Causes

The individual cells of a muscle are called fibers. These are long and thin. The muscle fibers contain elements that shorten when tensed (contracted).

These elements slide slowly into and out of each other to create movement. Auxiliary devices in the muscles constantly control their tension and prevent overstretching, for example, by means of reflective counter-tensioning. This protects the muscle from injury.

However, if a muscle is stressed too much, for example, without being warmed up or too often one after the other, even the body’s own systems can no longer provide adequate protection. Torn muscle fibers, i.e. the tearing of muscle cells, occurs when a muscle is overstretched. A typical movement for the development of a torn muscle fiber is the sprinting from a pre-stretched position or the shot in football, when the leg is hurled forward at high speed and with a lot of force.

The muscle fiber tear that occurs during sprinting moves to the calf, which has not yet been warmed up. The muscle is not yet flexible enough and is pulled apart with a quick, strong movement. In football, after a long game, fatigue can lead to a lack of protection and thus to the fibres being torn apart during the sudden stretching movement.

Levels of muscle injury

The different stages of muscle injury are divided into muscle strain – the muscle is pulled apart excessively, but there is no tear, the muscle fiber tear – the tearing of individual muscle cells, the muscle bundle tear and the muscle tear, in which the entire muscle with its attachment tendon tears away from the bone. A sore muscle is to be distinguished from this, in which the individual elements of the muscle slide too far into each other due to overloading and thus cause minor injuries. A rupture of a muscle fiber results in a shooting stabbing pain at the moment of tearing and at the moment when the muscle contracts again.

Any movement and strain becomes painful. The tear is felt as a small dent in the muscle. All around, bleeding into the muscle causes swelling, which can also lead to pain due to the pressure in the muscle. Comprehensive information on this topic can be found in the article: Torn muscle fiber tear