A guide to shin splints
Shin splints is characterised by pain and tenderness along the front of your lower leg (shin). Shin splints is a type of shin pain, usually caused by exercise like running. Shin splints usually get better within a few weeks.
If you have shin splints you may be able to assist yourself by:
- put an ice pack (or bag of frozen peas) in a towel on your shin for up to 20 minutes every 2 to 3 hours
- switch to gentle exercise such as yoga while healing
- you can remain active by exercising with non-weight-bearing exercises like swimming or biking if it doesn’t cause pain
- exercise on soft ground, if you can, when you’re feeling better
- warm up before exercise and stretch after exercise
- make sure your trainers or shoes support your feet properly
Shin splints are a repetitive stress injury and caused by overdoing an activity e.g. running. They can be prevented by:
- Progressively working your way into a new workout or routine
- Gradually increasing physical activity, intensity and mileage
- Wearing proper footwear
- Adding arch supports or insoles designed to absorb more shock or impact
- Bringing cross-training and strength workouts to a training regimen
If you’re suffering from shin splint pain, massage therapy can help with pain relief. The deep tissue strokes release built-up tension, resulting in pain release and the prevention of scar tissue accumulation.
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Stretches for Head, Neck and Shoulders
These stretches can either be done as a complete series or individually and most of them can be done at your desk. Some will ease tension in specific parts of the body whilst others are generally relaxing. Please remember stretching should always be relaxing and never painful! To get maximum benefit from these stretches you should do them daily and hold each stretch for 15 seconds and repeat twice. Head And Neck
- Head rotation - keeping your head level, slowly turn from side to side.
- Slowly drop your head sideways moving your right ear towards your right shoulder and push down with your left shoulder - repeat on other side.
- Stand with your feet shoulder distance apart; look down towards your right foot (hold for 15 seconds), dropping left shoulder - repeat the exercise looking towards your left foot.
- Drop the lower jaw and open the mouth wide.
- Shrugging shoulders in a circular movement - forwards and then backwards.
- Raise your shoulders high and let them drap heavily; whilst letting breathing out.
- Clasp hands behind your head, with elbows back - push your chin back. Hold for 15 seconds. From this position look down and push your elbows together at the front and hold for a further 15 seconds.
- Clasp you hands and push up towards the ceiling, palms up now look down.
- Sit upright in a chair with a firm seat. Raise your arms as high as possible and remaining seated drop forward letting your head and arms hang heavily towards the floor.
So how does massage help “tired” muscles?
Many clients come to our clinics a few days after vigorous work outs or competing in sporting competition because their legs feel tried or heavy. These clients often book a sports massage, but is their any scientific evidence to explain what is happening in the body during the treatment? Massage dilates superficial blood vessels and increases the rate of blood flow. In addition if a deeper pressure is used like in sports or deep tissue massage on a healthy adult it improves the venous return. Both of these changes to the blood flow represent a potent means to accelerate healing. For example, it suggests that massage should improve the performance of fatigued muscles. In addition, Goats asserts that massaged muscle fibres display less spasm, an increased force of contraction and enhanced endurance compared with muscles simply rested. Which suggests that massage will assist in the improvement of sporting performance where it has been compromised. References Scull CD (1945) Massage - Physiologic Basis. Archive of Physical Medicine 26: 159-67 Wilkins RW, Halperin MH, Litter J. (1950) The effects of various physical procedures on circulation in human limbs. Ann Intern Med 33: 1232-45 Goats GC (1994) Massage - the scientific basis of an ancient art: part 2. Physiological and therapeutic effects Br J Sp Med 28(3)
