What is it?

-       A common muscle injury in many sports and athletic activities, particularly kicking sports.

-       The most common mechanisms of injury are:

-       Acceleration/Deceleration

-       High Speed Running

-       Kicking

-       The Rectus Femoris (most central quadriceps muscle of the 3 that exist) is most commonly injured

Why does it happen?

-       There are many things that increase your quad injury risk like:

-       A spike in training load, such as:

 ·       Increased total distance in a session

·      Increased high speed running

·      Increased volume/intensity of change of direction

·      Increased kicking volume/intensity

-       Decreased quadriceps strength

-       Decreased quadriceps/hip flexor flexibility

-       Decreased stability around your trunk and pelvis

-       If you have had a previous quad injury

What does it look like?

-       Often feel a sharp pull in a localised area of the quadriceps under load, but can occasionally feel like a gradual stiffening of the muscle

-       Pain often leads to inability to function at the same level, ie you need to come off the ground!

-       There may be some associated swelling and bruising dependant on the severity of the injury

-       Walking, running and kicking are often painful for a period of time after the injury

How to get better?

-       Protect and respect the injury and biological healing

-       Gradually re-gain strength and flexibility through manual therapy and exercise therapy

-       Gradually re-introduce activities your sport requires (such as high speed running and kicking) without any awareness or apprehension

Physiotherapists Role:

It is vital to go see a physiotherapist if you have suffered a quad injury to:

-       Get the appropriate diagnosis- A physio should be able to give you a fair idea on how long it might take to return to your chosen sport/form of exercise based on things like the location of injury/severity of objective findings

-       Rehabilitate Appropriately to decrease risk of re-injury – A physio will guide you through a plan to help you regain your strength and function, to a stage where you are ready to return to your chosen activity