Who here has suffered/ is suffering from Shin Splints. What was your specific cause of your shin splints and how did you deal with them?
I have a very mild case of Shin Splints. Its in the very early stages, so I've discovered it early thankfully, but a pain in the ass they are!
Never found the specific cause, there were too many suspects.
If I could back and time and change five things it would be to:
1) Take a day off immediately and do an internet search to read the large number of informative articles on the causes, treatments, and exercises regarding the various types of shin splints. It's not just one thing, but a few, with each being different. Find your type and get fanatical about the remedies till they work.
2) Do an intense pool running workout one, two or three days per week to help keep fitness, so any week has enough workouts to improve your fitness, or stay the same, never losing fitness, even if you back off running for a few days.
3) Forget the idea that you can tough out shin splints. Anyone can for a while, but it's a loser's game, as ignoring the pain, or gutting out the run ends a few months later with every runner who knows you telling you how tough you are, but you are no longer able to run, or walk without intense pain. You then are left with being tough trying to stand, or walk up stairs. It looks very pathetic and is.
4) Do the appropriate strengthening and/or flexability exercises before and/or after each run, or instead of the run, if you are less than three days away from pain from running.
5) Not running heals faster than any other method, but it can't be your only approach, as the eventual return to running will bring on the pain again. You have to follow steps 1-4 to improve as a runner over the long term.
Good Luck
Back in time. (not and)
Sorry
Well I just got my worst case in over 10 years this morning and have no idea where they came from. I think it came from tying my laces too tight, which was the cause that last time, but it was so bad I had to cut my run short.
I'm pretty sure it isn't a stress fracture, so I'll go for a run tonight and see how it goes. Still, it seems to have come from right out of nowhere.
Ok, ran tonight, stretched the top of foot and all is much better.
I noticed pain was on lateral side and so running on the road with that leg on the lower side of the slope helped.
I'm pretty sure it was from tying my laces too tight and seems to be a case of anterior tibialis shin splints, for which I found a matching description here: