Shin Splints?

mbarryteach

How many people get them when they walk? Run? What stretches do you do to avoid them? I have been stretching the same way for months but the last two weeks I walk more than 15 min before my shins start to feel like they are on fire.
What can I do?

angeltg

My only solution was to change my shoes. Stretching and rolling didn't work for me. Ice and heat them till they feel better.

mbarryteach

I have been "googeling" and the common factor seems to be my shoes. They have been great but looking at them now it appears that they are ready to be put in the beach bag.

Yay shopping!! Recommendations anyone? Like to keep it less than 100$

dotamy

Just another voice to say shoes - do yourself a giant favor and get fitted. Good shoe stores will analyze your gait and be able to recommend the right shoes for you. It's WORTH the money. As tempting as it is, don't choose your shoes by style or what someone else recommends - they could be all wrong for you. Once you get fitted, you'll know if you need more stability or less, etc.

Shin splints typically take 2-4wks to work thru, strengthening the muscles. Use ice and arnica cream to help the swelling.

dotamy

One more thing - just bc you go to a store to get fitted doesn't mean you will pay more. I paid $80 for my Nikes, a brand I was surprised worked best for me, and they are THE best I've ever run in. Was super pleased with the price. Good shoes run btwn $70-$130.

ilovedeadlifts

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oar9h63wz7k


I do once a day when my shin splints get bad.

Also, I know there is a lot of talk about icing not really helping recovery, but ice did at least take away the pain enough for me to go run or play sports. So I iced after doing the lacrosse ball work.

ze_hombre

I have been "googeling" and the common factor seems to be my shoes. They have been great but looking at them now it appears that they are ready to be put in the beach bag.

Yay shopping!! Recommendations anyone? Like to keep it less than 100$

My wife and I love our Brooks Pure shoes. I have the Cadence, she has another 'version' (can't recall exactly). We were fitted at our local running store after a gait analysis.

billsica

Stop stretching before you run. The only warm up I do is a few minutes walk.

I have some real running shoes (brooks pure cadance) and that helps a lot. My next pair will be 0mm drop minimalist. The more I land on my toes and mid foot, and the less on the heel of my foot the better.

I still get them, but I just run though them and they go away my mile 3. :smokin:

MorganLeighRN

Definitely the shoes. You most likely aren't going to find good shoes for less than $100. Go to a running store and have them fit you for shoes. They will watch you run/walk and fit put you in several different shoes and you pick which ones you like the best. I would rather spend the money on the shoes then risk getting hurt.

I have been put in Mizuno Wave Alchamy. They have great support because I pronate badly. I haven't had any problems with my back, knees, hips, shins, ankles, or feet since I was put in them. Like I said, spend the money on good shoes.

Mokey41

Stop stretching before you run. The only warm up I do is a few minutes walk.

I have some real running shoes (brooks pure cadance) and that helps a lot. My next pair will be 0mm drop minimalist. The more I land on my toes and mid foot, and the less on the heel of my foot the better.

I still get them, but I just run though them and they go away my mile 3. :smokin:

Agree on the stretching. You don't stretch cold muscles. A brisk walk, a few jumping jacks, anything to warm the muscles up before you run and you do stretching after.

meredith1123

Stretching is great, so good for you.
Get fitted for the right shoes and also stay focused on your form.

MinnieInMaine

Just a clarification on the stretching... Static stretches are bad to do before exercise but dynamic stretches are ok. Here are some examples from the Runners World website.

http://www.runnersworld.com/stretching/dynamic-routine

Only do static stretches when your muscles are warm and don't bounce.

zyxst

I only get them when I walk fast/power walk, so I don't do that. Only way to get rid of them for me.

wareagle8706

Fleet Feet is a great place to find shoes and they will fit you for them and all that. Here's a hint though, a friend of mine went in, got everything done, the analyzing, fitting, etc... then they let her take a pic of the shoes she liked and she went on Amazon.com and bought them for much cheaper. Since they don't make commission off of you they don't really care if they get the sale or not. I'm sure the manager might not be too happy with it but... oh well... gotta look out for youself lol. These stores can also help fit you with inserts in your shoes if you need those as well.

