- Compression: After cleaning your thigh and your wound, if you have one, another recommendation is to apply some compression in the area. This can be achieved with a brace or compression bandages. It is very useful advice in case of muscle strains, muscle tears, and bone fractures. It may also come in handy if you have a ligament or tendon problem because you want to keep everything in place to accelerate the healing process. If you apply a brace or bandage, you should do so carefully. You can try to wrap it around the whole thigh and apply pressure with your hands. Make sure it is not too tight so that it will affect your blood circulation.
- Elevation: You want to elevate the wound in some cases, especially if you see swelling and liquid accumulation in your legs. To elevate means that you’ll be placing your legs on top of the rest of the body, keeping it raised with something like a towel or a pillow. Elevation is recommended in these cases because it contributes to blood flow in your leg and accelerates venous return. One of the causes of thigh pain we mention in our dedicated article is peripheral artery disease, which will dramatically improve when you elevate your legs.
As noted, exercises and rest are opposite to each other and should be used in different instances. For instance, if you have blood circulation problems in your legs, you want to exercise and elevate them. If you experience sciatica pain, some leg stretching and strengthening exercises can help you relieve the symptoms in the long term, but when you have acute pain, rest will work much better. And if you have endured trauma such as fractures and muscle tears, the RICE technique is probably your safest bet until the doctor says otherwise.