What do you do to take care of your shins?

[PPlate]

I just rub it with the orange muay thai oil I got in Bangkok. I know it's for warming up muscles but it helps. I think Khun Kao's method is better though.

Bruised shins are part and parcel of conditioning, so I just accept it, and allow it time to heal. I just ask my partner not to kick me on that side, or if both sides are injured I just do boxing sparring.

[feedback]

I wear shinpads usually, but they often don't effectively protect my shins from checks. Lately I've been taking a lot of damage. I've got several painful bumps as well as some mushy bad-apple parts on my shins. What do you do after practice to help your shins?

[ojgsxr6]

I was told Tiger Balm works, it kind of worked for me.

[Khun Kao]

You need to work the bumps and "mushy" spots out. Take a styrofoam cup, fill it with water and put it in the freezer until it freezes solid. Peel the styrofoam away and use the block of ice to really massage the bumps and spots out of your shins. You need to massage very firmly and break those areas out so the blood will flow back into the area.

Then, when you are training, you should kick the heavy bag. A LOT! In-between rounds, you should vigorously massage your shins to get the blood flowing. Then back to kicking the heavy bag.

[BackFistMonkey]

What do you do to take care of your shins?

I kick things ... a lot , with my shins . I don't wear shin pads unless my sparring partner insists . I say kick your heavy bag a lot and work on getting out of the way or stuffing those kicks a little more .

Be more evasive/defensive , check less , condition more .

[feedback]

You need to work the bumps and "mushy" spots out. Take a styrofoam cup, fill it with water and put it in the freezer until it freezes solid. Peel the styrofoam away and use the block of ice to really massage the bumps and spots out of your shins. You need to massage very firmly and break those areas out so the blood will flow back into the area.

Then, when you are training, you should kick the heavy bag. A LOT! In-between rounds, you should vigorously massage your shins to get the blood flowing. Then back to kicking the heavy bag.

That sounds good, I'll try that one.

[feedback]

I kick things ... a lot , with my shins . I don't wear shin pads unless my sparring partner insists . I say kick your heavy bag a lot and work on getting out of the way or stuffing those kicks a little more .

Be more evasive/defensive , check less , condition more .

I got them by kicking other people in a drill I was using to teach them how to check, I wasn't the one checking haha. Somebody broke the heavy bag in half, so we were without it until just recently, I've started kicking it again though.

[WhiteShark]

Kick the bottom part of the heavy bag and focus on really digging the bottom of your shin into the bag. The bottom a proper leather heavy bag should be just right for conditioning. Hard but not dangerous. I kick the bottom foot or so of a 6 foot bag. Linement and massage when they are sore and I'm home. I used to sit and massage my shins while watching TV.

[john joe]

i've heard the ice rubbing thing is bad for your shins in the long term though? i can't remember the reason that was given but it hink the gist of it was that it could weaken it long term, same as rolling pins supposedly can.

i've got loads of dents and **** from going shin-to-shin and from what i can tell there's not a whole lot you can do about it except suck up the pain. checking kicks hurts. Having your kick checked hurts far worse (imo). I'd love someone to come up with a way of making them rock solid and nerveless, i'd buy that.

[isol8d]

I use the liniments that I get from my kung fu school or chinese doctor. I don't use super fancy dit da jow, just some standard stuff, kind of like tiger balm, but not greasy. As it was explained to me, the herbs can help promote blood circulation, which is good for bruises.

Everything else in the thread too, ice, massage, etc...