The Vine: Runner Fest I
Dear Sars,
I am a runner.I run a lot.While I love it, my body does not.I have had problems with chronic and extremely painful shin splints for a year or so now.I’m on the distance track team, so that means that during the season my weekly mileage is usually 20-30 miles.By the end of last season, my shin splints were so bad that after I ran at our district meet, I woke up the next morning and couldn’t walk.After that, I took two months off.
But lately, now that I’ve begun upping my mileage in preparation for the season, my shins have start to twinge again.I ice my shins regularly, never wear high heels, have started taking an extra day off from running during the week, and I got specialized insoles that I use in both my running shoes and my daily shoes.I’m running out of ideas.I was hoping you or your readers could help.
Thanks,
Hoping Not To Be Crippled By Age 25
PSI was never sure if people added those names at the bottom, or if the advice columnist did.Hmm.
Dear I Make Y’All Do It Because It’s Faster,
What I know about running wouldn’t fill a spoon; I admire the folks who go for runs around here, because if I can get a half a mile without getting bored, my ankles start complaining.You might start by searching WebMD for answers on shin splints, or browsing around a bulletin board for runners, which would probably have some good firsthand info — and if you’re still in school, and your team has a trainer, ask him/her, or get a referral to a sports doctor.It could be anything from your shoes to the way you land on your feet when you run.
Let’s see what the readers have to say.
Tags: Ask The Readers health and beauty
I don’t have any actual degrees or qualifications, but I used to be a student trainer for my college. Here are the things that I’ve found helpful, both personally and for other people.
You say you’re icing your shins, but how? Fill some Dixie cups halfway to three-quarters full with water and freeze. Use this block of ice to massage the aching muscles. You can also try heat before you run.
Make sure you’re specifically stretching your shins. Most people remember to stretch their calves, but forget the shins. Do a quick warm-up and stretch before your run, then do a cool-down and stretch afterwards.
Make sure you’re getting enough potassium; eat more bananas.
If those tips don’t work, there are various taping methods you can use. They’re generally not very helpful, though.
And if they’re so bad that you can’t walk for a few days after a run, go to a doctor or a certified athletic trainer to get checked out and make sure it’s not anything serious.
I remember a preventative measure for shin splints that was weird, but seemed to work (although I never put on the milage that Crippled does): every morning, take your bathtowel and lay it out flat on the floor in front of you, then, using only your toes, scrunch up the entire towel. You’re working the muscle, but stretching it, too.
I’m by no means an expert, but I was once in a similar position. I suffered from terrible shin splints for a few months and finally broke down and talked to a friend of mine who is a physiotherapist.
The first thing she always recommends to people with shin splints is to stretch their calf muscles. It seemed like backwards logic to me, but apparently the muscles at the front of your leg will seize up if the ones at the back of your leg are too tight. Anyway, that’s what worked for me: stretching my calves about eleventy times a day. Eventually, I had to stretch out my hamstrings more too, because the tightness seemed to move itself up my leg, but it’s still what works.
Another interesting tip I was given for muscle soreness in general: take more calcium. If it’s the stuff that’s formulated for higher absorption, it can really help.
Also the obvious: ice and ibuprofen (or any anti-inflammatory pain reliever) and rest, which it sounds like you’ve been doing.
Good luck.
I used to get massive shin splints and a cross country runner gave me this old school remedy that made my life MUCH less painful. I hope I can describe it accurately because it’s easier to show than explain:
1) it in a chair and lay a towel on the floor. Keep your feet flat on the floor and have the toes on the edge of the towel . 2) Using your toes ONLY scrunch your toes to bring the towel towards you (It will bunch). When the towel has been scrunched to the end, repeat the process. I’d do it once every other day or once a day for a bit. Something about the scrunching of toes helps/massages the muscles on the shin and seems to soothe the damange of shin splints. Yours sound so bad I wouldn’t expect miracles at first, but it should DEFINITELY help you.
