| Hamstring SpasmsThe hamstring muscles (biceps femoris, semitendinosus, and semimembranosus) are long muscles that cross 2 joints (your hip and knee) and work by contracting and expanding. The contraction or expansion motion of the hamstring muscles is determined by the signals that are sent to the brain. When a muscle contracts involuntarily (i.e. the signal for the muscle to contract overcomes the signal for it to expand, or relax) it can result in a hamstring muscle spasm. The hamstring muscles, along with the quadriceps, calves, feet, hands, and abdominals are the most common muscle groups affected by muscle spasms. A muscle spasm can be a small twinge or extremely painful and cause you to immediately stop whatever you are doing until the pain passes. A spasm can involve the entire muscle, part of it, or other muscles adjacent to it. In some cases, a severe muscle spasm may not release on its own and manual stretching may be necessary to help relax and lengthen the contracted muscle. If the connective tissue attached to the muscle is weak or the spasm is particularly severe, it may cause the tendons or ligaments to strain or tear. Causes of Hamstring SpasmA muscle spasm is caused by abnormal activity in the hamstrings, either in the nerve signals or within the muscles themselves. This abnormal activity can be caused by:
Symptoms of Hamstring Muscle SpasmWhen you experience a hamstring muscle spasm you may feel:
Treatments for Hamstring Muscle SpasmHamstring spasms are frustrating to live with especially when they occur during activity and sports. Keeping your body hydrated and replacing electrolytes during and following activities are positive steps toward preventing spasms. When a spasm occurs, there are home treatments you can use to relax the muscle and reduce the spasm. Proper treatment will get you back to regular activities sooner, stop your pain, and reduce the risk of hamstring muscle injury and further spasm. If you are getting spasms due to a pinched nerve from a spinal injury, you really need to see your physician. You might be able to use conservative treatment methods to help reduce the frequency or severity of such spasms, but the underlying cause will remain without assistance from a physician or surgeon. The most widely recommended conservative - yet effective - treatments for muscle spasm are:
Outside of change in diet, the remaining conservative treatments focus on heat (this temporarily increases flexibility and elongates muscles, tendons and ligament), an increase in blood flow and stretches. Cold compression IS NOT a good method to deal with hamstring muscle spasms, but can be used if you suffer re-injury of your hamstring due to the spasms or other activities. Anytime when your hamstring is swollen, inflamed or painful without experiencing the spasms, you should be using cold. The rest of the time, when you are suffering from hamstring muscle spasms, you should be using Circulation Boost to relieve your hamstring muscle spasms. Promoting blood flow within a muscle or soft tissue injury to help improve muscle function and/or heal muscle strians/tears is a concept that has been utilized for centuries. This is where the focus has to be if you are seeking long-term improvement. Oxygen and nutrients, carried within the blood, are critical for the body to heal itself. Without proper blood flow, recovering from an injury or condition will be delayed...sometimes for a very long period of time. More blood now begins to flow effectively to spasming muscles in and around the treated area. Spasmed muscles are typically starved for nutrients - and need the extra blood flow to recover as it is through the blood the body carries the oxygen, water and nutrients needed for proper and long-term healing. Now, on to recommendation number two in the journey to deal with your spasming muscle... The Leg TShellz Wrap® - Improved Blood Flow & Flexibility For Your HamstringImproved tissue flexibility and ncreased blood flow can best be achieved at home via use of the TShellz Wrap®. Using a Leg TShellz Wrap® on your hamstring stimulates blood flow wherever you apply the wrap - blood flow that relaxes the spasming muscle to end the spasm cycle. Use of this device results in a dramatic increase in blood flow to the area - all in a non-invasive manner. Have you seen what happens when you add water to a flower wilted from drought? In essence, your injured muscle is much like a "wilted" flower; your body wants to heal its injury, but needs lots of nutrients to do it. Blood brings new life to your tissue by delivering healing nutrients and oxygen that are vital to your tissue. In addition, the blood carries away toxins and waste cleaning the area and healing it faster. Without a good supply of blood, your spasming hamstring muscle simply won't get the nutrients it needs and will continue to spasm. Using a TShellz Wrap® will not expose you to the risk of causing further harm to soft tissue like you can when using rigorous exercise. The Leg TShellz Wrap® accomplishes the goal of enhanced blood flow without the need for intensive exercise and as such reduces your risk of re-injury. The healing energy from the TShellz Wrap® will warm soft tissues, improve blood circulation, and boost metabolism and enzyme activity. In stimulating localized blood flow to damaged soft tissue, you provide needed oxygen, water and nutrients to grow and add collagen. In addition, you will experience a clearing of toxins and excess fluid build up from the injury site. Over the intermediate term, this helps to reduce incidents of swelling as trapped fluids will be whisked away - reducing pressure on blood vessels. Who Should Use the TShellz Wrap®We recommend the use of a TShellz Wrap®:
