Shin Splints

djkern1

I have been running for over a year now and have been battling shin splits most of that time. It is only going on in my left leg and not my right. I stretch both before and after my runs. Does anybody have any suggestions to help with this? I dont want to have to take too much time off of running but I will if I have to. I also have incredibly flat feet which I am sure doesn't help.

chasetwins

I do not run for that reason - your shoes can be an issue someone else suggested before go to a store that specializes in running shoes...they can help you pick out the right pair for your stride. They also sell bandages to help protect your shin when running. Shin Splints are NO fun!

groversa

Bump- I get shin splints also, advice would be great

Elegra2006

Hello, I've suffered from terrible shin splints in the past but now no longer get them and have run half-marathons etc. I have really flat feet too so here's my advice.

Firstly, get your flat feet seen to by an orthopedist and get some orthotic insoles if required.
Go to a physio who will do the most excruciating massage down your shins but it's for a good cause! Mine even caused bruising but it helps in the long run.
Your physio should also give you a complete new running programme, you effectively have to start from scratch and rest up first for about 4 weeks or so. When starting running again, you need to start on a soft surface ie. grass.

Then from then on it's a case of taking it slow and steady.

At the same time do loads of leg exercises to support all the surrounding tissue and muscles - lunges, calf raises, squats, box jumps etc etc.

You can recover but you need to invest in your recovery time first and it will feel like a bit of a set-back but better sort it out now then have the ongoing problem.

Good luck!

Lauramh31

I suffer too and I've done a lot of research on this. There are compression sleeves you can wear on your lower legs that some say help. You can also try to strengthen your shin muscles as some research says this is in part due to an imbalance between your calf and shin muscles. The primary strength workout I saw is to do a shin raise (basically a calf raise but lift the ball of your foot off the ground instead of your heel). I also saw something saying it can happen if your calf muscles are tight.

I had such trouble when training for my half marathon I went to the doc and had MRIs to see if I had a stress fracture. I didn't, but he did give me arch supports since collapsing arches can be an issue (haven't used them becuase they make my arches hurt :huh: ) and he sent me to a physical therapist. The PT said lots of pains in your legs when you run are caused by muscle weakness and imbalances. He said my hip muscles are not very strong and also that one is stronger than the other which creates imbalance, possibly causing the shin splints, which was worse on one side. So consider working on stregnthening your leg muscles, especially glutes, hips and shins which many people ignore in favor of quads, hammis and calves.

Mine usually get better after the first mile or two, so I think for me it is totally possible that it is muscle tightness in my calves that is a big culprit (thus when they warm up the pain stops). I just started taking ibuprofen before I ran which helped (though a lot of literature says not to do this bc you can mask serious pain that indicates you should stop running. Since I had been checked out by a doc and an MRI showed it wasn't a stress fracture, I felt safe using the ibuprofen to avoid the inflammation and pain.)

It's been a couple of years now and I'm getting back in shape and this time I'm doing other cardio and strength training to try to strengthen my leg muscles to avoid shin splints when I start back running. Everything I've read says that doing too much too soon is bad - i.e. increasing your mileage and speed in the same week. So if you're newish to running try run/walk at first until you can do it w/o shin pain. When I start back up with the running, I'm going to follow a program similar to the C25K to take it nice and slow to hopefully avoid shin splints!

qcman5

I suffered from them for allot of years
until I was getting for a run, off at school, and a friend showed me a trick
(a new stretch)
Sit with your knees bent slightly with your heal on the ground but your toes not touching the ground
place your other heal on your top of your foot, and press down gently. this stretches the front of your calf
scene then i rarely ever have a problem
Hope this helps

katelynpelerson

fill a small styrofoam cup with water and freeze. when frozen, tear the styrofoam off until some of the ice is sticking out, then rub up and down the shins. works like a charm!

meredith1123

Are you wearing proper shoes/ what are you currently running in?
do you take long strides? try taking easier lower strides to help out with Shin splits.
also - yes stretching is very important so i'd recommend googling shin exercises/stretches for such issues. I started getting them a while back, changed my shoes and i've been fine since. ive been running for almost 5 years now and my Asics are my favorite running shoes. I am on my 2nd pair of Landreth 7's.

twelfty

I suffered from them for allot of years
until I was getting for a run, off at school, and a friend showed me a trick
(a new stretch)
Sit with your knees bent slightly with your heal on the ground but your toes not touching the ground
place your other heal on your top of your foot, and press down gently. this stretches the front of your calf
scene then i rarely ever have a problem
Hope this helps

this sounds interesting, but i'm struggling to understand it could you show a picture/diagram please?