I’ve battled chronic running injuries (ranging from shinsplints to knee, ankle, hip, and back problems) for over 15 years. The first thing I’d suggest is talking to the school athletic trainer about stretches–shinsplints are the result of inflamed muscle fibers, so stretching can help a lot. The right shoes can also make a huge difference. Finally, talk to your coach about doing long runs on grass or other soft surfaces, and reversing directions around the track occasionally (i.e., running clockwise rather than counterclockwise). The most important thing, though, is to really learn to listen to your body and know when to push through the pain and when to give yourself time to heal. It sounds like you did that over the summer, which is great, but I know from experience it can be much harder to do that during the season. Good luck!
From what I was told by my coaches/trainers, the only way to cure shin splints is to rest, which you did. Prevention is going to be your biggest goal.
“The first thing she always recommends to people with shin splints is to stretch their calf muscles. It seemed like backwards logic to me, but apparently the muscles at the front of your leg will seize up if the ones at the back of your leg are too tight.”
This is absolutely true. Stretching and strength training are going to be your best friends. I also echo what someone said above about the surface you’re running on. Our new high school was built in the middle of our cross country course, leaving us to practice on roads and bike trails. That was the first time I remember getting shin splints. If your track is in poor condition and you’re doing a lot of road running, that’ll hurt you, too.
Finally, try different shoes. Check your area to see if you have a shop that specializes in running (We have the Track Shack here in Orlando). They’ll have a better selection of shoes geared just to runners and will work with you to find the best shoe for you individually. Let them know your problems, they’ll measure your feet and watch you walk, and start recommending shoes.
Good luck! Shin splints are the worst.
Shin splints usually result from an increase in mileage or intensity, which it sounds like you already know. The culprit is a weakness in the tendons on the front of your lower leg that are stressed when the front of your foot has to lift and pivot toward your tibia as you go through your normal running stride. So, I would recommend the opposite of the “run on a soft surface” thing. The softer the surface, the more work the muscles involved have to do. Unlike most injuries, shin splints are likely to get worse if you are running on grass or trails.
The ice is a good idea. Not just after, but before you run, too. A simple exercise that will help is to put the front of your foot under something heavy (the desk in front of you or the edge of the couch might work well) and try to lift said heavy object by raising your toes. You won’t be able to lift anything this way, but you will feel the muscles working. Just lift and hold for a few seconds then relax and repeat a bunch of times.
My experience is you can “run through” shin splints, if you can manage the pain. Just take it easy. The ice and prescription level ibuprofen doses (800mg) should help with pain management and allow you to heal without having to totally shut down. Take the ibuprofen at that level only when you eat (a meal, not just a few crackers or whatever) or it will hurt your stomach in a bad way.
I’m not a doctor, but I play one on TV… Or, when I’m avoiding being an accountant. Heh.
I never get shin splints, but I’ve logged some heavy running mileage in my time, and have had a plethora of other repetitive strain injuries that have couched me for months together.
As others have pointed out, stretching is paramount. You might also want to talk to a coach about a strength program (i.e. weights) specifically targeted to your needs; a lot of my worst problems (mostly connected with an injured knee joint, originally) were mitigated once I started doing a lot of weight lifting. (My lifting wasn’t specifically runner-oriented, but the increase in muscular strength increased stability in a lot of my more susceptible joints.
Another thing I found very beneficial was intensive stretching using a foam roller (ow!). MY roller cost 30 bucks, but it’s still cheaper than chiropractic.
http://www.t-nation.com/readArticle.do?id=475832
Which brings me to my final remedy — chiropractic treatments (preferably, when I can afford it and my insurance coverage isn’t completely drained) preventive rather than remedial, involving a lot of ART (Active Release Therapy) which is an active (as per the name) system of assisted stretching specifically developed for broken athletes.
http://www.activerelease.com/
Good luck. And as MB says, learn to listen to your body, and try to figure out the difference between your tissues saying, “this hurts but we’ll deal,” and “this hurts and we gotta say, something’s going to break soon — rest NOW.”
My Dad ran miles every day in the Marine Corps and swears by this stretch to prevent shin splints: Sit down on a chair and stretch one leg out in front of you (so it is parallel to the ground). Using controlled movements, slowly draw each letter of the alphabet in the air with your pointed toe. The letters don’t need to be big — just go slowly. Switch legs and do it with the other one. It seems to work the muscles on both the front and back of the leg (calves and shins), and he said it was a lifesaver move for him. Worth a try!
