senders and shin pain

[Hayden Whealing]

whenever I do senders or any tumbling that has rebound jumps I get pain in my shins, (I use to run quite a bit and stopped because I developed shin pain). Is is okay for me to continue doing senders or should I use a different leg exercise?

[Coach Sommer]

Shin pain, or "shin splints", is caused by micro trauma to the anterior tibialis (the muscle that runs up the front of your shin). Basically the micro traumas, or microscopic tears in the muscles attachment to the shin bone, are the result of forcing the muscles to absorb a greater force/impact than they are currently capable of safely handling.

The remedy is threefold:

1) Begin to include exercises expressly designed to strengthen the tibialis into your weekly regimen. Examples include, but are not limited to, performing toe raises on the edge of a stair where you stand on the heel and allow the front of the foot to hang over. Now lift the toes as high as possible and then relax. Two to three times a week perform two to three sets of toe raises for high repetitions of 50-100 each. Done correctly you should experience a rather intense feeling of fatigue or slight burning sensation towards the end of each set.

2) Switch to a much less demanding jumping movement.

3) Stop landing on your heels!!! Most running and jumping related injuries are caused by a failure to recognize the body's natural gates when moving. When walking, rolling the foot from heel to toe is absolutely correct. However when running, or jumping never allow yourself to run or land heel first; the body is simply not physiologically designed to do so and in fact can only do so in the presence of modern training aids (e.g. thick, spongy, soft soled running shoes :roll:).

A simple test will confirm this to yourself: 1) remove your shoes 2) with speed attempt to run down the sidewalk striking heel first 3) feel free to pause as you are overcome by excruciating pain shooting up your legs :shock: 4) take a moment to express your new found sincere contempt for those shoe designers who have led you astray 5) limp back into the house and read the rest of this essay.

The arch of the foot and the achilles tendon are designed to act in concert together as a natural system of rebounding "springs". When the body is forced to run heel to toe, this system of "springs" is bypassed and as a consequence the force of impact is transferred directly up the shins, knees, hips and lower back without first being partially absorbed and then redirected back outward by the structure of the foot and tendons as they are designed to do. Long term exposure to incorrect running form (impacting directly onto the heels; whether padded or unpadded) will of course lead to overuse injuries.

Although there are a myriad of technical details which can also be included, this style of running can be simply encapsulated by the simple recommendation to always run by striking the ground with the heel slightly elevated. After an initial adaptation period of 2-4 weeks, most runners who previously experienced chronic pain when attempting to run will now find that they are pain free.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

[sasquatch]

I get these shin pains a lot, thanks for the exercises, Coach!

[Richard Duelley]

Being a college student I am sitting down at a computer/desk most of my day. I found that simply tapping my toes while in class or at work has greatly helped alleviate (and ultimately eliminate) my shin splints and has since been a simple prehab movement for my shins.

[Razz]

Another great exercise that helped me is to turn your ancle/foot in and out and while turned in/out you try to bend and straighten your toes

[Joshua Naterman]

Also, Vibram five fingers. Best shoes you will ever buy, it's like being barefoot. That's the whole point. Walking barefoot strengthens the whole rebound musculature, and wearing the vibrams is just amazing. It's like having nothing on at all. Check them out: http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/products/products_footwear.cfm

I can guarantee you will love them. I wear them exclusively now, and EVERYONE asks me where they can get some!

[mata_leao]

I was going to buy the five fingers last week for hiking but they are out of the color I wanted until August.

http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/20 ... ers-shoes/

This guy does a thorough review of the shoes, I tried on a pair of the KSO and they are very comfortable, the only thing I would be concerned about is stubbing my pinkie toe, I already stub my toes a lot.

[Joshua Naterman]

LOL, I can't help you with that. You will become more aware of where you step as you get used to them, for sure, but you might remember from trying them on that they have rubber going all the way up the front of the toe tips, so it's not going to be that bad.

[Nic Scheelings]

Hi Mr jones,

I have to disagree with some of the advice you have been given. Describing shin pain as shin splints is innaccurate, as shin splints is not a diagnosis and just a generic term to describe shin pain.

When people refer to shin splints they are normally referring to pain felt on the medial border of the tibia, the most common overuse injury is medial tibial periostitis. It is the outer layer of the bone (the periosteum) that has become inflamed due to overuse and probably poor preparation for training load.

However i just want to make sure that you are aware that no one can make a diagnosis over the internet ther are a number of lower leg complaints with similar symptoms. Things like compartment syndrome can have similar symptoms but have a very different management plan.

However if you do have medial tibial periostitis (shin splints) I would suggest a few further methods of rehabilitation.

1) Cease senders and anything that's reproducing symptoms

2) Correct biomechanics - if appilcable to u there are many biomechanical issues that can contribute to a problem such as this and need to be rectified, like coach said ur landing from jumping may be a factor but so can problems such as overpronation and Genu valgum (knock knees).

