Extreme DOMS- I can’t walk

devash77

It’s day 2 since those seemingly innocent calf raises. I’m not green to fitness. It seems super bizarre, but I can’t walk today without support and excruciating pain. I know movement helps work it out, but even lying in bed and gently flexing my feet hurts so much I want to cry.

Any thoughts? Tips?

MaltedTea

Foam rolling.
Massage.
Bath (or "soak" your legs up to your calves).
Rest.

Consider reducing the load on your calves the next time you do this particular workout.

ninerbuff

Nsaids and epsom salt bath. But movement is still the best solution.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

devash77

ninerbuff wrote: »

Nsaids and epsom salt bath. But movement is still the best solution.

Thank you.
I hate meds but I decided if that and some Epsom can help me move, it’s worth it. Going to try it.

devash77

MaltedTea wrote: »

Foam rolling.
Massage.
Bath (or "soak" your legs up to your calves).
Rest.

Consider reducing the load on your calves the next time you do this particular workout.

Thanks

NewDayAdy

devash77 wrote: »

It’s day 2 since those seemingly innocent calf raises. I’m not green to fitness. It seems super bizarre, but I can’t walk today without support and excruciating pain. I know movement helps work it out, but even lying in bed and gently flexing my feet hurts so much I want to cry.

Any thoughts? Tips?

I’m not sure if it will work on calves, but it’s magic for planter fasciitis and bad arthritis on my hands. My doctor recommended to me and you can pick it up at the drugstore. It smells a bit mentholly, but doesn’t feel cold or hot. It’s called Magnilife pain relieving foot cream. It’s helped me to walk again in two days and let me work on stretching my muscles and tendons.
Also, make sure you are super hydrated if you don’t already.
Sending hugs and wishes that you find relief!

Jthanmyfitnesspal

@MaltedTea and others nailed it. I also like using ice.

Long hard hikes always give me DOMS, so I feel your pain.

Speakeasy76

Is it possible it's a muscle strain and not just "regular" DOMS?

In either case, something like Icy Hot, arnica gel or any other pain-relieving ointment you apply directly to the muscle is supposedly better for muscle-based pain than stuff like ibuprofen and tylenol, according to my rheumatologist.

devash77

Thank you for the help! I’ll have to have someone find the gel/cream for me.

I did go to the Dr today. He said it’s Rhabdomyolysis. Thankfully my kidneys are still functioning well, so it’s strict rest and fluids fora week. Only very gentle stretching.

Kind of a freak thing I guess, but you can bet I’ll be a little less savage in the gym for a while.

ninerbuff

devash77 wrote: »

Thank you for the help! I’ll have to have someone find the gel/cream for me.

I did go to the Dr today. He said it’s Rhabdomyolysis. Thankfully my kidneys are still functioning well, so it’s strict rest and fluids fora week. Only very gentle stretching.

Kind of a freak thing I guess, but you can bet I’ll be a little less savage in the gym for a while.

Really? The symptoms for rhabdomyolysis are pretty severe and usually require major care. I fail to see how walking with one's body weight (unless one is morbidly obese) would cause muscle breakdown in that formation.


A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
[/quote]

RunsWithBees

devash77 wrote: »

Thank you for the help! I’ll have to have someone find the gel/cream for me.

I did go to the Dr today. He said it’s Rhabdomyolysis. Thankfully my kidneys are still functioning well, so it’s strict rest and fluids fora week. Only very gentle stretching.

Kind of a freak thing I guess, but you can bet I’ll be a little less savage in the gym for a while.

My guess was going to be that maybe the calf raises caused you some Achilles tendinitis which can make walking diffucult but I’m so glad you went to your doctor, rhabdo can be very serious! Take it easy and hope you heal up soon

devash77

No tendonitis. Labs showed that my creatine kinase was 3200, so not insane but still not within the 40-160 normal range. That along with the obvious swelling confirmed his diagnosis, but my kidney labs were all good. I guess it’s a super mild case?

I’m definitely in the obese category at present, but not excessively. I can’t figure out how calf raises wrecked me so much tbh. Never happened before, and I’ve been active most of my life. Didn’t do the calf raises from being sedentary. Is it age?

I’m kinda freaked about doing leg day again.

Jthanmyfitnesspal

Those must have been some crazy calf raises! I mean, I've gotten pretty sore just by doing body-weight calf raises on one leg standing on a step. I think the thing is you can extend much more than you normally would walking, so the muscle gets lots of micro-tears.

The way to work up to it is to do lots of reps of something much lighter. I'd suggest cycling (stationary or otherwise), including off-the-seat work.

LisaGetsMoving

There are some conditions, like hypothyroidism, that can contribute to development of rhabdomyolysis.

NVintage

Maybe get vitamin D checked sometime, too? I've been having all sorts of muscle issues for a little over a month and tested just a little under the adequate levels of Vitamin D. I still am not 100% sure if it was the chicken or the egg- whether the muscle issues caused low Vitamin D because I haven't been walking outside as much or if I was already deficient when the muscle issues started...

devash77

LisaGetsMoving wrote: »

There are some conditions, like hypothyroidism, that can contribute to development of rhabdomyolysis.

Thanks for mentioning this. I will ask my doctor about it next week.

devash77

NVintage wrote: »

Maybe get vitamin D checked sometime, too? I've been having all sorts of muscle issues for a little over a month and tested just a little under the adequate levels of Vitamin D. I still am not 100% sure if it was the chicken or the egg- whether the muscle issues caused low Vitamin D because I haven't been walking outside as much or if I was already deficient when the muscle issues started...

Great thinking! It's so common to be deficient in vit D. I'll ask my doctor about this too. I've been supplementing, but maybe we can get some labs for a better idea of how much I really need right now.

Jthanmyfitnesspal

So, you feeling better yet? Inquiring minds need to know!