I work in a physical therapy office and we get runners with shin splints a lot, especially when marathon season starts and they ratchet up their daily distances too fast. I’m not a PT myself, but I know that if you went to see a physical therapist they’d be able to discover the cause through tests like watching how you stretch, how you walk, how you run, etc. We have resources on our website about how PT can help runners, as well as links to other sites that could help. You can also check out the American Physical Therapy Association website: http://www.apta.org/, or the Canadian Physiotherapy Association website, if you happen to be Canadian (hi tita!): http://www.physiotherapy.ca/
Pain can beat down the most determined person, but it can also be a source of determination. Good luck! I hope you get better.
Just a few suggestions on top of what everyone else has said. Make sure you work back up to those 20-30 miles/week gradually. Pushing yourself, especially coming off of a few months of complete rest, will definitely make things worse. Try not to run two days in a row, at least while you’re in pain. I know it’s hard to back off when you’re heading into peak training season, but your body will thank you for it.
Make sure you are warming up sufficiently, avoid running on pavement and hills, and add 10-15 minutes to your cool down. 10-15 minutes of strong walking on a soft surface preferably, to give you muscles a chance to really relax and stretch before you…stretch. Stretch well, focussing on your calves and holding each stretch for at least 60 seconds on each leg.
Try to soak in cold water within 15 minutes of your stretch, sooner if possible. A lake or river, the hose, the shower with just the cold water turned on, as cold as you can stand it as quickly after your run as you can manage. Applying cold immediately helps to reduce any immediate inflammation and will make a big difference long-term as well. Then keeping icing, 15 minutes or so twice a day, even on days that you’re not running.
Make sure you’re wearing the right shoes for you. Take your current shoes with you to a running specialty store and explain your concerns. They will be able to tell you whether you’re wearing the right shoes for you and, if not, recommend something else. With the amount of miles you’re putting on, you’re going to need new shoes every 12 to 16 weeks, which sucks but worn out or poorly fitting shoes are a major cause of injury.
And most importantly, listen to your body. Some pain you’ll be able to run through, some you won’t. It’s horrible to contemplate, but if you have to take the season off now it would be worth it to prevent doing any permanent damage.
OK, so, I’m not a runner, but a few years back I went on this running binge. And I got terrible shin splints. I read somewhere that you should land on the balls of your feet (NOT your toes, but the balls) when your stride comes down, instead of the heel. It feels awkward at first, but I did it and completely stopped having shin splints.
But like I said, I know nothing about running, really.
I definitely agree with the writing the alphabet thing, it works to strengthen the tibialis anterior (muscle on the outside of your shin) which can help balance out your calf strength. The other treatment that I have found helpful is to combine massage with stretching and icing. Check out trigger point massage especially. If your trainer doesn’t know how to do this, you can look for a book called “The Trigger Point Massage Workbook” by Clair and Amber Davies. Good luck!
I am not a runner, never have been and never will be.
But I get shin splints anyway, and I asked my chiropractor what kind of an exercise might help.
He said: stand on the lowest step of a staircase, facing away from the stairs, with the very back of your heels on the step and your toes in the air. Hang on to the rail. Keep your legs straight, don’t bend your knees. Flex your feet, bringing your toes up in the air. Do about twenty reps (he said “until you hate me”).
The other day I got a free “weight-room orientation” from one of the personal trainers at our university’s recreation center, and he dittoed that advice.
If you are already a runner this is probably old news, but…. I would also recommend going to a really good running store and verify you have the right kind of shoes for your feet and the way you run.
I started running seriously about a year and a half ago and at first had terrible, debilitating issues with shin splints. I was wearing old Nike shoes at the time, ones that were way past their prime much less specifically made for running. I visited my local running store where they get you on a treadmill and film you running, then slow it down to analyze the biomechanics of how you run, then bring you shoes that will work best for the way your body works. I ended up getting a pair of Asics, and have never had a problem with shin splints since.
