Aches & Pains Articles

Cheat Sheet / Updated 03-27-2016

Back pain is such a common condition that many doctors consider it a normal part of life — but you don't have to suffer. To start, know when to see a doctor for your pain, learn how to choose the right doctor to treat it, and ask smart questions about the tests and treatments your doctor suggests. Managing back pain requires home care, too; so develop a plan for managing your back pain at home.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

Almost everyone has heard the phrase, "No pain, no gain." What most people don't know is the definition of pain. Pain is the body's warning sign that it's in jeopardy of being injured. A more appropriate phase would be, "If it hurts, don't do it." You may be performing an exercise incorrectly, or the exercise may not work well for you. Pain may also indicate that you have an injury you are aggravating by the exercise you are performing. Knowing how far to take it During your muscle conditioning exercises, you should gradually increase the amount of weight you're lifting — enough repetitions that you exhaust or deplete your energy to lift it one more time. The best way to stimulate muscle growth and strength is to push your muscles to a new level. This can be accomplished by changing exercises, increasing your weights, increasing the intensity of your workout (by decreasing the time interval between sets, for example), and pushing your muscles to the point of fatigue or failure. Serious athletes constantly use all of these techniques to adapt their muscles to new stresses. Remember, in order for your muscles to grow, you need to fatigue them. This simply means that with all your effort you can't perform one more repetition of the exercise, even if the guy next to you offered you the winning lottery ticket. So next time you're conditioning your muscles, play a little mind game with yourself and pretend that someone is working out with you (and yes, you can choose anybody that motivates you). Your partner is offering you a million dollars for each repetition you perform past your goal. If the good-looking imaginary body next to you doesn't motivate you, the million should help you to pull off a few more reps. Knowing when to quit Even if you're doing everything right, it is possible to overtrain. Over-training means that you are exercising in excess of your body's capacity to repair itself or adapt to the stresses you present it. It's often difficult to ascertain whether or not you are overtraining. This is when it's really important to listen to your body. If you are overtraining, your body's repair mechanisms are overloaded and you're in prime position for injury. Common but subtle signs of overtraining are as follows: Losing strength Feeling tired in the gym Losing motivation to work out Simply feeling burned out Contracting illnesses such as colds and the flu Experiencing an elevated heart rate when walking at a normal pace Going through uncharacteristic depression Use this method to check your progress: Begin by taking your resting heart rate first thing in the morning. As soon as you wake up, roll over, look at the clock, and take your heart rate for one minute. Record your heart rate and keep it for future reference. In general, the higher your resting heart rate, the less physically fit you are, and the lower your heart rate, the more physically fit you are. (Some athletes have resting heart rates in the 40s.) One way to see if you're working out too much is to check your resting heart rate over a few months. See if it has increased, decreased, or remained the same. If your workouts are effective, your resting heart rate will slowly decrease, or at least remain constant. Your body has many ways of telling you when enough is enough, and if your resting heart rate has increased, you should start listening to your body by decreasing your workout frequency or intensity. Avoiding injuries Overtraining can lead to injuries. If you get injured, you're likely to quit exercising and never work out again. This isn't good. Your body needs to exercise just like it needs to sleep and eat. The following list of Do's and Don'ts helps you avoid unnecessary injuries. Do watch for your body's warning signs and signals. Do perform the exercise correctly. Do warm up and stretch before and after exercising. Do start out slowly and gradually increase your workouts. (Have you heard this enough?) Do relax, breathe, and take time to enjoy your life. Don't jump into an exercise too quickly. Don't overdo an activity. Do get proper rest between exercise sessions. Do use proper body mechanics when lifting objects or executing sports skills. Don't exercise when you're ill or overtrained. Don't return to your normal exercise program until your athletic injuries have healed. Injuries only put you out of commission and into depression. When your body hurts, your mind goes into a state of depression, making it hard to enjoy any aspect of daily life. Anything good takes time, so take your workouts on a step-by-step basis and you'll soon reach your goals.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

