‘RICE’ is commonly used as an aide mémoire.R stands for Rest – common sense, really, but a runner in the middle of a race or training session may not heed the symptoms of a less severe injury and just carry on. There may be some excuse, as exercise

These will only be used to eliminate the alternative causes.Self-treatment You probably need to do very little, unless RICE is needed to ease local discomfort.Medical treatment Unless you wish to pay a large sum of money, the doctor will be unwilling to treat a

.Self-treatmentYou cannot go wrong with RICE, always remembering that this should be continued through rehabilitation, as the muscle is stretched and power is regained. Not only is the commonest cause of hamstring injury an unrehabilitated prior tear, but a weak hamstring

to the universal running first-aid principle of RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation). And then came the injury guide:Foot InjuriesBlack ToenailBunionCalcaneal Bursa (heel)Hallux Rigidus (Toe)Ingrowing ToenailMarch Fracture (toe)Midfoot PainMortons Neuroma

, and pronation syndromes of the foot.Self-treatmentRICE, periodically, for the first 48 hours at least. Later, gradual stretching and strengthening, as with any other muscle injury.Medical treatmentUltrasound and, in the convalescent stage, massage by a

of the foot.Self-treatmentRICE as usual, but ice to reduce inflammation and elevation to eliminate gravity are the most appropriate. As it settles, gradually stretching the calf will speed healing, while you should also look back over your training diary for a

by your doctor may cause you to overreact! Your injured leg probably looks no different to the other, although running through long-term injury may cause muscle-wasting and alter its appearance.Medical investigations As above, although x-rays are generally

as the upper leg, with the result that pelvic and upper leg injuries may sometimes be indistinguishable and may often become confused. By virtue of their anatomy, hip joints allow a wide range of movement, not only forwards and backwards, outwards and inwards

? Your pain could alternatively be caused by stress fractures (again!) or tibial periositis (see below). It could also come from muscle tears or tenosynovitis, where inflamed muscles within a sheath rub roughly against each other.Self-treatmentRICE

to be sure that the swelling is not that of an arterial aneurysm which, in theory, could burst.Self-treatmentYou cannot go wrong with RICE, and an anti-inflammatory will also help to reduce the swelling. Cut down your mileage.Medical treatmentAny joint