3) Sorry to disagree with coach but I'm pretty sure there is no evidence that strengthening of Tib ant by itself will improve a problem like this. In fact some studies have shown that performing muscle strengthening exercises once you have this condition can exacerbate the pull on the periosteum. (Lower leg muscle bulk is a good preventer of these issues but it is better to develop this bulk when you don't have symptoms).

4) Soft tissue work can be beneficial of both anterior and posterior leg, u should find out if u have any excessive tightness that needs to be worked on.

5) When you return to jumping movements it should be a very graduated return this is the single best prevention and rehabilitation. Overuse injuries occur when you are attempting something beyond your current capabilities.

To rehab properly though you really need to see someone and find out exactly what you have, many lower leg conditions can have similar with presenting problems.

I hope this helps you.

[Coach Sommer]

Sorry to disagree with coach but I'm pretty sure there is no evidence that strengthening of Tib ant by itself will improve a problem like this. In fact some studies have shown that performing muscle strengthening exercises once you have this condition can exacerbate the pull on the periosteum. (Lower leg muscle bulk is a good preventer of these issues but it is better to develop this bulk when you don't have symptoms).

I myself find that I must disagree with Demus . Over thirty years of treating both myself as well as a wide range of athletes has indeed shown performing high rep toe raises to be effective; although I do not consider repetitions in the 50-100 range as building strength rather than increasing circulation throughout the injured area. This is an example of the sometimes wide gap between practical gym experience versus academic theory.

Perhaps examining my experience with achilles tendonitis will help to illustrate this occasionall gap further. The commonly diagnosed protocol is to treat achilles tendonitis with ice coupled with physical rehab. Years ago, I had a very promising athlete who was extremely susceptable to this condition. The slightest overuse would cause his tendonitis to flair up. For two years, he iced and rehabbed religiously with little to no relief. One day while browsing on the internet for alternative achilles tendonitis treatments, from an ultra marathoning site I came across a recommendation to use high heat rather than ice. In one week, his tendonitis was gone. To this day, most therapists still disagree with me about the efficacy of heat in treating this condition.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

[Richard Duelley]

I was a physical therapy tech for a year in high school, one of my more usefull random high school jobs in my opinion. We routinely used heat, more specifically moist heat, to alleviate pain and promote healing (ie increase blood flow). The only time ice would be used is for obvious swelling, usually right after an injury takes place. In order to heal, the more blood flow the better, ice diminishes swelling but it also makes your blood vessels contract thus decreasing blood flow. So after the initial swelling has diminished heat can be used to increase blood flow and help jumpstart the healing process.

So, I agree with Coach about how effect heat treatments can be.

For example, I ice my shoulder girdle after every practice just to get the inflammation down caused by a heavy workout. If I am extra sore in the morning I heat my trouble spots and stretch them out (increasing blood flow . . .etc). These ice and heat self treatments has helped my recovery immensely.

[Joshua Naterman]

I am 100% with coach and nifty, for the 0% that that matters There is a massive gap between accepted academic knowledge and what works based on the experience of people who have been in athletics for long periods of time.

I do have a few things to add that maybe you and coach already know, but maybe not, and it might help some of your athletes. The application of heat and cold can be used to get really specific training results. If you sit in a sauna, a HOT sauna, like 180 degrees, for 10 minutes, you will for whatever reason experience a pretty significant increase in physical ability around 15-18 hours later. This can be used to prepare for important training sessions or competitions to ensure max performance. A similar result can be reached with showers. One minute of super cold water followed by two minutes of the hottest water the athlete can stand, incrementally increased to maintain max heat as the athlete adapts to the temperature change, will produce a similar effect.

There are two similar treatments that can be used to accelerate healing after training. Multiple hot-cold cycles are great for advanced recovery. I learned about this from the Navy SEALS when I was at temporary duty in Little Creek, VA before I went to BUD/S(Basic Underwater Demolition/S.E.A.L.) training, and it really saved me. I was miserable my second day, we were just really getting hammered. Over 1000 pushups, 11 miles of running/jogging, bear crawling for lord only knows how long, and two hours "playing" with the boats just left us smashed, and that was the first day. The second was worse, because that was the first log PT. So we did logs, boat, we screwed up a lot so we got plenty of extra pushups, another 11-12 miles of running, obstacle course, and a 2 mile swim. I was in hell. I started doing the hot/cold showers, 3-5 cycles of 1 minute hot, 1 minute cold, and i felt fresh by Friday. It was like magic. I was the only person who didn't feel like he was dying. So I told the guys who weren't doing it, and some of them started, and they were like HELL YEA! Cold water sucks, but we're in it all day anyways, I'll deal with it. And by that monday they too felt good as new. It's worth the temporary discomfort of the cold, honestly after the first transition from cold back to hot you won't notice it anymore, if you keep it on 1 minute intervals. The key to this is whether you end on hot or cold. If you end on cold, you're going to get slightly better healing, but if you end on hot you're going to feel stronger your next workout. I'm not sure why that works the way that it does, but it does.

