritis... improbable but not impossible

[Chadforpresidentin08]

Well who knows? I sure as hell hope it ain't that, maybe a bruise?

[bobzero11]

jeez, man 1,003 posts... anyway, with my limited medical knowledge i DO know, this isnt about ego or anything, but the symptoms he has described cannot be arthritis or a bruise... there could be a bruised muscle but that would be a secondary injury and his description does not warrant it...