Shin splints are a common running injury caused by excessive strain on your shin bones and tissues that connect muscles to your bone in the front of the leg. If you feel the pain after running or an over workout day, you may get shin splints, a symptom which has another name as tibial stress syndrome. This occurs when a person who trains with high intensity, places too much pressure on the leg .
Causes of Shin splints
The two main types are bone shin splints and muscular shin pain.
Muscular shin pain occurs when there is excessive impact on the tibia or inner shin bone. This condition often occurs when the person stride too wide, run too fast and too long.
The injury caused by the person overuse his leg and put too much stress on shin bones, muscles and connective tissues on his lower leg. Athletes are more at the high risk of developing this syndrome because they tend to use their legs more often. However, shin splints are not a serious condition and it doesn’t last long. Resting, ice applying is good enough for recovery.
In some case if pain lasts longer than normal. You should ask your doctor to check your bone density and possible tibia fractures for a more clear diagnosis and advice
Symptoms
You will feel the persistent pain in your calf, centred mostly on the front of your leg along the tibia after running or over working out. This cause the discomfort for the tendons inside the front of your leg when they get inflammation
Starting runners and athletes who recover from injury are most susceptible to leg pain, as they are using the calf muscles more frequently than before.
Treatments
Muscular shin pain is easier to get treatment and recover quicker
The best way to help your body to recover from shin splints is to rest your legs. And you should not do training until you’re recovered. Choose comfortable footwear, and don’t try to do anything because it will take the time for recovery longer. Resting will help your legs relax, reduce pain and inflammation
Try to lose weight or at least do not put more weight on your body. Less weight, less pressure on bones. Give time for your leg to recover from painful syndrome.
A good massage can help to alleviate the pain and promote healing in the injured area. You can apply a good massage to the muscles in your lower leg to help to soften the muscles, and help to promote better blood circulation. You can do this by massaging the calf muscles, the Achilles tendon, and the top of the shin bone, near the muscles. This will help to alleviate the pain, and promote faster healing of the injured area.
Applying ice to the painful area may help to reduce the symptoms. Ice is an effective treatment for many injuries, and can help to reduce inflammation and pain. Pack some ice in a plastic bag and apply it to the painful area for 10 to 15 minutes every few hours. If the pain does not subside after the first few applications, see your doctor for more advice.
For bone Shin splints
Bone-related shin pain is another cause of shin splint. In this case, shin splints are caused by a small tear or fracture in the shinbone (shin splint fracture). You should contact with your doctor to check, have a proper diagnosis and treatment
Cyclists with Shin splints
People who do cycling also have the possibility to develop shin splints. To avoid this problem, you should wear comfortable shoes. Be sure adjust your saddle to suit your height to avoid the pressure on your legs.
Listen to your body and don’t overwork.
If you are dealing with shin splints, then you have probably heard of food for shin splints. There are many foods that can help with shin splints. But the most common ones are calcium and vitamin D. Calcium is used to build the bones and teeth, while vitamin D is used to help the body absorb calcium. Both of these can be found in dairy products, such as milk and cheese. It is also recommended that you eat fish, such as salmon, to get the benefits of omega-3 fatty acids, which are thought to help with shin splints.
Food for shin splints can help reduce the pain and inflammation associated with shin splints. Try to avoid putting too much pressure on your legs when you are going up stairs or when you are standing up for long periods of time. Instead, try using your legs more when you are sitting or lying down. This will help your muscles to heal and reduce the pain.
Conclusion
Pain and inflammation fromShin splints can lessen and go away after giving a few days of resting and applying some method as massage and ice.
Incase it doesn’t get better and pain becomes more extreme. Please contact your doctor for better support.
Sources: Wikipedia
Images: Pixel mob