AdventureDad

In the beginning of December I had an unfortunate injury. I ripped my left calf muscle during a tennis match and was in severe pain for some time. According to the doctors I was lucky to have ripped the muscle instead of the Achilles tendon and recovery has gone well.

When a muscle tears it fills with blood and swells. My calf was still large a couple of weeks after the accident and my foot was huge. It looked like a football. Even though it looked like hell the foot was uninjured. As the swelling in the calf decreases the foot absorbs the excess blood. It hurts and looks disgusting. It has that nasty blue/green color. After two weeks I had to visit the emergency room again to check for blood cloths. They can be deadly so I was a bit worried. Turns out everything was in order but the ultrasound showed a severe tear of the muscle. At this time I started taking an anti inflammatory drug called Voltaren which is well known among athletes. I've used it a few times, both the pills and the cream, and it always has a very strong healing effect on me. The cream is weaker and can be used regularly.

I've been playing professional tennis for many years, done marathons, mountain biking, rock climbing, skiing, and so far managed to avoid any serious injury throughout my life. So I can't bitch too much about getting hurt. The pain from a ripped muscle isn't pleasant but it was less than I imagined. After the standard trip to the emergency room I jumped around on crutches for a couple of weeks before starting rehabilitation. The good part with getting an injury like this is that I got ride in a limo to and from work:-)) Since I'm used to exercising a lot I went back to the gym after ten days. Initially I couldn't do much with my legs but that didn't stop me for working out the rest of my body. People looked a bit funny at me as I jumped around the free weights with crutches but I took it as a compliment. Biking is easy on the calf so I started using a stationary bike early on to get some aerobic training. Working out went smoother than expected. It was impossible to push off with my right leg but except for that my abilities were normal.

After two weeks I threw the crutches and started walking carefully. The best way to get the muscle back in shape is to start using it again. That's a bit painful but improvements can be seen almost daily. After a month I could walk without limping even though the muscle still felt tight. I could have started running and playing tennis again after two months but decided to take some extra time off. I've seen friends who start training seriously too early after an injury and therefore continue to have problems. Fortunately we went on a six week vacation to NYC and Mexico during this time which made it easier staying away from serious workouts. A few hundred push ups and sit-ups a day plus some mountain biking was perfect and gave my calf some extra time to heal.

After three months I was back on the tennis court again and it felt great. The calf was still a little tight but strangely my tennis was great. It felt like I'd only taken a week off. As the ice cleared on the streets in Sweden I started running again and that was a nice feeling. It's now been four months since the injury and I feel more or less 100% recovered.  I'm back on the normal schedule, running twice a week, tennis twice a week, and the gym a few times a week.  If spring ever arrives I'll add biking a couple of times a well.  If you've ever been in extremely good shape you would know that being back working out is a hard to beat feeling.

If you do have a similar injury I have some advice. Hold your leg high during the first week or two to avoid excessive swelling. Start using the muscle as the swelling decreases but don't start training seriously too early. Visit a doctor and get professional advice on the best rehabilitative exercises. Use an anti inflammatory drug if desired. Be patient, your body will thank you later:-))

Categories: Family, Tennis
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