Also, but some rubber resistance bands like the ones used for at home pilates, sit down with a leg stretched out in front of you with the band wrapped around the ball of your foot and the ends of the band in each hand. point and flex your foot. This exercise will help to strengthen those muscles.

You can also take a water bottle with water in it and freeze it and use to roll over your shins after your walk/run.

Also, some people are telling you to stretch after your walk/run but research has shown that runners are prone to more injuries if they stretch before OR AFTER a run so I would stay clear of that and just do the exercises and cold/hot packs.

hatkinson87

I get them when I walk and when I jog. I used to run CC in college and always had them really bad. I know that it's partially because of my weight, but I also know I have very tight hamstrings (was told that by a Dr. when I was about 15) and that contributes to it. I try to take it easy if they're excruciating and I ice ice ice when I get done working out!! That seems to be the only relief that I can get and is the only thing that helps me to keep working out the rest of the week.

martymum

do this

http://gizmodo.com/5902699/banish-shin-splints-forever-with-one-magical-exercise

it works and is only 3 mins a day

martyx

ken_hogan

I have been "googeling" and the common factor seems to be my shoes. They have been great but looking at them now it appears that they are ready to be put in the beach bag.

Yay shopping!! Recommendations anyone? Like to keep it less than 100$

I'd say go to a smaller store more geared towards running vs. a Sports Authority type of a store. I went to a smaller store near me where they videoed me walking on a treadmill to see how my feet landed and suggested shoes from there. Best $109 I spent!

mellenorris

Ditto what others have said: shoes all the way. Ken is on the right page - don't go to Nike Outlet, Sports Authority, whatever... find a running specialty store. Tell them what your problems are. They'll let you try a million pairs on, make sure it fits right, and let you run around a bit in them. TRY not to judge a shoe by it's color... I sure wish mine weren't neon yellow/orange, but they perform so well it's worth the not-so-pretty shoe. You'll walk away with the right shoe.

I battled shin splints, got fitted for shoes, and STILL had shin splints. I quit running because no amount of stretching or recovery time seemed to help. I recently got back into it, and a friend recommended I try some zero-drop shoes to help my shin splints. I threw this idea at the folks at the running specialty store, and after trying on several pairs of minimalist/zero drop shoes, I walked away with a pair of Newton MV2's. They've completely eliminated my shin splints, and I can run harder/longer than ever before. I paid about $120 for them, if I remember right. Worth every penny.

mbarryteach

Thanks everyone!!

hfox9707

Shin splints pain is caused by the interosseus border and the muscles involved are the tibialis anterior (where you feel the pain) and tibialis posterior (the muscle that is tensed). Ice the front of your leg and heat the back of it. Massage is necessary. The muscle behind the lateral anterior muscle (tibialis anterior) is called the tibialis posterior. That is the muscle that is medial to the shin. You can also massage it. See a sports massage therapist about it.

Are you flat footed?

Lizzy622

KT tape when you work out. My daughter runs track and gets shin splints all the time until she started taping.

healthfulnow

BUMP

__Di__

How many people get them when they walk? Run? What stretches do you do to avoid them? I have been stretching the same way for months but the last two weeks I walk more than 15 min before my shins start to feel like they are on fire.
What can I do?

I used to get shin splints if I ran on pavements, so much so, I was unable to jog outside at all and did all my training on a treadmill (splints never seems to happen on the TM) or on grass, grass was good because it has quite a lot of give in it but unfortunately the weather in the UK put paid to training on grass much of the time because it would end up all boggy due to the rain.

Everything changed when I had my running gait analysed and was advised on Saucony Progrid CS2, which I purchased. I stuck Sorbothane insoles in them for good measure and off I went. Everything seemed okay and I run roughly 15 to 20 miles per week, outside on the pavements. I do not stretch beforehand, nor afterwards come to think of it.

Ironically, those very first pair of trainers that I bought that enabled me to run outdoors, are now on their last legs, I have just one run left in them before I will stop using them for training. Do you know, I cannot bear to throw them out and have decided to keep them and use them for gardening or something - I have grown too fond of them :laugh: