Shin Splints

[Baz]

Right well i know ive got shin splits from symptoms and what not, and i know that im not supposed to do any running now at the gym and go on the bike, rowing machine etc instead, but how long am i going to not be able to go on the running machine for?

or is going to be a case of say do 5 minutes (which i can manage before the pain down my shin starts) then just say increase this by 2 minutes or so every 4-5 times i go or what?

cheers

[SaxOmniaC]

i had splints when i was 17 and didnt go gym again til i was 19 lol, went on the piss instead, hurts like fuck, to bout 4 months b4 it stopped hurting completely

[S34MER]

I myself was a sufferer of shin splints, and its a terrible thing to have, but, shin splints responds to REST! I know that's a bitter pill to swallow for all sportsmen and women but resting in the initial stages is imperative to prevent further damage. Do not attempt to do any sports that cause the shins to hurt until the pain has gone completely. If you want to keep exercising, try swimming or another low-impact activity. You may want to try working out on cross trainers which will give you exactly the same cardio work out as running but without the impact forces. Because these machines support your body weight, they put less stress on your lower legs. when your shins feel better.

Follow R.I.C.E. - Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation!

To help prevent them in futureand for other people's information, there are three different causes of shin splints that i know of. They are Overload (or training errors), biomechanical abnormality and poor footwear.

Shin splints- Overload

Shin splints are commonly associated with sports that require a lot of running or weight bearing activity. However, it is not necessarily the added weight or force applied to the muscles and tendons of the lower leg, but rather the impact force associated with running and weight bearing activities.

In other words, it's not the running itself, but the sudden shock force of repeated landings and change of direction that causes the problem. When the muscles and tendons become fatigued and overloaded, they lose their ability to adequately absorb the damaging shock force.

Other overload causes include:

Exercising on hard surfaces, like a treadmill ;)
Exercising on uneven ground
Beginning an exercise program after a long lay-off period
Increasing exercise intensity or duration too quickly
Excessive uphill or downhill running.

Shin splints- Biomechanical abonormality

The major biomechanical inefficiency contributing to shin splints is that of flat (pronated) feet. Pronation occurs just after the heal strikes the ground. The foot flattens out, and then continues to roll inward.

Over-pronation occurs when the foot and ankle continue to roll excessively inward. This excessive inward rolling causes the tibia to twist, which in-turn, over stretches the muscles of the lower leg.

Other biomechanical causes include:

Poor running mechanics
Tight, stiff muscles in the lower leg
Running with excessive forward lean
Running with excessive backwards lean
Landing on the balls of your foot and
Running with your toes pointed outwards

Poor footwear

Most athletes do not realise that footwear can have a major impact on causing lower limb injury. Most sports shoes have a finite lifespan after roughly 500miles you should think about changing them mate!

I hope this helps mate, its not nice I know that first hand.

Oli

[Yates]

i had shin splints so bad i couldnt walk! one of the worst things to get, i honestly couldnt run on a treadmill for around 3 years! wasnt that bad but i could feel it pulling so i would stop

stil kinda pulls now when i get new trainers and they arent 'broke' in

[Baz]

could well be my trainers as when i played football other day it was fine....hmmm may have to get some bought and see what happens!

[Ryan]

if you are playing football in your trainers i very much doubt they are suitable for doing any form of running in.

the shite that most 'sports shops' sell as running trainers is highly amusing.

if you dont have i recommend getting a pair of asics gel series or mizuno waverider series trainers, which you should have for running in ONLY! even walking has a different foot strike for running. hence why i have trainers for running in only.

[Leo]

seems some people get it real bad, i went through a patch of this but it just went, it was when i first got into skipping. i was told u stretch shins by pushing front of foot up etc that helped.

[Baz]

i was playing football in my football boots, may take a look at them trainers and try and get hold of some, see how they do :) ty

[Yates]

i used to stretch my shins, moving foot up and down, also have hot water bottle on it and stretch, then put ice on it and keep changing over, hot will losen it and when stretching, then cold wil make it harder n keep it stretched

somethin like that anyway

[Robb]

i had/have these. about 3 years ago i got them from playing football, was in agony after a 20 minute sesh. put me out of football for about 4 months and is the main reason i'm not playing now cos my manager rushed me back into playing. after going to the doctors and they recommended those shitty generic insoles (which didnt work) i had to go to a padietrist (sp.) and get some custom moulds taken and these were then sent off to canada and had some hard plastic ones made and sent back, cost close to £300 but it did the trick and i still wear them now in all my shoes. if i take them out i can notice the difference after about half hour of walking.

