Just because the pain has gone, does not mean you are out of the woods just yet. You have actually only got back to the same point from when you were originally injured! Now you have the freedom to move pain-free and begin to strengthen the injured area so that the same injury doesn't happen again.
It is one of the most common things we see in the clinic - clients come back pain-free and believe everything is fine and dandy again. Yes, we are in a much better position than before but we have only got you back to the original state you were in before you got injured.
The area got injured for a reason and this could be from a plethora of reasons but the number one issue normally comes down to a lack of strength!
WHEN IN DOUBT, MAKE SOMETHING STRONGER!
No one ever complained about being too strong and injured muscles believe the same thing. If you can make a muscle as strong as possible there is a much lower risk of it ever becoming injured. Obviously, there needs to be balance through the body and making sure one side isn't stronger than the other.
Most of the time, once the pain has disappeared, this is when you can really start to play with it and make sure the injury never occurs again! Therapists give their clients specific exercises for a reason and they need to be done for the foreseeable future and not just have a timeline on them.
All injuries are different and they vary from person to person. A hamstring strain on one person will be completely different from another. There is no exact timeline for any injury. Just because your therapist said it should be fine in 4-6 weeks does not mean it can't be better in 3 or take even longer than 6! So many factors come into play with injuries: NUTRITION, SLEEP, HYDRATION, ACTIVITY LEVELS, STRESS, MOTIVATION, etc.
So it all really comes down to you and you alone. Your therapist will help facilitate your recovery and steer you in the right direction but the moment you walk out of the door, it's on you!
Magic Mick
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