It’s only human nature to want to constantly push yourself to new athletics heights. However, when you try to increase the intensity of your runs and workouts too quickly (without preparation), you open yourself up to a range of injuries and conditions. Medial tibial stress syndrome, or shin splints, could be one of these conditions. When your shins have become filled with pain and you believe shin splints are to blame, our team at Comprehensive Healthcare Group will come up with the physical therapy regimen necessary for you to make a potential full recovery.
What Are Shin Splints?
Shin splints are a type of injury that most commonly takes place in athletes who have recently changed or increased the intensity of their training routines. Those who are experiencing this ailment will develop tenderness, soreness, and discomfort along the interior portion of their shinbone. Additionally, they may also have swelling in the lower portion of the affected leg. In the early stages of shin splints, any pain felt will most likely go away when exercising has ceased. However, when the condition becomes severe enough, the pain may be continuous.
Prevention Methods
At Comprehensive Healthcare Group, our physical therapists are well versed in treating patients who have developed shin splints. However, we also want to stress that the best form of treatment is preventing the injury altogether. Below are examples of how you can do your part in protecting yourself against shin splints:
- Avoid overloading the stress placed on your shins during physical activity.
- Replace running shoes every 350 to 500 miles.
- Wear shoes that have shock-absorbing insoles and offer proper arch support.
- Experiment with cross-training to lessen the impact on your shins.
- Implement more strength training into your workouts.
Physical Therapy For Shin Splints
Even after taking the necessary preventative methods, our physical therapists know that shin splints can still occur. When this happens to you, we’ll create the treatment plan for you that will yield the optimal healing results. Physical therapy is a physical-based treatment that promotes healing from within an affected area. By choosing our team for treatment, you’ll be taught how to perform a variety of therapeutic stretches and exercises that will help reduce and eliminate your shin splints, including the below:
- Straight knee calf wall stretch.
- Standing ankle dorsiflexion stretch.
- Seated calf stretch.
- Bent knee calf wall stretch.
- Wall toe raises.
Request An Appointment
Experiencing pain during a workout is an easy way to become discouraged as an athlete. If you’ve developed shin splints, don’t let pain last longer than it should. At Comprehensive Healthcare Group, our multidisciplinary team offers pain management, physical therapy, and chiropractic to help patients overcome a variety of injuries, including shin splints. When you’re ready to receive the treatment you need, contact us today!
