Possible Shin splints???

[LiveStrongly]

Every time I try to start up practicing for football the outside part of my lower legs get real sore. The pain is in between my shin and calf on the outside. After exercising it just turns into a dull, ache and also hurts during exercise.

If i squat down and get on the balls of my feet, that really triggers pain. If i do jumping jacks, or really anything that required you to stay on your toes it just ends up getting aggravated and sore..

Anyone possibly know how i can recover from/prevent this???

I USED to run cross country and play soccer in high school like 3 years ago and never had these problems. I have even tried switching what pair of football shoes i wear (wide receiver). This is my 4th pair and still have the issue....

[mc-]

Every time I try to start up practicing for football the outside part of my lower legs get real sore. The pain is in between my shin and calf on the outside. After exercising it just turns into a dull, ache and also hurts during exercise.

If i squat down and get on the balls of my feet, that really triggers pain. If i do jumping jacks, or really anything that required you to stay on your toes it just ends up getting aggravated and sore..

Anyone possibly know how i can recover from/prevent this???

I USED to run cross country and play soccer in high school like 3 years ago and never had these problems. I have even tried switching what pair of football shoes i wear (wide receiver). This is my 4th pair and still have the issue....

Might just be a strength issue.
Main thing: if there's pain, follow the simple effective protocol here:
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=138874633

as for your shin splits and being up on your toes: please check out this post:
the focus here is on cramps in the calves but the advice seems to be just as effective in the runners i coach for shin splints
http://www.begin2dig.com/2010/05/mus...unning-in.html

and if you don't have a mobility program - consider getting one that will help get your feet/ankles mobilized (not stretched) before you start your activity.

that's a lot of info, but form a pretty good template of prep, pain and progress.

best
mc

[VitaminJT]

If you want you can check out one of my articles about what causes shin splints and the bio-mechanics behind it, plus some ways to fix it. jtwellbeing.com/2011/12/what-are-shin-splints-and-how-can-you.html

[riseboi]

while not common, your subjective complaints resemble some sort of peroneal tendonopathy. If that is what it is, there is not much evidenced based research, however, some health professionals have suggested the use of orthotics, eccentric exercises, and/or mobilizations. You can certainly try what others have suggested but if there is no improvement, I'd simply suggest you be properly evaluated with objective testing by a professional.

[mc-]

riseboi,
agreed that a good and proper evaluation by a trained pro is the best way to go because jumping to some kind of "opathy" may be overegging what could be causing a response to begin with, rather than that response being the cause, if you see what i mean.
in my experience here, however, one of the most oft cited comments when that is proposed is "i can't afford to see anyone"
hence my constant caveat that everything suggested here has a high degree risk of being wrong for a given poster.
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=129391851

all the best with your PT work.

VitaminJT,
i looked at your page on shin splints and was a wee bit alarmed to see this assertion
"Purchase correct footwear! If you are someone who pronates, you're going to need some support to hold your arch up and stop it from collapsing. By doing this you can improve shock absorption. "

and then in the next paragraph you say orthotics are also an option - tho you prefer strengthening/stretching first.

THere's little difference between the Kayano shoe you recommend and orthotics. They are both crutches that many many many people - because of the cost of the device - rely on as a replacement for work.

May i ask, have you ever tried to bend or twist the sole of any of the runners you recommended? You'll notice they do not twist.
In other words, they STOP a foot from moving like a foot and letting the foot's joints be mobile.

If one's arch is supposedly weak, what is supporting that arch with a device going to do? What also is the benefit of limiting the proprioceptive feedback from the one area in our body that has 24% of our joints in it? Presumably we have those joints and density of mechanorecptors around those joints for a reason. Shutting them down with inflexible sneakers provides what benefit? Not much apparently (http://www.begin2dig.com/2010/01/run...-thinking.html)

More than 9 our of ten times when i work with athletes who have this issue, their form needs work, and their form needs work because of some other issues in their movement. Rather than starting with the site of an issue - an arch say - folks i work with tend to focus on what might be leading to these poorer movement patterns. One of the first things we do, generally, before introducing mobility work (also often lacking), is to see if we can ditch what are again about 8 times out of ten now, inflexible overly squishy shoes (http://www.begin2dig.com/2010/01/do-...st-how-to.html)

so, just saying, the site of pain we know is rarely the source of pain.

mc

[VitaminJT]

I respect your opinion but you have me slightly confused. Are you saying that you prescribe something like a Nike Free to increase proprioceptive feedback in the foot and allow it to adapt better to a variety of surfaces before commencing hip/knee/ankle muscle control and stability exercises, which will allow exercises to be undertaken with less restriction to joints such as the talo-crural joint because of the footwear change?

I never said the site of the pain is the source of pain and agree it isn't. For example, if genu valgus is present in the knees and the medial collateral ligament is having force applied, that might be the site of pain but the cause can be poor hip abduction, a tight ITB or poor VMO activation.

Having worked in a sporting shop for 2 years working with shoes I have twisted shoes many many times, but I think it's case by case basis and a younger person is going to have a different prescription compared to an elderly person. You aren't going to throw someone in their 60-70's who pronates into a shoe that allows them to do so regardless of orthotics.I don't know if you're saying my article is poorly constructed or you don't agree with it but I respect your case none the less.

[mc-]

I respect your opinion but you have me slightly confused. Are you saying that you prescribe something like a Nike Free to increase proprioceptive feedback in the foot and allow it to adapt better to a variety of surfaces before commencing hip/knee/ankle muscle control and stability exercises, which will allow exercises to be undertaken with less restriction to joints such as the talo-crural joint because of the footwear change?

no i didn't. i said that the shoes you recommend don't bend or twist and are more or less orthotics in and of themselves.
[/quote]

I never said the site of the pain is the source of pain and agree it isn't. For example, if genu valgus is present in the knees and the medial collateral ligament is having force applied, that might be the site of pain but the cause can be poor hip abduction, a tight ITB or poor VMO activation.
[/quote]
that's still too far up the chain and too muscluar a focus. if someone has a tight ITB why is it tight? it might have nothing to do with muscles; it might have to do with vision. or vestibular issues. or something else entirely.

Having worked in a sporting shop for 2 years working with shoes I have twisted shoes many many times, but I think it's case by case basis and a younger person is going to have a different prescription compared to an elderly person.

has nothing in my experience to do with age. or very little.

You aren't going to throw someone in their 60-70's who pronates into a shoe that allows them to do so regardless of orthotics

really? why not?
i guess you don't work with many folks in this age bracket?

if there's no pain, there's no pain. so why introduce an implement that is not shown to reduce injury or fundamentally improve mechanics.

I'd rather get them into as flexible and squishless a shoe as possible - if they have to wear shoes - and teach them drills to recover their movement. It's what i do do, and the adaptation happens rapidly.

I can prove this pretty much immediately with anyone by doing balance, strength and range of motion tests. Do it yourself: try a closed eye balanced test in a laced up shoe; try it in your bare feet. 9 times out of ten at least stability goes up. what did you change?

best
mc