Knee function is controlled by more muscles, tendons, ligaments, and cartilage than any other joint in your body. That’s one reason why it’s often the first joint to break down and cause pain. The other is that the knees are involved in virtually every sport or activity, making it the most common joint to suffer injury. On the surface though, the knee seems to be a wonderfully uncomplicated mechanism with a pretty simple job description: to bend and straighten your leg. Knee pain comes in more varieties than Baskin-Robbins ice cream. Here are some possible causes: It can be caused by a tear in a ligament, a tendon, a muscle, or a piece of cartilage, the cushioning that prevents two bones from rubbing against each other. It is often the result of doing the same movement over and over again. Typically, you can’t trace it to a specific incident; it’s more likely the result of one bike-a-thon or skate-a-thon too many. Knee pain is also sometimes affected or caused by a lack of stability and strength in the hips. Cross training is a good way to avoid knee pain. By varying your exercise activities — running one day, cycling the next — you use different muscles, or at least you use the same muscles in different ways. You can still injure your knees with a cross-training regimen, so be careful not to overdo it. If you do feel knee pain coming on, cut back on your exercise routine or switch to an activity that doesn’t aggravate the situation. Or, better yet, contact a qualified personal trainer to ensure that your form and technique are correct — improper technique is often the cause of joint problems. Some people with knee problems from running can bicycle with no pain whatsoever, and vice versa. Ice is always a good choice, too. But don’t mess around here. If pain persists, recurs frequently, or is caused by a single incident, get thee to a doctor ASAP.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

Nearly 80 percent of people suffer lower-back pain at some point in their adult lives. You may have a nagging stiffness that makes tying your shoes a difficult proposition, or you may have a chronic, debilitating pain that keeps you curled up in bed for weeks at a time. Although regular workouts (especially abdominal and back exercises) can do a lot to help prevent back pain, fitness activities can also cause back problems, particularly if you do a lot of pounding or use improper form when you run or cycle. You also can wrench your back by failing to bend your legs when you lift a weight off the rack. Of course, you also can throw out your back by doing completely nonathletic activities, such as improperly lifting a child or a bag of groceries. Always use proper form (lifting and bending with your legs, not your back), when lifting and carrying anything. In many instances of back pain, the worst thing you can do is just stay in bed. This weakens the very muscles that need to be loosened up and strengthened (and lack of activity may have led to the back pain in the first place). Another time-honored treatment, the heating pad, makes many back conditions worse by further inflaming the nerves. So what helps back pain heal? Time, for one thing. Many cases of back pain disappear within four weeks without any treatment at all. If that doesn’t work, you can see a variety of professionals. Most experts believe that the majority of back pain is muscular in nature and can be treated successfully with nonsurgical procedures, such as exercise, massage, physical therapy, and chiropractics. (To find a good chiropractor, get a recommendation from a friend, or better yet, from a medical doctor.) Swimming, walking, and yoga seem to be the best activities for limbering up tight back muscles. Back and abdominal strengthening exercises supervised by a physical therapist or trainer experienced in dealing with back pain can give you long-term immunity from further recurrence of back pain. For an episode you’re having right now, ice and gentle movement are probably your best bet for relief. If you experience severe back pain that prevents you from going about your normal activities, see your physician first to rule out any underlying medical causes, such as kidney infections or intestinal disorders.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

Stress fractures are typically not one but a series of micro-fractures or hairline breaks that run along the bone. Long-distance runners, hikers, backpackers, and in-line skaters are the most common sufferers of stress fractures. With a stress fracture, you typically don’t have a telltale snap or pop that occurs in other breaks. More often, you wake up one day with pain radiating down the top of one or two of your toes to the center of your foot or along your shinbone. You may feel pain when you walk. You may even notice redness or swelling on top of your foot. When you press your finger on that spot, you feel a stabbing pain that immediately grabs your attention. The front of the shin is also a likely place for a fracture accompanied by the trademark pinpoint of pain. Don’t try to treat this kind of pain yourself. It definitely warrants a visit to your orthopedist or podiatrist, who will X-ray your foot to make sure that your injury is a stress fracture. The doctor will probably prescribe anti-inflammatory medication, ice, and elevation, and implore you to stay off your feet. In extreme cases, he may even put you in a soft or hard cast. If you think you have a stress fracture, stop exercising immediately. When you continue to run on a stress fracture, you transform a minor injury into one that can take months to heal.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

The rotator cuff is a group of four muscles that surround and protect your shoulder joint. They’re particularly delicate and susceptible to injury. If you can’t raise your arm, you may have a rotator-cuff tear. The rotator cuff can tear if your arm is violently pulled or twisted or if you fall with your arm outstretched. The most likely cause of rotator-cuff injuries is damage from repetitive movements such as throwing, catching, swimming, and lifting weights that are too heavy. Which movements cause pain depends on which rotator-cuff muscle you damage and how badly you injure it. Rotator-cuff tears are often the reason for the early retirement of baseball players and weekend softball players alike. Rotator-cuff injuries usually are treated with ice and compression, plus strength-training exercises using very light weights. Ease up on hard-core weight-training exercises, particularly heavy bench pressing, both on a flat and an incline bench, and ask a trainer to check your form. Also, reeducate yourself on throwing, catching, or swim stroke technique — make sure to involve your entire body rather than just your arm and shoulder. In some cases, the rotator cuff is too far gone to strengthen through exercise, and the damaged muscle needs surgical repair or, at the very least, physical therapy.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

Internal and external rotation exercises, grouped together, help you strengthen the rotator cuff area deep in your shoulder. If you're starting an exercise routine, it's natural to want to target your waist or thighs, but it's better not to overlook exercises that strengthen an injury-prone area like the rotator cuff. You will need a tubular resistance band with handles, such as one of those available from any sporting goods store. If you can’t find this, try the other option, using dumbbells, mentioned after the exercise. External rotations Tie one end of the resistance band around a sturdy base such as a pole, a handrail from a staircase, or anything sturdy that is close to waist level. The knot need not be fancy. Simply slip one end of the band through the handle around the base. Stand at a distance equal to the length of the band and pivot your body so that either side is toward the base. Your feet should be hip-width apart. Take the opposite end of the band and hold it with the arm that is farthest away from the base. Keep the elbow bent and close to the body to form a 90-degree angle. Your fist should be centered forward to your body at start. Keep your wrist straight throughout the entire move. Slowly move your forearm outward to the side and slowly return to start as you maintain the 90-degree angle throughout the exercise. Stand tall and straight. Keep your abs in tight and butt tucked under. Do one or two sets of 10 to 15 repetitions on both sides of your body. Use the following variations to adapt this exercise to your fitness level: Decrease the resistance: To make the move easier, stand closer to the base of the band. The further you stand away from the base, the more difficult the move becomes. Use dumbbells: You can do this move anywhere. For variety, stand with your feet hip-width apart. Holding a dumbbell in each hand, bend your elbows so that your arms form 90-degree angles. Keep the elbows bent and next to your waist for the entire exercise. Your palms should be in front of your body facing the ceiling to start. Keep your shoulder blades squeezed together as you slowly move your arms out to the sides of your body. Return to start. Repeat ten times. Internal rotation The internal rotation exercise is very similar to the external rotation, except that it develops the internal rotator muscles instead of the external ones. Start out the same as with the external rotation exercise. This time, however, hold the resistance band with the arm that is closest to the base with your fist to the side. You will need to step a little farther away from the base to provide resistance. Stand erect as if you were a puppet being pulled by a string from the top of your head. Hold your abs in tight, and butt tucked under. Keep the shoulders relaxed and not raised up toward your ears. The elbows should be bent and close to your body throughout the movement. Slowly move forearm inward until it reaches just beyond the center of your body and then slowly return to start. Do one or two sets of 10 to 15 repetitions on both sides of the body. Also check out these modifications: Decrease the resistance: To make the move easier, stand closer to the base of the band. The further you stand away from the base the more difficult the move becomes. Always use the correct form as described above. Use dumbbells: You can do this move anywhere. For variety, stand with your feet hip-width apart holding a dumbbell in each hand. Bring both arms up and out to the sides at shoulder level, bending your elbows up at a 90-degree angle, so that your palms face forward. Keep your elbows still and pointed straight out from your shoulders as you rotate your arms so that the forearms go down, with the palms facing down, and then bring them slowly back up. Go only as far as is comfortable. Repeat ten times.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

That tingling and numbness radiating from your wrist to your palm and fingers was probably no big deal at first. After all, you could literally shake it off by shaking your hand. But lately, you’ve noticed that uncomfortable feeling has become painful and you’re losing your grip strength. The bad news: You might have carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). The good news: CTS can be treated. Carpal tunnel syndrome doesn’t usually go away on its own. As a matter of fact, if left untreated, CTS often gets worse. In some of the more severe cases, muscles in the thumb actually waste away and people lose their ability to sense hot and cold with the affected hand. CTS occurs when tendons in your hand swell and pinch your median nerve. The median nerve runs from your forearm into the palm of your hand. This nerve and the flexor tendons that bend your fingers pass through a narrow channel of bone and connective tissue called the carpel tunnel. The key word here is narrow. When the tendons swell, there’s no room in the tunnel for your median nerve. As it gets squeezed, your CTS begins. Most of the treatments for CTS focus on relieving the pressure on the median nerve. Therapy can range from over-the-counter anti-inflammatories that reduce tendon swelling to surgery that enlarges the carpal tunnel. Medications may relieve pain and swelling. In mild to moderate CTS, aspirin, ibuprofen, or naproxen sodium can reduce your pain and swelling. However, these drugs won’t alleviate numbness and tingling in your fingers or muscle weakness. If over-the-counter medications don’t work, your doctor may decide to inject a steroid such as cortisone into your hand. While a steroid will immediately reduce the tendon swelling that’s putting pressure on your median nerve, the effects will last only about six months. Restraint and rest can ease irritated tendons. Wearing a brace or split will keep you from moving your wrist and hand in ways that further irritate your already swollen tendons. This can be particularly important at bed time. Many CTS sufferers notice their symptoms flair up while their sleeping. If you often wake up at night with a numb or tingling hand, it’s probably because you’re sleeping with your wrist bent. Wearing a brace will keep your wrist still and straight. If restraint and medications don’t work, your doctor may advise you may need to eliminate or alter the hand and wrist movements that prompt your symptoms. Following this advice may mean you’ll have to make some difficult lifestyle choices. For instance, if your occupation requires you to perform the same repetitive movements with your wrist and hand, you may need to change the type of work you do. Or, if you use vibrating power tools, you may need to stop using those types of tools. CTS can be caused by another health condition, including diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and thyroid problems. If your doctor finds your CTS originated in an as-yet-untreated illness, she’ll begin your therapy by treating that medical condition. When all else fails, surgery. If no other course of therapy is easing or eliminating your CTS symptoms, having surgery that will lessen the pressure on your median nerve may be the only cure. During the operation, an orthopaedic surgeon will cut open the ligament that covers your carpal tunnel. This expands the width of the tunnel, eliminating the tight squeeze on your median nerve. The surgery is usually done on an outpatient basis under local anesthesia. You’ll probably need to wear a wrist brace for the first few weeks after the operation. Although full recovery may take up to a year, your grip strength will probably return within two to six months.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

