Unique shin problem.. never had before

**dwkfym** · Posted On: 7/15/2009 11:05pm

Hey guys
I've been having this shin problem thats been keeping me from training.
I've been running for several years for almost every day and I've never had this problem.
If you run your hand down from your knee and where your shin starts, there is a bump right? Bump of bone. Its right above that. It feels like my bones are bruised or something but I really don't know what it is.

I have these tree trunk tough as nails legs and shins. I can kick the **** out any bag and be fine, and I'm that guy at the gym that you don't want to exchange leg kicks with. So its really annoying that I have this leg injury.

It started when I started adding sprints to my daily 3 mile run. Also, my shoes got old. (actually, its falling apart. Feburary or something I had replaced the soles in to extend its life and now its really beat up.)

About two months ago I started having this tingling feeling in my right upper shin. I didn't think much of it and I kept training on it. Very very slowly, it got worse.
One day I pressed really hard on it with my thumb to isolate and massage the pain and felt more pain. I stopped running. Its been almost a month I stopped running, except two 1-mile jobs with my girlfriend and the dog.

Its not healing. In fact, it'd feel like its getting better and today it feels worse.

I think I need to stop training completely.
Last time it got worse was when I was working with my boxing coach. 1.5 hour of pad drills focusing on footwork. And before that was after a hard sparring session. Before that was when I did a one mile run.

Yesterday I ran about 0.5 miles just to keep my legs used to running. I ran on the ball of my foot. I also did some footwork drills on my own.

Today it hurts. Yeah, it seems like I just need to completely rest and refrain from training with my legs at all. But aren't shin splints supposed to be in the lower half of your shins?

I need to drop 13 lbs before mid september so I can make weight, and I really need this leg healed up so I can start running again. Is ANY sort of load-bearing excercise going to make this injury worse? no squats?

Any tips on healing this up? I'm massaging it every day and taking my calcium, vitamin D, glucosemine and MSM supplements on top of a good calorie surplus diet and multivitamins.

**hungryjoe** · Posted On: 7/15/2009 11:15pm

Get your ass to the doctor.

Serious.

Running in a different position to help alleviate the pain can bring on more problems.

Again

Go get this checked out. You're aggravating the problem with your training regime and it will quite possibly add to your suffering in old age if you don't get help soon.

.....disclaimer...

No medical experience, just lots of pain.......

BTW - on what kind of surface are you running sprints with worn out shoes? hint hint

**dwkfym** · Posted On: 7/16/2009 1:26am

always on grass or asphalt, but sometimes im forced to run on concrete. thanks HJ

**TehDeadlyDimMak** · Posted On: 7/16/2009 11:32am

HJ is right of course. Sports related injuries should be brought up with a sports injury doctor before attempting anything else.

One thing that couldn't hurt is going over your shins with a foam roller.

**Tom Kagan** · Posted On: 7/16/2009 12:09pm

It sounds like a stress fracture. Get to a doc and get an x-ray.

Regardless, get new shoes and get on a bike or into the pool, or kiss whatever you have going in September goodbye.

**muddy** · Posted On: 7/16/2009 12:22pm

Ice always worked best for me for shin splint. I've never heard of shin splints lasting through a month of rest though. Stress fracture? Just a guess. Hopefully the doc will sort it out.

**Diamonte** · Posted On: 7/16/2009 2:22pm

If there is any form of discomfort in your legs along the lines of tingling/numbness, you need to see a doctor. It could be a sign of poor circulation, which a classmate of mine suffered a minor heart attack from. In all seriousness, don't try to remedy it, just get it checked out.

**DarkAardvark** · Posted On: 7/27/2009 12:40pm

after you get it checked out, get new shoes, man. if you run often, you should replace your shoes every 6 months or so. get a cheap pair of addidas or asics running shoes on clearance. if you hunt around, you can find a good pair for $10 or $15 or so.

i really think its the shoes. i had something similar when i played lacrosse. my knees / shins would start hurting just from walking from the locker room to the field. i was fine everywhere else, it was only when i had the cleats on that my shins would kill me.

**ChenPengFi** · Posted On: 7/27/2009 1:39pm

+1 more on the doctor...
"Shin splints" is a rather vague and antiquated term.
The aforementioned stress fracture is a possibility for sure.
A sensitivity to vibration would also point to a fracture.
Swim laps to drop the weight and stay off the feet as much as possible,
until you see a doc.

**dwkfym** · Posted On: 6/10/2010 7:30am

Old thread, but I found out what the cause of the pain was. I never had the time to see the same doc the number of times necessary to get a diagnosis.

Upon returning to the States this arnis guy told me it is probably a tendon pain, and showed me some stretches to do before and after. He was right, and the stretches did wonders to make it improve. Now it barely hurts, but when it does stretching alleviates it right away.