shin splints?

Question

i have been running, on concrete, every day that i am able. lately though, my shins hurt very bad when i run. could that be shin splints? if so, what should i do to make them better?

Answer 1

Shin splints are very common among runners, the best treatment is to ice them and,if you can, rest them. Good Luck

P.S Shin's arent a muscle.

this site might be helpful as well: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shin_splints

Answer 2

Stop Shin Splints Forever?

Answer 3

I had the same exact problem. After awhile of training for xc last year my shins started hurting so badly i couldnt even bear to run. I went and talked to the school trainer who told me i had shin splints. the best cure for shin splints is rest. It really helped me. take a few days off and ice like crazy. stretch your calves more than you usually do. sometimes and most of the time shin splints are caused by poor foot arches. if they are really bothering you after this rest time, see either your doctor. or even before that go to a running shoe store. the people in those help out soo much. they can tell you if your foot arch is causing that and if it is they can find you the appropriate pair of shoes. If none of this is helping , something more serious is going on. maybe a stress fracture, go see your doctor if this is the case

Answer 4

I agree you should rest for a few day and maybe ice will help too.

Shin splints are the result of muscle imbalance. Strong calves, weak shin muscles. To prevent them, lie face down in bed with your toes hanging over the edge. Slowly pull your toes upward against the resistance of the mattress. Hold for 1 or 2 seconds, then repeat. Try to work up to 2 or 3 sets of 10.

There are other variations of this exercise such as hanging a can of paint on your toes, but the idea is to strengthen your shin muscles.

Good Luck

Answer 5

I had shin splints when I first started running--getting the right shoes made all the difference.
If you can get to a shoe store that specializes in running shoes, they are better at looking at your running form
and recommending a shoe for you.
A shoe that's great for me may be totally wrong for you.

Fleet Feet is a chain of stores around the country,
but there are many store owned and worked in by runners.
They can watch the the way your foot and ankle react
when they land and decide if you need a motion control
or stability shoe.

Answer 6

actually running on concrete is harder on your joints. there is more impact per step and less is absorbed by the ground so your joints(mostly your ankles and knees) take the majority of the shock. i recommend an exersize i use for shin splints- if you know what a calf-raise is, this is similar. in a calf-raise you have your heels on the ground and your toes raised up on a book or something about 2 inches off the ground. you push yourself up using only your calf muscles. with the exersize i recommend you have your heels on the book and your toes on the ground so its pretty much the opposite position. you lift your toes up off the ground till they are level or higher than the top of the book. do about 50 per day and you should feel better in a very short amount of time. like, maybe 3 days tops. also, look for dirt and grass trails as an altenative to running on pavement all the time. run downhill as much as possible, so your calves do minimal work while you are using my suggestion. good luck!!!

Answer 7

After you run fill up a trashcan or bucket with ice water and stick your legs in it. I do it for about an hour or 2, but you won't be able to do it that long once you start so just do it as long as you can and put your legs back in when you can.

Make sure you stretch out your calves and get warmed up good before you start running, and like the other people said you need good shoes with lots of support. Shoe inserts will help a lot too, I have them.

But if they are pretty bad then they won't go away unttil you stop running, so you should probably take a week off or however long it takes for them to completely stop hurting.

Answer 8

Yes, that is probably shin splints. Running on hard surfaces can cause splints. Elevate your leg(s), ice them, and don't do much physical activity for a couple days

Answer 9

Yeah, I've had that before too. Stand and lift up the front part of your foot while keeping your heel on the ground (with both feet). Do it fast, with only a split second between each time you lift the front of your foot. Do this about thirty times, then position your feet so they're facing outwards and do it another 30 times. You'll know you're doing it right when your shins start to tighten up.

Answer 10

A good stretch for shin splints is to kneel on the fllor sitting on your feet.