if anyone has found an effective treatment or preventative technique to treat/avoid shin splints id love to hear it. ive religiously followed the 10% rule, stretched before and after, iced, been fitted for the right shoes, and i never run two days in a row. yet about 3 weeks into my training i get splints so bad i can hardly walk. im of the breed who can swim and bike but the run is where i need major improvement so i really need some help. anyone??
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Re: shin splints... [ninny]
[ In reply to ]
Sounds eerily like my experience during the first two years I ran . . . I tried everything you mentioned, went through every major motion control shoe on the market, and had exactly the same results -- nothing seemed to work. What finally did work was three things, which I'll list in order of importance:
1. Custom orthotics, far and away the biggest help for this problem. I'd recommend getting rigid (plastic or hard rubber) ones rather than ones made from softer materials such as leather, which didn't really do anything for me (leading me initially to think that orthotics were not particularly helpful). You will almost certainly still need to use motion control shoes and of course it's important that the orthotic fit the shoe. ASICS Gel-Kojis have worked well for me but shoes are a very personal choice and everyone's different.
2. Stretching calf (particularly soleus and tibialis posterior, not just gastrocnemius) muscles repeatedly during the day to keep them loose, not just before and after running. I find the feet of aeron-type office chairs great for this -- I just push the chair up against something that will keep it from rolling around and stretch while on the phone.
3. Strengthening exercises. These helped quite a bit when my shin splints were bad but as they've gotten better (due to #1 and 2 above) they have become unnecessary. I did the heel raise exercise from the following page: http://www.straws.com/a_breakthru.htm. As a nice side effect this also added some speed, particularly on hills.
[Note: I am not affiliated with the author of the above webpage, although he is the podiatrist who fixed my shin splints]
This is not to say that you shouldn't ice, etc. -- I also found that very helpful when my shin splints were bad. It's just that as in your case icing didn't solve my problem, and when I finally did get it figured out, icing was no longer necessary.
Everything above assumes that by "shin splints" you mean the medial type, typically referred to as medial tibial stress syndrome, and not the type that hurt on the front of your lower legs in the tibialis anterior muscle. If the latter, for most people the only real solution seems to be to strengthen the muscle, which can happen naturally over time as your run more or can be accelerated by exercising it. The classic exercise for this is to sit on the counter, hook paint cans over your toes, and repeatedly flex your ankles up, gradually making the paint cans heavier (with sand, etc.) as you get stronger.
MLT
1. Custom orthotics, far and away the biggest help for this problem. I'd recommend getting rigid (plastic or hard rubber) ones rather than ones made from softer materials such as leather, which didn't really do anything for me (leading me initially to think that orthotics were not particularly helpful). You will almost certainly still need to use motion control shoes and of course it's important that the orthotic fit the shoe. ASICS Gel-Kojis have worked well for me but shoes are a very personal choice and everyone's different.
2. Stretching calf (particularly soleus and tibialis posterior, not just gastrocnemius) muscles repeatedly during the day to keep them loose, not just before and after running. I find the feet of aeron-type office chairs great for this -- I just push the chair up against something that will keep it from rolling around and stretch while on the phone.
3. Strengthening exercises. These helped quite a bit when my shin splints were bad but as they've gotten better (due to #1 and 2 above) they have become unnecessary. I did the heel raise exercise from the following page: http://www.straws.com/a_breakthru.htm. As a nice side effect this also added some speed, particularly on hills.
[Note: I am not affiliated with the author of the above webpage, although he is the podiatrist who fixed my shin splints]
This is not to say that you shouldn't ice, etc. -- I also found that very helpful when my shin splints were bad. It's just that as in your case icing didn't solve my problem, and when I finally did get it figured out, icing was no longer necessary.
Everything above assumes that by "shin splints" you mean the medial type, typically referred to as medial tibial stress syndrome, and not the type that hurt on the front of your lower legs in the tibialis anterior muscle. If the latter, for most people the only real solution seems to be to strengthen the muscle, which can happen naturally over time as your run more or can be accelerated by exercising it. The classic exercise for this is to sit on the counter, hook paint cans over your toes, and repeatedly flex your ankles up, gradually making the paint cans heavier (with sand, etc.) as you get stronger.
MLT
Re: shin splints... [ninny]
[ In reply to ]
Hey Ninny,
With MLT, I’m also an ex-splint sufferer. I tried all of MLT’s suggestions, which do seem to work for others, but STILL didn't work for me. After the latest attack of splints had healed, I'd get maybe a couple of extra weeks running in, with orthotics and doing my stretching and strengthening programs religiously, before the old devils returned. In the end I stopped running, told people I’m mildly disabled, and ate a lot of pizzas.
