When you get hurt, your life doesn’t stop. An injured Hip Flexor in particular will cause pain during many basic activities, and if you have a job that requires you to be on your feet all day it will hurt your performance. Part of a Hip Flexor injury treatment plan includes ways to minimize pain while recovering as well as any further damage. This article will address one of the common ways by showing you how to wrap a Hip Flexor.
The goals of wrapping is to keep compression on the muscles to limit any damage that occurs from movement, as well as to keep your muscles from extending to their limits. The support that the wrap provides will limit your pain, but be careful not to push too hard, as you can still injure it worse.
A Demonstration of Wrapping Your Hip Flexor
This video will walk you through the steps you should follow, there are written steps below if you do not have access to the video.
To Wrap:
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While standing, create an anchor point midway down the thigh by wrapping the bandage around the leg two or three times with light tension. Your leg should be relaxed and slightly bent, with most of your weight on the healthy leg.
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Wrap around and up the thigh as high as possible before starting to wrap the bandage around the lower back.
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Keep wrapping the bandage across the front but slightly down around the outside of your injured leg. Loop it around your leg again and do another layer around the back.
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After wrapping the bandage around your thigh once more, use tape to hold it into place.
How Not to Wrap an Injured Muscle
There are a few things you need to keep in mind:
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Don’t wrap too tightly, it will affect your movement and can cause blood flow issues
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Wrapping will provide support, but don’t expect all the pain to go away
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Don’t wrap it so thick that it interferes significantly with your movement
Remember that a wrap is simply a type of bracing for your injury, it will not heal it, nor should it be relied on so you can continue activity. Treat your injury with care and see a doctor if you haven’t already.