when you say your toes off the ground are the balls of your toes touching the ground? and are you pushing up against your other heal?

bobf279

mine stopped when I got fitted running shoes

graceire

I had this problem with walking and after some research learned it was from my stride. I was over-reaching and slapping my foot on the ground. Once I corrected my posture and stride, I haven't had the problem since. I'm not saying this is what's happening to you, but just an idea.

iLoveMyAR15

try new running shoes...that's how I can tell I need new shoes is when my shins start aching

andrederosier

Last year training for a duathlon I got them bad. Never got them checked out. Still did race limping near end. Took time off running and just biked. This year start up running again and they are coming back. I researched and found out the very cheap pair of running shoes my wife told me we could afford is just junk. Also the old wisdom from my parents that when the soles are worn it is time for new shoes doesn't apply here. All reading I have done says the middle support area of running shoe will wear out around 300 miles long before the bottom treads show signs of excess wear. Get to a shoe store with good help that can check your stride and arch and size for the right shoe for you based on that middle support.

Also some other suggestions I have seen include getting larger shoes and placing inserts into them. Getting a second pair of shoes half way through and rotate so you can judge when older pair has lost support compared to newer pair. Make sure if you get a minimalist shoe (one with hardly any support and really thin) it is for race day only.

chefbubba1303

Calf stretches, ice, compression and good shoes. Orthotics are a must if you have flat feet. SuperFeet are about the best off the shelf orthotics you can find under $40 a pair I believe. Good Shoes are important as well, but can be costly. Try the shorter strides as well landing more on middle of foot. Also, dont try and do too much too fast! Increase distance 1/10 at a time!
Good Luck! Shin splints stink and sometimes take a while to go away!

1223345

I used to get these for a few reasons, first I needed more water, also, I needed to stretch before the run. Now that one seems to be controversial as many think stretching is useless. For myself, it helped with this. Also, if you hit the ground running, and don't allow yourself time to work up to the distance, this can be the culprit. How far do you run? I had a terrible time with my right shin, I backed off my running and went walking instead. After a day or so of this I would add running in 1/4 mile increments each week. Yes it took time, but sometimes our bodies need a slow progress. Also, pay attention to your foot fall. Do you hear your feet clomping or slapping the ground? You should hear nothing and feel no impact. Practice running slowly so you can practice your foot falls. This was a big one for me. It took me a year to get good at running. It just takes patience.

twelfty

just to add to this a bit, last night i was checking out my leg muscles i've gained since getting into walking, and i noticed just how much my shin muscles have increased in size, to the point my shin bone used to be prominent but now there is a nice chunk of muscle sitting on the outter side of it, i always push through shin splints as the walk i do is purposeful and i need to complete it as quickly as possible

is there a vote for pushing through it and know it's gonna be strengthening the muscles and if you continue you'll end up not getting shin splints because they're trained to cope with the punishment?

_SABOTEUR_

It's usually one of two things. Your current weight/body fat %. Having the correct running shoe for your feet. IMO it is essential to go to a specialist shop and get them to look at you gait/instep etc to get the right shoe. They are more expensive, but it is worth it.

Also, I was told (in the specialist shop) that shin splints never totally go away unless you take time off from running. But, I have no evidence to support this.

Hearts_2015

I appreciate all the input on how to deal with shin splints... thanks for the stretching ideas. I do the ice cup deal but would really like to avoid them completely so I don't have to deal with the horrendous pain and then have to ice them. I'm looking for a more permanent solution. But yup, the ice cup does work, my doc just told me about it as well.

TRISTAR

I have always had shin splints when running (not that I can really run), so I don't now

nmulrick

SHOES! SHOES! SHOES! Please get fitted for shoes! I have an amazing store by my house and will never go anywhere else. I suggest taking in the shoes you are currently wearing so they can see the wear patterns on the bottom on the shoe. They should have you try on several different brands. They should watch you walk in the shoes. My store has you run down the sidewalk outside for noise. The quieter the shoe, the better. It's less force that is being used!

The Zensah compression sleeves are amazing! They are $20 on the website and come in fun colors! I can't say enough about them!! I own two sleeves and want more! Mainly bc of all the bright colors! Haha

Keep strengthening your calf muscles too! It will help as well!

Hope that helps! And slow your pace and mileage until you can run with minimal or no pain! Good Luck!