The hot/cold therapy turns your outer 1/2 inch or so of tissue into a pump and flushes out all the waste materials and pumps in fresh nutrients. It forces blood through all your tissue, because all the blood vessels are connected. If you do this every day you will feel amazing and will experience much better results from physical training.

[Coach Sommer]

If you sit in a sauna, a HOT sauna, like 180 degrees, for 10 minutes, you will for whatever reason experience a pretty significant increase in physical ability around 15-18 hours later. This can be used to prepare for important training sessions or competitions to ensure max performance.

Great post! Especially noteworthy is the increase in performance 15-18 hrs later. It is also interesting to note that nearly all of the high level Russian coaches and athletes swear by saunas after workout.

This past April I had the opportunity to alternate multiple periods in a steam room (10-15 minutes at a time) with periods in a cold plunge of approx 55 degrees (5 minutes at a time). Afterwards the simultaneous feeling of physical relaxation and exhilaration was particularly striking. Fantastic! The invigorating effect was dramatic enough that I am considering having a cold plunge installed in my home.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

[gymrob]

Interestingly I have just read the "Charlie Francis Training System" and there is a whole chunk of the book devoted the recovery and regeneration techniques and he places a massive importance on many different ideas such as contrast showers. Maybe this stuff really makes a difference!

[Nic Scheelings]

It is fun to discuss Topics like this. Undoubtedly as I'm still studying I have little practical experience. It is all part of learning tho.

[Joshua Naterman]

One thing that I totally forgot to mention is that cold plunges are really, really amazing for minimizing post-exercise damage. A lot of track athletes and heavy powerlifters, and a lot of pro wrestlers, take a 10-15 minute plunge in 40 degree or less water, completely submerging everything that got worked during the training period. This immediate application of cold appears to reduce post-exercise trauma by about 90%, which obviously is going to lessen the need for healing, which means your body will be in the growth phase sooner, and will be using less physical resources. Coach, your mention of the cold water plunge made me remember that The only times I have gotten to do anything like that are when I'm up in the mountains, the place we work out is right by a stream and water temp is usually 44 or less, even in the summer. A 10 minute soak really makes a huge difference, I almost never feel any soreness or weakness after those workout days and my next workout seems to be better than it normally would be.

I had no idea so many of the high level Russian coaches used some of these recovery techniques!

When I was stationed in Japan I remember the Onsen(Japanese hot spring houses) had the cold, warm, and hot pools. You went to the warm pool, which was like 105 degrees F for a few minutes, then you went to the hot pool, which was like 140-150 F for a minute or two, and then to the cold pool for a few minutes, which was around 55 like you were saying. You were supposed to cycle through that a few times, and my god, it felt amazing! I really feel like that made a big difference in my training back then. Where did you get to do this? I have always wanted to have a gym with this installed.

Gymrob: The contrast showers will completely change the way you feel about post-workout soreness and fatigue. They will pretty much become a thing of the past.

[Richard Duelley]

One thing that I totally forgot to mention is that cold plunges are really, really amazing for minimizing post-exercise damage. ...

...Gymrob: The contrast showers will completely change the way you feel about post-workout soreness and fatigue. They will pretty much become a thing of the past.

So, my iceing right after practice turns out to better than I thought I actually got another member of the mens team doing it and he now swears by it (I had to practically force him to try it out the first time 8) ). I will definatly try a contrasting shower right when I get home after practice tomorrow, I usually take a regular show any ways so I might as well make better use of my time and contrast it.

I will report back.

[Joshua Naterman]

Sweet! Prepare to be impressed.

[mata_leao]

I will also try the contrast shower all of next week and see if I can feel the difference. If this works I will be very happy, I work out at a gym that has a sauna and a shower so this will be a fun experiment.

[Richard Duelley]

Well, the shower last night after practice was amazing to say the least. I ended on a cold cycle and I was fine all night and slept great! I am definitely adding this to my after practice routine.

[Joshua Naterman]

Hahaha, that is so awesome! I am glad you like it. Just wait, it actually gets better as time goes on.

[mata_leao]

slept great!

Yes, the biggest difference I have noticed with it so far. I've had insomnia for about a week and this has helped me since Sunday.

[Mats Trane]

Gymrob, whats the name of the book?

[Mats Trane]

The track and field peolple take icebaths after training

[Joshua Naterman]

Yep, takes away all the inflammation, lets them train hard day after day. Plus, it makes them a shoe-in for the Polar Bear Club!