You know the expression; I can set my clock by it. Well in this case, I can set my calendar by it. About 2-3 weeks into every sport season, my phone starts ringing with parents calling to make appointments for their youth and high school athletes. They all have one thing in common: "shin splints" or medial stress syndrome. And, while of course, this is good for job security, it really is a preventable injury. I will tell you all about how to treat shin splints, but first I think it's best if we understand the "why."
Too much, too soon. A tale as old as time.
Shin splints most often happen after hard exercise, sports, or repetitive activity. In my world, this is known as Pre-Season sports. The repetitive action of playing hard during tryouts and in the first few weeks of each sport season can lead to inflammation of the muscles, tendons, and thin layer of tissue covering the shin bones, causing pain.
Having worked with enough athletes over the years, I know that they are not going to take it easy during tryouts or in the first few weeks of the season. They want to make the team, or the varsity team, or be a Captain, or be on the starting line-up. So instead, perhaps we should try prevention.
Here is a list of the best ways to prevent shin splints:
Wear supportive shoes when exercising. Running shoes should be replaced every 300 miles and cleat should be replaced every season.
Consider wearing orthotic inserts that support your arches. Stop in and chat with someone at a running shoe store where they can help match your foot type with a proper running shoe or orthotic. I recommend Marathon Sports, Hanlon's Shoe and The Run House for options here on Cape Cod.
Start slowly and increase your activity level and intensity over time. Avoid sudden increases in activity. Stick to the 10% rule — don’t increase more than 10% per week in activity. For example, if you run 5 miles total in one week, you should only add a half mile to your total mileage the following week, for a total of 5.5 miles.
Stretch your muscles before exercising to warm them up. Dynamic warm up is the best!
Strengthen your foot core. See Kara's Exercise Progression on Instagram for strengthening your foot core.
Banded Ankle Eversion
Calf Raises with ball squeeze
Toe Splaying
Doming (build that arch!!!)
Towel Curls
What if I do all the right things and I still get shin splints?
Shockwave Therapy is a cutting edge treatment that utilizes that acoustic waves to stimulate the bodies natural healing process. By targeting areas of pain or injury, shockwave therapy helps to increase blood flow, promote tissue regeneration and alleviate discomfort. The best part for athletes is that there is no downtime. Keep playing the sport you love while reminding your body how to heal itself.
See Kara's Instagram Post on Shockwave Therapy for Shin Splints.
What if it's not Shin Splints? Could it be more serious?
Yes, often if you do not treat your shin splints, you can develop a stress fracture. To rule out a stress fracture, you should have an X-ray, although stress fractures aren’t seen in about two-thirds of plain X-rays. Therefore, an MRI or bone scan will be the most definitive to determine if there is a stress fracture. Typically you can see a stress fracture on an X-ray at about the 6 week mark, but only because we can start to see the healing process. Unfortunately with insurance requirements, you must have an X-ray before insurance will approve an MRI.
Prevention is the Best Medicine
Check out one of our clients doing their ankle strength and mobility work to keep their dreaded shin splints from coming back! And yes, once this patient's Mother saw her daughter's socks had so many holes in them, she definitely ordered her new ones!
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