But I'm back, and without shin splints...ever...not even the tiniest whimper. The solution for me was in relearning how to run. I used to be a heel striker and, I guess, a bit of a loper. Combine that with a bit too much athletic drive, resulting in running too far, too fast, too soon = shin splints. Then I read about high cadence running in Friel's Training Bible, and the "pose method" somewhere else, and I thought I'd try yet again to become a runner. First I shortened my stride so that I'd get at least 30 right foot strikes every 20 seconds (i.e. a cadence of 90, which is supposed to be optimum), counting every few minutes or so. It felt really, really weird, and a friend described me as “dainty”, deeply wounding my pride. It’s true that I was mincing along a bit, but I stuck with it, got used to it, and eventually uncovered the right technique for my body.
The most significant consequence of this change was a shift to a mid/forefoot strike: running higher cadence I simply didn’t have time to stretch out far enough for a heel strike. That, I think, was the key to the splint problem. Moving to a mid/forefoot strike (mid for slower running, fore for faster running) did, however, put different pressures on my lower legs, especially my calves, and I had to take it really slowly and carefully to let the strength build up. I would say that it took about 18 months before my muscles and tendons had more or less adapted to the new style. Another, more surprising, result was that my New Balance 1220 motion control shoes with concrete reinforcement, and my $120 orthotics, were simply not appropriate. I tried a few different running shoes and have ended up with just about the complete opposite of 1220s: Mizuno Precisions - lightweight cushioning shoes, and not the usual prescription for shin splints - but they have worked a dream for me.
Of course, I’ve had other pains here and there, but they’ve all been minor, and as I learn more and more about my biomechanics I seem able to iron these out…slowly. The net result is that I can run whenever I want and, regardless of triathlon or 10k times, that is a wonderful thing because I find more peace in running than anything else in life.
BUT, everyone’s different. It may be that your running style is already pretty good, and you simply have funny feet and need orthotics. Changing your gait is a suggestion for the long term if MLT's sound advice doesn't work for you.
Good luck.
SteveO
With MLT, I’m also an ex-splint sufferer. I tried all of MLT’s suggestions, which do seem to work for others, but STILL didn't work for me. After the latest attack of splints had healed, I'd get maybe a couple of extra weeks running in, with orthotics and doing my stretching and strengthening programs religiously, before the old devils returned. In the end I stopped running, told people I’m mildly disabled, and ate a lot of pizzas.
But I'm back, and without shin splints...ever...not even the tiniest whimper. The solution for me was in relearning how to run. I used to be a heel striker and, I guess, a bit of a loper. Combine that with a bit too much athletic drive, resulting in running too far, too fast, too soon = shin splints. Then I read about high cadence running in Friel's Training Bible, and the "pose method" somewhere else, and I thought I'd try yet again to become a runner. First I shortened my stride so that I'd get at least 30 right foot strikes every 20 seconds (i.e. a cadence of 90, which is supposed to be optimum), counting every few minutes or so. It felt really, really weird, and a friend described me as “dainty”, deeply wounding my pride. It’s true that I was mincing along a bit, but I stuck with it, got used to it, and eventually uncovered the right technique for my body.
The most significant consequence of this change was a shift to a mid/forefoot strike: running higher cadence I simply didn’t have time to stretch out far enough for a heel strike. That, I think, was the key to the splint problem. Moving to a mid/forefoot strike (mid for slower running, fore for faster running) did, however, put different pressures on my lower legs, especially my calves, and I had to take it really slowly and carefully to let the strength build up. I would say that it took about 18 months before my muscles and tendons had more or less adapted to the new style. Another, more surprising, result was that my New Balance 1220 motion control shoes with concrete reinforcement, and my $120 orthotics, were simply not appropriate. I tried a few different running shoes and have ended up with just about the complete opposite of 1220s: Mizuno Precisions - lightweight cushioning shoes, and not the usual prescription for shin splints - but they have worked a dream for me.
Of course, I’ve had other pains here and there, but they’ve all been minor, and as I learn more and more about my biomechanics I seem able to iron these out…slowly. The net result is that I can run whenever I want and, regardless of triathlon or 10k times, that is a wonderful thing because I find more peace in running than anything else in life.
