Thigh muscle pain - Pulled thigh muscle

Thigh muscle pain is a sign of a strain in the quadriceps muscle group. This is a relatively common injury especially with sportsmen and women. The muscle groups known as the quadriceps are located down the front of the thigh and reach from the top of the thigh and end just above the knee.

This type of injury or ‘sprain’ as it is more commonly known as occurs when there has not been enough stretching of the muscle prior to exercise. Footballers, cyclists and athletes who use this muscle more often than others are more prone to this type of injury.

Thigh muscle pain exercises

There are a variety of exercises which you can do by yourself to alleviate the causes of thigh muscle pain. Prevention is better than cure!

It is essential therefore for you to have a long and lengthy stretch of the muscle prior to exercise and this includes standing on one leg with bottom half of the other leg, pulled up tucked in behind your buttocks. The leg which is balanced is then pulled gently behind at the ankle. You should feel a gentle strain in the thigh muscle whilst doing so. Hold this position.

If you land in the unfortunate position where you develop this type of pain then it is essential that you try and rest this muscle as much as possible.

Thigh muscle pain swelling

An ice pack or bag of frozen vegetables should be placed directly onto the muscle to reduce any swelling and therefore help reduce the size of the inflamed muscle. Remember not to place ice directly onto the muscle itself, place it in a bag or a piece of material or it will stick!

It may be necessary for the muscle itself to be bandaged using an elastic bandage which will let the muscle move whilst maintaining some sort of support. There are specialized supports and shorts which you can buy which will help support you.

Ibuprofen or any other anti inflammatory can be taken and may assist in minimizing any swelling. There are also a wide variety of creams and sprays such as ‘deep heat’ or ‘Ralgex’ which may also reduce the pain of the sprain. Remember that these creams are quite noxious and should be applied in a wide ventilated room.

Physiotherapy is also an option which you may have to consider depending on the severity of the sprain. You may have to have a course of physiotherapy or a single visit may suffice.