Hearts_2015

just to add to this a bit, last night i was checking out my leg muscles I've gained since getting into walking, and i noticed just how much my shin muscles have increased in size, to the point my shin bone used to be prominent but now there is a nice chunk of muscle sitting on the outter side of it, i always push through shin splints as the walk i do is purposeful and i need to complete it as quickly as possible

is there a vote for pushing through it and know it's gonna be strengthening the muscles and if you continue you'll end up not getting shin splints because they're trained to cope with the punishment?

The only problem with pushing through is the next stage is stress fractures, you most definitely don't want those! Those can put you out of commission for some time. Google a bit and you can read up... that can give you more info that I can regarding stress fractures. I did some Googling and decided I definitely don't want to go that far. I prefer to learn more stretching methods, check out different shoes, continue dropping weight and ice, ice, ice.

I can't speak for how painful yours are but I can't even imagine running or walking through shin splint pain. I'm imagining there are different levels of pain. Mine go from the shin to the calf and feels like someone is cutting through my bone. SO no, I won't be walking through them, except to the car after a workout to drive home and ice them and stretch, stretch and stretch some more.

:laugh:

jalloggio

I wrote an article about shin splints. Beleive it or not they are usually cause by a low fitness level and poor calf flexibility. I use to get them so bad I couldn't walk the day after a run. Started to stretch my calfs almost daily and as my fitness level improved they got better. This of course is the case as long as they aren't stress fractures (only way to tell is if you get an X-ray)

Hearts_2015

I wrote an article about shin splints. Beleive it or not they are usually cause by a low fitness level and poor calf flexibility. I use to get them so bad I couldn't walk the day after a run. Started to stretch my calfs almost daily and as my fitness level improved they got better. This of course is the case as long as they aren't stress fractures (only way to tell is if you get an X-ray)

Thanks for your input, would love to read your article if it's available.:flowerforyou:

jalloggio

I wrote an article about shin splints. Beleive it or not they are usually cause by a low fitness level and poor calf flexibility. I use to get them so bad I couldn't walk the day after a run. Started to stretch my calfs almost daily and as my fitness level improved they got better. This of course is the case as long as they aren't stress fractures (only way to tell is if you get an X-ray)

Thanks for your input, would love to read your article if it's available.:flowerforyou:

Pm me ill dig it up and send it to you I wrote it about 2 years ago

Hearts_2015

I wrote an article about shin splints. Beleive it or not they are usually cause by a low fitness level and poor calf flexibility. I use to get them so bad I couldn't walk the day after a run. Started to stretch my calfs almost daily and as my fitness level improved they got better. This of course is the case as long as they aren't stress fractures (only way to tell is if you get an X-ray)

Thanks for your input, would love to read your article if it's available.:flowerforyou:

Pm me ill dig it up and send it to you I wrote it about 2 years ago

bump

Lia125

My daughter's shin splints were crippling. She's extreme with her weight training and fitness so building up surrounding muscle was not the issue. For months we tried EVERY remedy we could- lots of people gave lots of advice. What finally worked was a visit to her doctor who ordered an x-ray (to rule out stress fractures) and prescribed physical therapy (she goes twice a week) and an appointment with a Pediatrist who gave her inserts for her shoes to try for a month. If we feel necessary, he will provide orthotics. She's improved slowly but dramantically (finally!) and is now passing her competitors.

Hearts_2015

My daughter's shin splints were crippling. She's extreme with her weight training and fitness so building up surrounding muscle was not the issue. For months we tried EVERY remedy we could- lots of people gave lots of advice. What finally worked was a visit to her doctor who ordered an x-ray (to rule out stress fractures) and prescribed physical therapy (she goes twice a week) and an appointment with a Pediatrist who gave her inserts for her shoes to try for a month. If we feel necessary, he will provide orthotics. She's improved slowly but dramantically (finally!) and is now passing her competitors.

Thanks for posting.. I just had xrays done to rule out stress fractures since the pain had gotten considerably worse. No stress fractures but still having some pain, I think I jarred my knee a bit early in the week and that may be part of it.

Appreciate you sharing your daughters experience and so glad she's doing much better. I had been thinking I might go the Physical Therapy route as the little exercises, tips etc. others have shared thus far aren't long lasting for me.

pinkraynedropjacki

I had it kinda bad on the left. I could hardly walk. I ran on grass till I ran them out. I suggest doing this video. Helped me heaps.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMrHM8XEX38