BUT, everyone’s different. It may be that your running style is already pretty good, and you simply have funny feet and need orthotics. Changing your gait is a suggestion for the long term if MLT's sound advice doesn't work for you.
Good luck.
SteveO
Re: shin splints... [ninny]
[ In reply to ]
www.posetech.com
i almost couldn't restart running because my shins felt like they where being made into meatloaf. i have been using the pose method for about 2 months and my legs feel brand new.
heel striking is the devil's work. it's a lot like justin timberlake. evil and painful and should be smited heavily abouts the head and shoulders!
try this. hope up and down a little. notice how you use your fore feet? now try it landing on your heels. you'll see the forefoot strike is custom made for shock absorbtion.
don't try to fix a broken system. use one that already works.
good luck!
customerjon @gmail.com is where information happens.
i almost couldn't restart running because my shins felt like they where being made into meatloaf. i have been using the pose method for about 2 months and my legs feel brand new.
heel striking is the devil's work. it's a lot like justin timberlake. evil and painful and should be smited heavily abouts the head and shoulders!
try this. hope up and down a little. notice how you use your fore feet? now try it landing on your heels. you'll see the forefoot strike is custom made for shock absorbtion.
don't try to fix a broken system. use one that already works.
good luck!
customerjon @gmail.com is where information happens.
Re: shin splints... [customerjon]
[ In reply to ]
thanks for the suggestions, i appreciate it. i think ill try the pose technique and see how that goes. i had no idea i was running the justin timberlake way. theres just no excuse for that.
Re: shin splints... [SteveO]
[ In reply to ]
I'm a fellow sufferer, and did all the things MLT and SteveO did, and they helped. Let me add a couple of things:
One is that motion control shoes made my problem worse, not better, because I have monster arches with the attendant rigid feet and ankles. Some running stores, including very good ones, automatically put people in motion control shoes if they suffer from shinsplints, but your own foot type needs to factor in there. The suggestion about stretching the calf muscles all the time was crucial for me, as well as using the Stick to roll out my calf muscles every day. Also instead of just icing, my physical therapist taught me to dunk my leg into an ice bucket. Just put as much ice as you can into a bucket of water, and get the temp about 40 degrees F. You only need to do this for 8 minutes, once a day, and it only really hurts bad for the first 3 minutes. But I found it much more effective at getting at the inflammation than just an icebag.
Second, I did a lot of water running when I was hobbled. Great workout, although exessively boring, and it kept me from completely losing running fitness.
Third, I have been pain-free now for about 6 months, and the one thing I attribute that to above all the others, like SteveO, is changing my running style to emphasize short strides with quick feet. This gets me landing in the midfoot and takes the pressure off my tibias and the place where the soleus inserts. I haven't been able to teach myself the pose method because I can't seem to visualize it for myself, I think I would need a coach who knows the method to help me. But I focus on shortening and quickening my steps on every run, and I really believe that has kept me out of the painhouse.
I really feel for you, and I hope all these things will help you come out of it.
One is that motion control shoes made my problem worse, not better, because I have monster arches with the attendant rigid feet and ankles. Some running stores, including very good ones, automatically put people in motion control shoes if they suffer from shinsplints, but your own foot type needs to factor in there. The suggestion about stretching the calf muscles all the time was crucial for me, as well as using the Stick to roll out my calf muscles every day. Also instead of just icing, my physical therapist taught me to dunk my leg into an ice bucket. Just put as much ice as you can into a bucket of water, and get the temp about 40 degrees F. You only need to do this for 8 minutes, once a day, and it only really hurts bad for the first 3 minutes. But I found it much more effective at getting at the inflammation than just an icebag.
Second, I did a lot of water running when I was hobbled. Great workout, although exessively boring, and it kept me from completely losing running fitness.
Third, I have been pain-free now for about 6 months, and the one thing I attribute that to above all the others, like SteveO, is changing my running style to emphasize short strides with quick feet. This gets me landing in the midfoot and takes the pressure off my tibias and the place where the soleus inserts. I haven't been able to teach myself the pose method because I can't seem to visualize it for myself, I think I would need a coach who knows the method to help me. But I focus on shortening and quickening my steps on every run, and I really believe that has kept me out of the painhouse.
I really feel for you, and I hope all these things will help you come out of it.
I had shin splints when racing for years. Hurt like heck for about two miles, and then went away, but draining nonetheless. They went away (so far) when I began adding long yoga stretches to deal with hamstring tightness. I don't know if there's any science to it, but it worked for me.