Aches, pains frequently follow holiday weekend, but there's help
10:03 a.m. Monday, July 7, 2008
Okay, weekend warriors, you know who you are: The go-for-the gusto types who spent the three-day weekend playing an extra round of golf or even working out a little too strenuously.
Physical therapist and athletic trainer Mark Cairns says your muscles aches, and even injuries, are almost too predictable.
"We see it quite often," he said. "People just don't think about doing any stretching or warming up before they do activities, and they wake up the next morning and they can't move, can't get out of bed. We see it quite often this time of year with keeping the yard up and maybe deciding they'll get on a bicycle and they haven't gotten on a bicycle in a year."
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Especially for people over 40, Cairns recommends stretching your muscles in some way every day, regardless of your activity level.
"I'm not saying you have to stretch all the time, but a time or two during the day is not a bad thing, especially after you've done activities. That's when it's really important to stretch," he said.
If this information comes too late for you warriors who overdid it this weekend, don't go running for the heating pad just yet.
"The more acute the strained muscle is -- say something happened the previous night to cause your pain -- ice is always the best thing," Cairns said. "There are a few caveats. I don't usually put ice on somebody's neck, and I usually don't put ice on somebody's upper back because those areas are so close to your heart, I'm not sure you actually get a good relief. But anywhere else I usually use ice and then after a day or two, start to incorporate more heat."
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