I'm getting Shin Splints...

creedseebas · 07-28-2006, 07:44 PM

Any tricks you guys have picked up over the years on how to mak ethese heal fatser or how to train when i have shin splints so they won't worsen an dmaybe even get better?

I hear that they come from an inbalance of muscle so if you train th emuscle that is not developing, this should help the splints. From someone else i heard that i need to stay off of working out my legs (running, skiping rope, etc) completely till they heal, an dsomeone else said to gut it out an dwait fo rtehm to just go away.

Any comments?

Munch_Caldwell · 07-29-2006, 01:29 AM

you don't really have to stay off of your feet, i would recomend: not doing any high inpact cardio for a while...i.e. running, skipping rope. there are many things you can do other than these things.....try the eliptical machine or swimming....

woogie12 · 07-29-2006, 03:43 PM

I have them on the insides of my shins, what workouts could i do to strengthen those muscles so they will not be much of a factor? I just got running shoes made for my step with extra support, which the guy said should definitely help with my shin splints. Will they just go away because of the shoes?

TDonovan · 07-29-2006, 11:53 PM

Shoes are not going to magically make these go away, but they can help prevent. I used to get these SO bad during track season. They'd get so bad I couldn't accellerate and did poorly at sprints. Once you get them you have to take it easy for a while.

I also found that ice baths (lots of ice, cold water, up to your knees) every day after running would help prevent them. It would also help soothe them when they started acting up. Aside from that, I'd take asprin before meets and rub icy hot all over the place. You can also "strip" them which is kinda like doing a hard massage on them. It is INCREDIBLY painful if you have bad shin splints, but the chiropractor did this crap to my hamstrings, calfs, and the affected shin area. Makes you sore for a couple days after but he explained that it was breaking up built up scar tissue and helping loosen up the muscle.

It won't kill your conditioning to stay off of them for a couple weeks. Just swim, bike, etc. When they are completely gone, start training again. And when you start training again, ice after really hard workouts.

Our coach also told us to walk on our heels with the tip of your foot pulled up as much as you could. After doing this for a while it was supposed to relieve them. Lots of people felt it worked, I'm not so sure it helped me. What REALLY helped me was ice and the stripping.

woogie12 · 07-30-2006, 12:13 AM

thanks i'll have to try that. I have a grappling tournament this coming saturday, so i'm going to keep trying to run up until about thursday but keep icing my shins and massage.

TXTAPOUT · 07-30-2006, 12:40 AM

well for one streach really good before you start a work out and second use something like icy hot or cryogel on them after or even right before your work out. that should at least keep it under controll may not fix it but it will most likely feel better.

creedseebas · 07-30-2006, 01:23 AM

funny you should mention walking with your toes pointed upwards because this is what i was talking about fixing the unbalance of muscle development. What i was explained is that sometimes running and jumping rope, you can over develop the back of your calves and not develop the front or side calve muscles an dthis put odd pressure on your shin bone because of the lack of balance. But if you do an exercise like walking with your toes pointed up, you develop those other muscle which were not being exercised. When the pressure is being properly distributed on your shin, you shouldn't get the shin splints.

SOOOO..... i've been doing some exercises to wrk on those muscles while i try and keep my jumping rope or running to a minimum. It just sucks though cuz i dont find many exercises that work me as much as those do. I guess swimming might be a fair replacement.

TDonovan · 07-31-2006, 10:08 PM

See nobody ever told me that it was an imbalance of muscles, and I always wondered WHY I was one of only 2 getting it. My calves are naturally big, and during track season they were HUGE. I definitely bet it was due to the fact the back of the muscles were overdeveloped in comparison...

There are some foot machines at some gyms I have seen. You put your toe into it, load weight on the sides, sit down, and then pull up with the toes. I bet that would be PERFECT for you, and it's also something I'll be doing from now on if they have the machine at school.

**Standard** · 08-02-2006, 01:04 AM

This is a kinda interesting link on the issue

http://www.medicinenet.com/shin_splints/article.htm

Basically the most common cause of them is just overworking the muscle too quickly, so yeah their is an inbalance with the front of the shin (tibialis anterior) being far too weak. I always notcied i would start getting them running and would seem to stomp while i ran, i guess thats the muscle giving out and not holding the foot up anymore, size 13 shoes probably don't help either.

You can strengthen the muscle by just lifting your toes as high as you can while sitting, basically doing the opposite of a calves workout. Or you can add resistance without a machine by resting a plate on your toes and lifting it with your foot.

Revok · 08-02-2006, 02:17 AM

You won't get shin splints if you run on grass or trails. Even if you need to drive for an hour to reach the nearest park or wilderness, do it. Human legs are not designed to run on a road.