Bruises on legs after running??? No external shock, etc

[mike0987]

Hi

I'm asking for someone who says that sometimes when she runs she develops bruises on her legs. She's young (19) and started running several months ago. But after increasing the mileage and intensity of her runs she started having bruises on her legs. Mostly on the outside of the leg above the knee and also on her calfs.

She has to stop running for days for the bruises to go away and of course that doesn't help maintain fitness.

Does anyone know anything about this problem and if it can be treated?

Thanks!

[nicky418]

Everytime I start up my exercise routine again, which consists of mostly walking and running for 30-70 minutes per day or every other day, I get huge bruises on my legs, that rarely hurt, but they are so big that I have to always wear pants or somebody will ask what I did to myself or make jokes.  My bruises are usually very large, fist or larger sized, and they are dark in color and last more than a week, sometimes 2.  I usually get them on the backs of my legs, either on my thighs just above my knee or on my calves just below the knee or right in the middle of the back of my calves.  I'm slightly overweight for my short height, about 15-20 lbs over what would be healthy, but I usually eat healthy, organic food, never eat fast-food, and limit my refined sugars and bleached flours, etc.  I have also ALWAYS had dark circles under my eyes, and have suspected anemia but I can't stand Iron supplements.  I used to think my partner was kicking me in bed to cause these bruises!  Ha...but the coincidence of always showing up after vigorous exercise, and no pain associated with them, leads me to believe it has something to do with my exercising.

[bekahlee]

I just turned 20. all throughout high school i was very active, played sports, and was extremely fit. i had a baby nearly a year ago and just started hitting the gym about 2 1/2 months ago. i hopped on the treadmill only having the endurance to last about 15 minutes; after a week or so of working out, i developed a fist-sized bruise at the bottom of my shin near my ankle. it took nearly a month and a half to clear up. ever since i started working out, i have had multiple bruises all over my legs. from very large to very small; they are in strange places that never would come into contact with any external force that might cause bruising. i currently have a very very dark purple (almost black) bruising on the back of my knee where i suffered a sports injury in high school- this injury occurred when i was about 15 and an mri revealed a blood clot between my muscles that eventually worked itself out with stretching...

Some facts about me:
1) i have no health insurance. this is why i have resorted to this forum- i am a bit concerned
2) i am 155 lbs., athletically built, and 5'7''
3) my mother suffers from terrible bruising on her legs and extreme vericose veins (she has insurance but refuses to see a doctor)
4) my bruises cause no pain
5) i also have neck pain. my neck feels very heavy, especially when relaxing or trying to sleep. i have no idea if this is in any way related to my bruising, but i noticed this around the same time.
6) during my prenatal visits i found out that i am slightly anemic but not enough to slow me down.
7) i have always bruised easily but it has always been due to direct force to the bruised area. when i was about 14 i developed some sort of poison ivy rash that bruised up very severely. they ran a bunch of tests that apparently were fine.
8) i have an IUD- Mirena
9) 6 months into my pregnancy i had a primary herpes breakout. my herpes is active once a month or so.
10) though the mirena is supposed to decrease menstrual cycles. mine have remained regular since i received the IUD around september of 2008.

i guess that's it. i know this forum is old, but if anybody has figured anything out, please let me know. if DrNoopurMD has anything to say, feel free!

thank you,
Bekah

[cacotton]

My daughter who had synovial sarcoma, had surgery where the tumorous area, the elbow joint, and some muscle was removed and an artificial elbow joint was put in, went on a long walk and now her legs are splotched with bruises. should I be worried? Please forgive my spelling abilities. Not my strong suite.

[mike0987]

Thank you very much! I just told her.

:)

[DrNoopurMD]

Hi,

Yes these are broken small capillaries due to extreme exertion. People who are anemic are liable to bruise more quickly than others. I would suggest to you to get her blood hemoglobin level checked. OTC iron supplements may also be helpful.

[Pum]

I get this also and have done so for about 11 years. If I run up stairs or do unusual exertion I get it. The bruises don't hurt so I don't bother stopping exercising. I assume they are small capilliaries that break under strain.

[mike0987]

Thank you very much for your comments!

I think it does help! :)
Me and others have suggested she see a doctor, of course, but since we have no clue as to the origin of this - like circulatory problems, medication thinning the blood, etc, and given her age, we are a bit mystified and worried.
There might be one or more factors she omitted to mention which could affect this however.

But of course while it could be a particular, circulatory, condition she has hopefully it's nothing too serious.

I'm just trying to provide her with answers and maybe reassurance while she's waiting to be examined and treated by a doctor.
I've read of others having similar problems. I haven't yet heard whether it is treatable but I hope it is.

Thank you!

[ParamedFlorena]

Hi Mike,

I don't know more than that after a strain of my thigh-muscle in 2006, I've had a bruise that returns every now and then without any cause I can explain. I'm currently waiting for an MRI to rule out soft-tissue as cause for this as the knee itself is not the problem. The knee is very much affected by the bruising painwise.
I'm also waiting for a few appointments with a physical therapist to help me get back on safe and harmless exercise (I have been pushing myself very much on mileage and improving the time-stamp but at the moment I only keep myself at a low niveau of exercise before I know anything more about what causes this).

If it acts in, I don't know - but I do quite often take paracetamol/ASA's for headaches and that has a blood-thinning effect. I do also know that I have a good blood-percent and otherwise have few health issues besides a bloodpressure that fluctuates between low and normal. Any help?

Best wishes to your friend!

Florena