Increased Blood Circulation = Reduced Risk of Muscle Spasm Increased Blood Circulation = Increased Healing CapabilityTShellz Wraps® contain a unique Carbon Fiber Energy Pad which is flexible and will shape to conform to your body. This Energy Pad emits a uniform wave of perfectly safe energy over its entire surface. This energy is absorbed by soft tissue in the treatment area, opening blood vessels, resulting in an increase in blood flow. Increased blood circulation is what your body needs to accelerate the healing of soft tissue and this is why we recommend the TShellz Wrap®. The TShellz Wrap® is an FDA Registered Medical Device and is suitable for use in therapeutic clinics and FROM HOME. It is completely safe for people and patients to use for themselves. The technology found in a TShellz Wrap® has been used for decades in the worlds of professional and amateur sports - a contributing factor as to why athletes seem to recover from injuries so quickly. Have you ever wondered by an athlete can return to activity after 3 or 4 weeks following a soft tissue injury - while your average person takes much longer to return back to normal? The secret isn't really that much of a secret - it involves consistent treatments (meaning multiple times a day) using a treatment like the TShellz Wrap® to stimulate blood flow to the injured tissues. Most athletes have the luxury of using in-house facilities many times per day. How many us can afford the time and money to visit a clinic multiple times a day? Very few indeed. This is how you can gain some of the advantages that athletes enjoy in their injury recovery - by using a device like the TShellz Wrap® two or three times a day on a consistent basis. Consistent Treatments = Consistent And Long Term ImprovementWhat Else Makes the TShellz Wrap® So Special?We believe the TShellz Wrap® to be one of the most effective home treatments to increase localized blood flow to soft tissue in and around the treatment area. We can promise that you will receive a product that is designed to be safe and does what it is supposed to do... reduce pain (as stated in "Therapeutic Heat and Cold", 4th edition. - Ed. Justus F. Lehmann, M.D., Williams, and Wilkin) temporarily increase length & flexibility of soft tissue (as stated in "Therapeutic Heat and Cold", 4th edition. - Ed. Justus F. Lehmann, M.D., Williams, and Wilkin) and aid your body in recovering from tendon, muscle and other soft tissue injuries via enhanced blood flow. The unit plugs into a standard wall outlet to get its power. The nice thing about the power supply is that the same unit can be used in North America and overseas as well. It has the capability to operate between 110v and 230v. The TShellz Wrap® has a special signal controller that can be set for 3 different power levels of application (3=High, 2=Medium, 1=Low). The cord is long enough that you can sit or lie comfortably and watch TV, read or surf the net while you're using it. Treatments are max 30 minutes in duration and the device can be worn over clothing. This allows you to use the device at work, at home, or really anywhere you have access to an electrical outlet. Directly below you will find some summarized points from Chapter 9 of "Therapeutic Heat and Cold", 4th edition. Generally it is accepted that heat on soft tissue (muscles, tendons, ligaments) provides the following desirable effects:
...A Quick Recap of Benefits That Can Be Achieved Via the TShellz Wrap®..
When Should I Use My TShellz Wrap During the Day?The most common question we receive from individuals prior to purchasing is - how many times a day should I be using my TShellz Wraps® and when should I be using them? While treatment plans will differ for each individual and their specific condition, there are general guidelines that should be adhered to.
The Leg TShellz Wrap® would then be used:
Product Advisors are available 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Eastern Standard Time Monday to Friday. Learn More About Hamstring Injuries & TreatmentsI want to learn more about Hamstring Post-Surgery Recovery I want to learn more about the TShellz® Circulatory Boost Wrap I want to learn more about Ice & Heat: Which Is Better For Treatment? I want to learn more about Stretching for the Hamstring I want to learn more about Soft Tissue Injury Treatments During your recovery, you will probably have to modify and/or eliminate any activities that cause pain or discomfort at the location of your soft tissue injury until the pain and inflammation settle. Always consult your doctor and/or Physical Therapist before using any of our outstanding products, to make sure they are right for you and your condition. The more diligent you are with your treatment and rehabilitation, the faster you will see successful results! |
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