Injury eating

I messed up my knee and ankle last weekend at the dog park. It's not broken, thankfully, but I'm on crutches for probably another week. So I haven't excercised at all this week (my regimine usually involves running with the dog at the park or climbing around the playground with my son).
But I'm suddenly craving a lot of carb-rich foods, like bread and pasta, and protein-rich foods, like meat. When I eat those foods though, I don't seem to hurt as much. Is this all in my head or is there some science to back this up?