[Ryan]

they insoles are called authotics.

[WestyVTR]

shine plints is a posh name for tendonitis! IIRC it can be linked to many issues, largly the feet, knees or hip alignments. Seek correct footwear and seek advise on how you run. there are many traetments and myths... try rolling a cold wine bottle down them!! ouchy,....

[JamieB]

sorry to bring up an extremely old topic, but i think i may have shin splints at the moment, but what are the 'symptoms' as it where for shin splints??

After playing about 5 mins of football i get a sharp pain down my left shin that stays whilst i am playing football and doesnt go away afterwards (was playing last night and can still feel twinges of pain in my shin now!

On tuesday this kept me up for a good hour or so as i couldnt get comfy due to the pain it was causing me

I have currently got a bandage wrapped round my shin as i find that pressure helps reduce the pain slightly until i get used to it then it feels like normal

What is the best way (other than rest) to get rid of them? a bloke at work recommended taking some vitamin b??

[Ryan]

shin splints usually require 2-4weeks rest from pounding of running on any surface.

get to a doc/physio to assess if you do have them is my best advice to you.

[Robb]

i have/had shin splints. about 3-4 years ago, was doing footie training like 3 times a week on hard surface. and game on a weekend. ripped my shins apart. went to a pediatrist (sp) does the southampton football players who gave me some custom insoles (cost a bomb, were sent off to be made in canada) for my shoes, that I still have to wear to this day. If I dont have them in my shoes I can feel it after about 15 minutes. Anyway, I was told to rest for at least 4 weeks, manager wanted me back after about a week and a half and I hated watching lol. So I rushed back which probably did alot more harm than good.

[Ryan]

authotics are about £300 from memory, long term shouldnt be used as a fix.

They should have given you stuff to corect the foot plant long term, which is why alot of people get shin problems.

[Robb]

Think I paid about £400 back in the day.

Your probably right though, I just stopped going once I got them, I was meant to go back to him to get them cut down as they stick out too much on my insole, so I cant wear them when playing football but forgot and I dont think he tried contacting me since.

[Ryan]

problem is of course they can wear out and as you know its a big rape in the ass with no lube to pay for a set.

i might be doing som research into the mechanics of foot placement and ground reaction which is what can cause shin splints, ill see what info i can get and try and help out there.

I know of a good physio in guildford if you ever have problems, iirc you are over that way.

[JamieB]

thanks for the help ryan...rep'd!!

i think i no what u mean about foot placement and all of that

used to do cross country running back in my younger days whilst at secondary school and every now and then i used to get a sharp pain shooting up the left side of my body which would last for a short while. spoke to my pe teacher about this who not only was extremely hot she was also a personal trainer at David Lloyd's. She looked at the way i was running and it was to do with the way i put my left foot on the ground.....tended to land on the inside of my left foot which would put my whole body out of alingment, hence the pain!

Worked on my running to train myself to run 'flat footed' as it where which did help a lot.

I play football at the moment...even though im poo atleast twice a week for 2 different 5 a-side teams. played 3 games tuesday night one after the other (which def didnt help!) and have been playing footie on a wednesday with mates from work. also go to the gym 3 times a week, but dont do any cardio work at gym, just weights

[Jacko]

i had/have these. about 3 years ago i got them from playing football, was in agony after a 20 minute sesh. put me out of football for about 4 months and is the main reason i'm not playing now cos my manager rushed me back into playing. after going to the doctors and they recommended those shitty generic insoles (which didnt work) i had to go to a padietrist (sp.) and get some custom moulds taken and these were then sent off to canada and had some hard plastic ones made and sent back, cost close to £300 but it did the trick and i still wear them now in all my shoes. if i take them out i can notice the difference after about half hour of walking.

i have/had shin splints. about 3-4 years ago, was doing footie training like 3 times a week on hard surface. and game on a weekend. ripped my shins apart. went to a pediatrist (sp) does the southampton football players who gave me some custom insoles (cost a bomb, were sent off to be made in canada) for my shoes, that I still have to wear to this day. If I dont have them in my shoes I can feel it after about 15 minutes. Anyway, I was told to rest for at least 4 weeks, manager wanted me back after about a week and a half and I hated watching lol. So I rushed back which probably did alot more harm than good.


hahahhahaha like a year and a half apart....

[Cal]

Robb, liar


Loool jokes. Try the bike instead, no impact cardio work.

[martin_88]

Had this before and recently it came back, not been able to do any running for the past 2 and a half months, been trying to do alot more on the bike and swimming. Good luck.