Runner s knee is a very common problem with athletes. It is definitely not something one needs to worry about. In fact, with certain exercises, it can be prevented and if you do develop a runner s knee, it can be treated with some exercises as well. There are special sports medical practitioners who prescribe not only regular physiotherapy, but also specific exercises to deal with specific sports injuries. To fight with runner s knee pain, there are a few exercises. 

But the four most important ones are described in detail below.

Quads: For performing proper quads, all you need is a back wall for additional support. You need to hold yourself against the wall and keep your legs apart from each other. The legs should be folded in the knees. In this position, you have to move up till the knee position with a minimum of one minute hold time in the knee position. You can repeat this exercise 10 times at a stretch before moving on to the next exercise.
Hamstring: This is a fairly easier exercise than the previous one. You have to stand straight with your legs apart. Bend downwards from your hips. Relax your neck and back. Ease your head downwards as well. Keep your hands behind. Join both your hands and give it a stretch. If you think that this position is straining your neck or back a little too much, then you can simply stretch your hands without joining them.
Calves: Calves is a standard exercise that is prescribed by medical practitioners and physiotherapists for easing out the pain caused by runner s knee. You have to stand with your hand against the wall. Put your left leg forward and bend it at the knees. Stand on your right heel. Hold yourself in this position for 20 to 30 seconds before changing the legs and doing the same.
Lateral: Lateral is also one of the easiest and common forms of exercises. You have to stand with your legs directly below your hips. Then stretch your right leg apart. Without bending your knees, try to touch the toes of your right leg with the fingers of your left hand. Hold this position for 20 to 30 seconds before changing the position and performing the lateral with your left leg.
Thus, these are some of the very fundamental exercises that one should follow in order to get quick relief from the pains of a runner s knee. These exercises are very easy and help in reducing pain.

Runner's Knee - 4 Most Important Exercises for it

5 Ways to Stop Muscle Cramps

Muscle cramps are feared and loathed by all of us alike – they hurt, they slow us down and they just give us a helpless feeling! The most common cause of these cramps is premature fatigue which affects the reflex control of muscles. Here are 5 ways guaranteed to beat these troublesome muscle cramps:

1. Take rest
The most easy and sure-shot way to kill a muscle cramp is to take rest. Just rest your body, be at one place and the cramp will not last more than 3-4 minutes. Moving around will only cause the pain to be aggravated and eventually affect other areas as well.

2. Consume solutions rich in salt
Whenever you encounter a troublesome cramp, the first instinct is to reach for water. However, studies have shown that salt solutions are far more effective in countering cramps as compared to plain water. You can have pickle juice and similar drinks which have a high salt concentration.

3. Be physically active
The most common reason for muscle cramps is over-straining of the body. If you are planning to indulge in an extremely intensive physical activity, make sure to train well in advance. Also, keep the duration and intensity of the training at a similar level to that of the actual activity.

4. Keep your body hydrated
Dehydration is the root of a number of troublesome conditions, muscle cramps being one of them. Make sure to always carry a water bottle with you and drink a minimum of 7-8 glasses of water on a daily basis.

5. Indulge in light passive muscle stretching
When faced with a muscle cramp, in addition to resting, try and gently stretch the affected muscle. This continuous and light passive stretching lets the brain know that it can relax the muscle and help it return to normal.




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5 Winning Ways to Stop those Nasty Muscle Cramps

Frozen shoulder is a condition where the patient encounters continuous shoulder stiffness and pain. It could last for several weeks. Inflammation around the shoulder increases the inability to move or stretch properly. This happens when somebody is recovering from an injury. Frozen shoulder can also occur when somebody is wearing a sling or a cast. It also occurs if someone is recovering from surgery or experiencing joint pain. It may also be experienced as a symptom of thyroid, joint disorders or diabetes.

Some of the causes and risk factors for creating a frozen shoulder are as follows:

    If you are 40 years or older, your chances of a frozen shoulder are higher than others
    Recovering from a damage or surgery
    Hormonal imbalance
    Ladies are more prone to a frozen shoulder
    Cervical disc infection that influences the nerves around the shoulder
    Not moving your arm because of other pain or wounds
    Having a previous medical condition like diabetes or other heart diseases
    Open-heart surgery or spinal surgeries
    Poor diet and unhealthy lifestyle

The most widely recognized symptoms of a frozen shoulder include:

    Stiffness around the shoulder usually happens in one shoulder at a time (not both) and will probably return in the same shoulder. Muscle, joint and bone agony in and around the shoulders or arms may be experienced.
    Restricted scope of movement
    Having difficulty moving and using the shoulders or arms ordinarily, (for example, experiencing difficulty in getting dressed, driving, holding objects before you, and gestures.)

Treatment:

    Stretch the Shoulder: Before beginning shoulder exercises for a frozen shoulder, try to warm up your shoulder by doing a few warm up exercises. This will improve the blood supply in the affected area and avoid future injuries by making your body more comfortable with the motion. The best approach is to extend and warm up the shoulder by applying heat for 10 to 15 minutes, scrubbing down or showering with Epsom salt.
    Non-intrusive treatment: While these activities mentioned above can be easily performed at home, if pain continues and makes it difficult to move around or work ordinarily, see a physiotherapist who can appoint particular activities and can enhance your scope of movement, flexibility and strength.
    Acupuncture: Acupuncture is considered one of the best treatment choices for any joint and nerve related problem. The treatment is based on focusing on the trigger points of the pain and putting pressure on them via needles. The treatment is not painful and is known to produce good results in the long run.
    Dietary Supplements: Various supplements can be taken with the recommendation of a doctor, in order to improve recovery. Alfalfa (horse feed) and turmeric are two of the most regularly recommended elements that relieve swelling and repair the tissue in the shoulder.

Best Remedies for a Frozen Shoulder

Hot and Cold therapy is one of the most popular home remedies for any kind of joint pain or muscle sprain. In some cases applying heat therapy and cold therapy alternatively, can help relieve the pain while for others only one form of therapy is necessary. To understand what to use when, one should first understand the effect of heat and cooling on the body.

Applying a heat pack or immersing the affected limb in hot water improves blood circulation and makes the muscles more flexible. Thus, it can help relax a muscle and fasten the healing of damaged tissues. On the other hand, cold therapy or cryotherapy reduces blood flow to the affected site. This helps relieve inflammation and pain caused by it. It can also make the area feel numb by reducing nerve activity temporarily.

Types of Heat Therapy
Heat therapy can be categorized as dry heat and moist heat. Dry heat involves using saunas or dry heating packs to relieve pain. This is also known as conducted heat therapy. As the name suggests, moist heat involves the use of steamed towels, hot baths and moist heating packs. This is also known as convection heat therapy. Moist heat is usually considered more effective than dry heat.

Types of Cold Therapy
Cold therapy may be applied to a part of the body or to the entire body. This includes ice packs, coolant sprays, ice baths, ice massages and whole body, cold therapy chambers.

How to use heat and cold therapy?
The sooner heat and cold therapy is given to a person, the faster they will recover from their pains. Heat therapy can be given to a person for extended periods of time but when giving cold therapy, a person should not be exposed to a cold pack or ice bath for more than 10-15 minutes. Care should also be taken no to apply ice or a frozen pack directly on the skin as it can damage the skin and nerves.

When not to use Heat Therapy?
If the injury site is swollen or bruised, cold therapy is better than heat therapy. Heat therapy should also not be applied to an open wound. People suffering from conditions such as diabetes, dermatitis, deep vein thrombosis, vascular diseases and multiple sclerosis should also avoid heat therapy as these conditions can increase the risk of burns and other such complications. Pregnant women should also consult a doctor before using a hot tub or sauna.

When not to use Cold Therapy?
Cold therapy is avoidable for treating stiff joints and muscles. People suffering from poor circulation and sensory disorders should also avoid using cold therapy without a doctor s supervision. 

Hot & Cold Therapy - How It Can Treat Pain?

Stress is sometimes good for you. When you stretch yourself beyond your capacity, your body accepts challenge and increase the capacity to cope up with challenge. To a certain extent, it is good for body. But when the stress crosses the limits, it starts hurting you. That's the bad stress for you. Moderate stress for too long a time also is bad for you. Most of the hormonal diseases like diabetes, thyroid etc. Occur because of long standing underlying moderate stress. 

Stress can be physical or mental. Physical stress is due to long and continuous physical activities like walking, jogging, travelling, cycling. Mental stress is mainly because of financial tension or relationship distress. Both types of stress cause similar damages to body. Stress is the main underlying cause behind diseases like high blood pressure, heart disease, thyroid, diabetes, kidney disease, peptic ulcer, bleeding disorders, cancer, recurrent infections etc. 

Finding out the reason of stress and removal of cause of stress should be the main line of treatment of such diseases.

Stress - Good and Bad

Muscle sprains and ligament tears are one of the most common injuries that medical practitioners encounter on a regular basis. These injuries are painful and can also limit one s movement, needless to say. However, there are simple things that can be done as soon as the injury happens so that the impact of the injury can be reduced, the symptoms minimised, and recovery improved.

A sprain is a tear of the ligament. The ligament is responsible for connecting the tissue strands that connect the bone to the muscle. When this sprain affects the muscle or even the tendon, it is known as a strain.
Sprains are very common and can occur due to a fall, twist, or impact. Most commonly affected areas are the ankles and wrists. Sprains happen when there is a pull or a twist of the ankle or the joint. This is very common in athletes and can be caused by repetitive motions in the knees, wrists, elbows, etc.

The most common symptom is pain, swelling, limited movement, and sometimes bruising. The degree of these injuries depends on its severity. The most common ways to treat such injuries are as follows.

RICE therapy: RICE is an acronym for rest, ice, compress, and elevate. Rest the affected area immediately by stopping any further activity. Ice the area using an ice wrap, with the ice cubes wrapped in a towel or a cotton cloth. Repeat this exercise if possible for every 20 minutes. This will reduce the swelling and pain. Compress the area using a sling or a wrap. This will help in reducing the swelling. Elevate the affected area if possible above the heart. This will help control the blood flow and thereby reduce the swelling and pain.
Pain control: If there is pain that needs medication, go for the non-steroidal drugs like ibuprofen or acetaminophen. If it is a child that is injured, it is advisable to give non-aspirin ones.
Seek professional help: Most sprains can be self-limiting over a couple of days. However, it is advisable to seek medical help if there is significant pain, swelling, or numbness, open wounds or bruises, or inability to move the joint.
The doctor may decide to do the following.

Scanning or imaging to rule out any internal hard/soft tissue injury like fracture or tear
Immobilise the joint with a splint or a cast
Start physical therapy if there is severe pain and immobility
Surgical repair if there is a ligament injury
A word of caution to athletes or people who are very active physically is to go easy on the joint. In an eagerness to quickly get back to their routine, more and severe damage may be caused. This can be avoided by allowing time for complete healing.

Muscle & Ligament Sprain - Tips To Help You Deal With It!

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