Shin Splints: Causes and Cures

Shin Splints: Causes and Cures
Written by Nuno Costa

Shin Splints are one of the most common running injuries we see. They are generally caused by muscles that are irritated or swollen which tends to happen from overuse. This was a super common injury when I ran track in college years ago; it would usually happen when we would come back from summer break and start running again. Most of us didn’t do much running over the summer, so coming back to running regularly tended to lead to overuse in this specific area.

What causes Shin Splints?

As mentioned above, overuse is one of the biggest causes of shin splints. Shin splints can also be caused due to stress fractures in the lower leg bones or overpronation. Overpronation can make your foot’s arch collapse when the foot impacts the ground (sometimes referred to as “flat feet’). I was recently talking to a physical therapist who also mentioned the hips or core causing shin splints. If the athlete is weak in this area and unable to stabilize the muscles that are all connected then that could be the area that would brunt the impact leading to this injury.

When I ran track the case was that we were ramping up intensity too quickly and our muscles were unable to handle the workload, which I am assuming is the most common cause in the athletes we work with who experience shin splints.

The surface where you run also needs to be considered because that could also have something to do with this injury. In college, we would spend a majority of the winter running on grass, and it wasn’t until the end of winter training that would we gradually start running on the track. If you are able to run on softer surfaces your joints and muscles will thank you for it so find some grass to run on!

How do you get rid of Shin Splints?

You may not like what I have to say: REST. Your body needs time to heal, and they will often heal on their own as long as you avoid the movements that cause it to be aggravated. You may also try icing the area to help ease some of the pain and help with the swelling. An ice cup is ideal so that you can massage the area inflamed. There are also some general recommendations you will find on the internet such as taking anti-inflammatories or getting orthotics, but that will only mask the problem. Ultimately, you want to get to the root of the problem and fix it.

It is recommended to add some range-of-motion exercises that will strengthen the muscles around the shin/ankle area. We will have a follow up blog post with some foot strengthening exercises and stretches for shin splints. If it is not getting better, you may need physical therapy to assess what could be causing this injury. In some cases you may need to get x-rays if you have stress fractures and possibly need surgery, but these occasions are not the norm.

You will know your shin splints have gone away when you don’t feel pain anymore, specifically when you jog, sprint, and jump, which tend to be the things that aggravate it. If both of your legs feel equally strong and flexible then that means your shin splints have healed 🙂

Our online Invictus Endurance program offers a proper warm-up that includes dynamic range of motion exercises along with running mechanic drills to help you avoid injuries like shin splints. We’ve included a beginner and intermediate option so that you are not adding too much volume too quickly.

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