After basically no running for a year due to injury, and 7 weeks following knee surgery I started back with some easy running. Was basically looking to ease back into things, and I guess I over did it because now I seem to have developed shin splints in my left leg (same leg as knee injury).
I was trying to build up with short, frequent runs on soft surfaces - 5-7 times/wk of 15 - 25min on the treadmill or grass, but did a couple brick runs on the sidewalk that I think pushed me over the edge.
Would be great to get some recommendations/advice on the injury. Basically, anything I can do to speed recovery and what I might do to help prevent for the future.
Slow down so your training partners can catch up, and buy them (or him, for that matter) more beer as a thanks for getting his ass up early even though his baby was up all night!
Oh, and try ice massage (frozen water in dixie cups) and advil.
I get them any time that I start back running after taking more than 2 weeks off.
Try freezing a paper or styrofoam cup of water, take the block of ice out of the cup and massage the painful area of your shin with it. Do it as often as you can for as long as you can stand. The inflamed area is usually pretty close to the skin so it responds well to ice.
As a long term sufferer of shin splints it is my distinct pleasure (read devilish misery loves company sarcasm) to introduce you to the “Slush Bucket”
Just like it sounds - fill a bucket up with water and ice and immerse your leg into it. This hurts like hell and I guaruntee it will make your fingers tingle. The good news is that it also works very well.
Also make sure that you are not on old shoes and take it very easy until the pain is gone. This is not an injury that you can train through. You are condemned to the pool or the bike for two weeks. Any running will make it worse.
Newsflash Junior, after not running for more than a year and then having surgery, jumping in to 7 days a week is a guaranteed recipe for a problem. Lemme guess, you started 3 times a week for a whole week, felt fine, then cranked it up. Attention dumas (French author?? no!!!), if you are hoping to get back into it and have any chance of reaching your (very high) potential, take a long view of it. Long, like 2005 is the year to get back to some pain-free training, 2006 is the year to start racing. Crawl, walk, run, fly. With your history, I’d probably do 20 minutes 3 times a week tops for AT LEAST a month to 6 weeks before I even considered extending a session or adding a session.
Also, you didn’t mention it in your post, but back off on the bike too. No doubt that you are so happy to be back training that you are flogging watts as if you were 3 years into a training session, not 7 weeks. Take it easy, it will come. Stay in the 39 for the year. Go Kinney’s speed. Allison Kinney. For a smart guy, you are a dumbshit about this.
I say this knowing that if you follow my advice, you will kick my ass next year whenever you brave a chance meeting, but also knowing that if you keep thinking/training with your ego, how 'bout I kick your ass and take the $200, cause you will never get healthy. Did you enjoy Clermont Oly or Gulf Coast last year? Jeeeesus even writing this shit gets me stirred up thinking about your sorry ass whining for 8 hours in the car back from Gulf Coast and now doing nothing to learn from it.
Stevie’s right, but if you match Alison you may be going too fast-my pace is awfully slow at the moment. Stay on the bike a few times a week, and swim. Don’t run for a month, and ice ice ice. Walk for a bit, then jog on grass, then run.
Hell, by then I might be in half way decent shape so I can hang with you.
You’ll also need to do some toe raises. Pretty simple stuff. Sit at your desk and lift your toes off the gorund while keeping the heal down. Don’t hop…use full range of motion. Do that about 250 times (each) per day…