How I cured my 4 years of chronic shin splints.

Around 20% of people participating in sports will experience shin splints at some point. For some people though, these aren’t just a passing phase, and they can very easily become a chronic recurring issue. I was unlucky enough to be one of those people. I had shin pain for 4 years, every time I ran, jumped or even walked too aggressively, my shins ached. It stopped me participating in the sport that I loved, and made my life generally miserable.

I tried every imaginable approach to sorting these out, from foam rolling, stretching, heat, ice, massage, strengthening, weakening. You name it, I tried it. But nothing changed. Unfortunately I am not alone in this experience, with many of my clients sharing similar stories.

The truth is, until I addressed the root cause of shin splints, rather than the symptoms, there was no way to resolve this. My main symptom, was pain, and that’s what I spent my time trying to sort out. Icing, resting, massage, all to reduce the pain. But ultimately, pain was just a symptom. Pain was my body telling me that the way I was doing things, wasn’t working. I needed to go deeper than, and address the root of the problem. That started with my gait, the way I walked, ran, jumped and everything in between.

People don’t just “run”, we all run, or walk, in our unique way. These ways can work better than others. My way, was a total disaster. My ankles never entered into proper extension phases, and so my shins never straightened out properly. This meant the shin muscles were essentially “on” all the time. This never gave them a chance to recover, and this chronic stress + inflammation, caused my shin splints.

When I learnt to understand and see my gait, and then change it, my pain problems resolved relatively quickly. Learning a new pattern isn’t easy, and it was more than just straightening my ankle in the middle of my steps. But it was achievable, and the results have lasted. Seven years later, my shins are still pain free.

If you’d like to learn how to do this yourself, check out my consultation page and book an appointment today.