You jumped high and came down hard, but you got the interception. Unfortunately, you also got a very sore and swollen ankle. Now you’re left wondering if you’ve got a strain, a sprain, or fracture. In both a sprain and a strain, something has been either stretched or partially or completely torn. The difference between the two lies in which body part has actually been injured. In the case of a sprain, you’ve stretched or torn a ligament. Ligaments are fibrous tissues that connect your bones to your joints. Sprains often occur in ankles or wrists. If you’ve got a strain, you’ve stretched or torn a muscle or a tendon. Tendons are tissues that connect your muscles to your bone. The hamstrings (back of thighs) and the lower back are common strain sites. Pain and swelling are common signs of both sprains and strains. However, a sprain can bring bruising with it. Whereas, if you’re suffering from a strain, you might experience muscle spasms. In both cases, you should be able to move the affected joint or muscle, but your mobility will be limited. Usually, the more severe the stretch or tear, the greater your pain and the more restricted your movement. Not all sprains and strains heal on their own. Some require surgery to repair. See a doctor if you notice redness or numbness in the area, can’t move the joint, or have significant pain. Unlike a sprain or strain, a fracture is a broken or cracked bone. Although you’ll be in pain with all three, the symptoms of a fracture are unique and can vary greatly depending on which bone is broken (say a rib as compared to your foot). Generally, however, breaks bring a few tell-tale signs. Bone is sticking through the skin Breathing is difficult and painful (if you’ve fractured a rib) Inability to move the injured part of your body or bear any weight on it Misshapen look to the affected area Numbness or blue color in the fingers or toes (if you’ve broken an arm or leg) Broken bones are serious business and should always be treated by a doctor. Don’t attempt to set or split a broken bone yourself. Go straight to your doctor’s office or the nearest emergency room.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

A concussion is a brief loss of awareness or brain functioning after a head injury (such as a blow or fall). Some people can have a concussion and not even realize it. Others suffer a syndrome of symptoms that can last many weeks. Although most concussions heal on their own, it’s important to know the symptoms of these head injuries — and which ones are serious enough to warrant taking a trip to your doctor’s office. Transitory confusion and amnesia are the two most common symptoms of a concussion. Often the amnesia is limited to not being able to remember how the concussion occurred. In some cases, the head injury will cause a person to black out, but this loss of consciousness usually doesn’t last for more than 15 minutes. You need to see your doctor right away if you’ve recently hit your head and are experiencing any of the following: Dizziness or a lack of balance Loss of taste or smell Nausea or vomiting Persistent headache Prolonged memory loss Ringing in the ears Slurred speech Vision or eye disturbances, including pupils that are bigger than normal, or one pupil that is bigger than the other Although a concussion is considered a mild brain injury, it’s nothing to take lightly. Your brain needs time to heal from whatever caused the concussion. Post-concussion syndrome occurs when concussion symptoms last for several days or weeks after the concussion occurs. Along with the symptoms listed above, a person suffering from post-concussion syndrome might also experience Anxiety Depression Fatigue Insomnia Irritability Lightheadedness Sensitivity to light and noise Trouble concentrating Although these symptoms usually go away within a week or two, they can last for several months, or even as long as a year. Although scientists are still searching for the exact reason why, they do know that if you’ve had a concussion in the past, you’re more likely to have another one. This is especially true if you didn’t allow your brain enough time to heal from the last injury.