Hey everybody. I am scheduled to start the approach trail on April 1st and I have been having this nagging leg problem that I wanted to seek advice for on this forum. Before I start going into detail though, I did make an appointment with my doctor next Monday so ultimately I'll have some sort of diagnosis then. I was just hoping to see if anyone else had experienced anything like this and what I can do to mitigate this in the meantime.
So, it all started probably sometime this past Summer. I went on a 90 mile hike in upstate NY and during the hike I started experiencing what can be described as a tightness behind the knee. It was never painful just uncomfortably tight at times. I then went hiking for a week out in Utah this past September and ever since then I have been experiencing that tightness off and on.
Lately though, it seems to be getting worse and spreading to different areas. My left calf is persistently tight and sore and I have been starting to experience a pins and needles effect in my left foot at times too. I don't distinctly remember injuring myself anytime lately and I have even been on plenty of hikes in the past couple of months without too much discomfort.
In the last week I have gone on a full stop with exercise and have been taking ibuprofen and icing my calf/hamstring a couple of times a day. I have also stopped drinking alcohol entirely because I'm starting to realize I don't have the best relationship with it. I'm not an alcoholic by any means but I could certainly classify myself as an alcohol abuser. I try to do daily stretches too and keep myself limber with massages but that doesn't seem to be leading to any real noticeable improvement.
So, with all of that said... has anyone here experienced anything like this? My left leg is persistently and uncomfortably tight. It's not really painful and I can walk/hike on it for the most part and it is tolerable. If it was this level of discomfort the entire thru-hike I could manage and deal with it as necessary. I am just afraid that this is going to be one of those nagging injuries that only gets worse and never gets better. Could alcohol be playing into this at all? I've read that with alcohol abuse one can become vitamin deficient among other things which can lead to tightness and that pins and needles I'm feeling. So to offset that I have been taking a b-complex the past few days and starting up on a multivitamin again.
Thank you everyone. I appreciate any and all suggestions.