Tennis Leg: How to Treat and Prevent Calf Injuries
Warmer weather is among us and the courts are alive with the sound of play!
After months of indoor play or a hiatus from tennis, many eager players are sprinting to the courts in droves to get back to the sport that they love. Sadly, injury can loom around the corner for many of these unsuspecting individuals. Luckily, we can help you avoid the inconvenience of dealing with pesky “tennis leg” or a calf injury while also making you a better and more resilient player!
To begin, lets get an understanding of the injury so we can know what actually goes wrong. The common injury in the sport of tennis known as “tennis leg” is nothing more than a strain of the calf muscle in the lower leg known as the gastrocnemius. This is the bulky muscle that is very prominent and shapely in our lower leg. During an event of a strain to this muscle, microscopic amounts of tearing occur in the muscle itself. This leads to pain, weakness, inflammation, and sometimes bruising. The good news is that this type of injury does not require surgery, but it does require guided attention and care to properly rehabilitate.
So, how can you avoid being one of the unlucky souls who get tennis leg? Simple, there are 3 easy, actionable steps we can take to better prepare yourself!
Warm Up - As simple as this sounds, many of the tennis clients I see do not perform any type of warm up before playing. A proper warm up improves blood flow and muscle elasticity, giving you more mobility in your sport and preparing your body for intense movement.
Strength Training - A strong muscle is a more resilient muscle. Running exerts a force 3 to 4 times your body weight on your legs, so you need to prepare yourself to better absorb that force. Including calf training into your weights regiment is essential. A simple test to evaluate your calf strength is to to a Standing Calf Raise Test. A healthy, strong calf should be able to get 30 repetitions with no issue.
Stretching - Muscular strains can occur because you took your body to a point where it has not been before and therefore, exceeds its capacity. Spending focused time on stretching allows you to safely put your body and joints into extreme ranges of motion so you will be safer getting into them during tennis. Stretching also has the added benefit as a low-intensity recover activity to wind down after intense matches.