Just a thought… it may not be shin splints, but compartment syndrome. Basically, what happens is: muscles are surrounded fascia. In some people (athletes), as the muscle grows/swells with use, the fascia does not. It causes intense pain that can sometime feel like shin splints. I had both shin splints and compartment syndrome at various times during college… Compartment syndrome was the worst!! It made me cry during my hockey games, it was so painful. *Side note: female ice hockey players that cry? Not that intimidating to the other team…*
Anyway, an athletic trainer can do some tests to determine if that could possibly be it. This sounds weird, but one of the things is if the area where the muscle is next to your tibia (shin bone) is still really hard to the touch hours after you exercise, it could be compartment syndrome. I’m sure there are more techincal tests, but that was one that my athletic trainer told me about.
Oh, and part of the treatment (the part that doesn’t involve surgery) was to ice BEFORE you participate in your activity. Weird, again, but it’s to keep the swelling down. Anti-inflammatories, ice, then stretching… then run.
Good luck!!
I’m really not a runner, and this is kind of a variation on the towel scrunching/alphabet kind of thing, but when overenthusiasm for Ultimate Frisbee gave me can’t-walk-down-stairs shin splints, this exercise helped me both with getting rid of them and keeping them away. Just stand normally and tap your toes on one foot like you’re bored. Slowly, though, so you can feel it in the calf.
I did about 300 of those toe taps per day on each side, kept myself on ibuprofen for a while, got better cleats and put gel inserts in them, and stretched my calves well before playing, which seems to have made the shin splints improve and not come back. Obviously you run a lot more than I do, but if you’re not in really rough shape yet, that might be of some help.
-toe taps/shin raises
-get enough Vitamin C (I swear this helps)
-STRETCH your calf
and, last but most weird:
CLOGS. I had really bad shin splints when I was running track. I started wearing (FLAT – no heel allowed!!!) clogs that same year and the action of just trying to keep the shoe on my foot literally cured my shinsplits.
It was amazing. I still wear those clogs (Simple) today.
I am a runner and I totally agree with the writing the alphabet thing – it has helped me immensely. Additionally, not only do you need to make sure you are running in good shoes, but ones that are not too old. An additional exercise that we did on my high school track team also helps a lot, but you need a partner – sit on the floor with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor, have your partner hold your feet down while you try to lift up your toes – they don’t need to keep your feet on the floor, just provide some resistance. I think we used to do 10 reps. Then switch and have your partner hold your feet together while you push them out, then hold them apart while you push in. We called this exercise “shinnies” and it really worked for me – I didn’t even know what shin splints felt like till college!
Hey! I have to disagree a bit with what a previous poster said…you can’t really run through shin splints because it makes them a whole lot worse. When you’ve stressed the tendons or damaged muscles, they have to rest and get better. It’s not a challenge to your mentality, it’s a signal from your body that you need to approach things differently.
I’ve had shin splints for years–the result of very high arches and hence a weird running stride I’ve been working to correct. Everything else people have mentioned (the alphabet thing, proper shoes, ice, etc.) really helped, but you’re not going to get better if you ignore actual, real pain. I think sometimes athletes have this hard-ass mentality of having to get through the pain, but there’s good pain, i.e. you’re working hard and your muscles are reluctant and there’s a dull pain that you push through, a.k.a. the burn, and then there’s sharp, burning pain that makes you take notice. Don’t ignore that pain. Treat it, fix it, and then move on.
Really, good luck to you. I know how hard it is when your body doesn’t want to do the things you need it to. It can be rough. You’re on the right track and where you should be so I have every confidence you’ll recover.
I realize this is quite late, but I was also a competitive runner- both cross-country and then sprinting. I say “was” because when running cross-country I blew out my left knee, and I ignored that to run track. By overcompensating on my right leg I blew out my right knee, and I also injured my right ankle trying not to stress the knees when breaking from the blocks. Now if I run any more than about 100 meters, I can’t walk the next morning. So our issues are not THAT dissimilar.
Your body is trying to tell you something. Listen to it. It is saying, “Um, hey, about this? Yeah. Not cool. Um, help?” Take yourself to a doctor or sports therapist NOW, and stop trying to run through the pain, because you’ll only screw yourself up more later.