all last year during track i had extremely severe shin splints. i could hardly walk after a race. this year im a sophomore and i have been taking track much more seriously, so i started lifting and running in november. up until know, my legs have been feeling great, but the past two weeks, my shin splints are starting to steadily come back. my dad and investigated them thoroughly this past summer, and i get them due to the way my foot hits the ground.i have been trying to correct my flatfooted-ness, but it doesnt seem to be helping. i have excellent shoes too. i know icing, pressing, and strengthening the shin muscle helps, but none of that seems to be working, or it will only work momentarily. i also have lowered my exercise intensity. i have a few questions. is there anything im doing wrong? can i do more? is there any pain killers or non-inflamitory pills i can take, prescription or not? i know i coould do so much better if i wasnt continuously in pain. any help is greatly appreciated.
severe shin splints: i need help!
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Participant
I feel your pain. I used to suffer from terrible shin splints, as well. I had to crawl on my hands and knees out of the arena. My coach interpreted some crazy Russian program that I had to bound 500 contacts across two consecutive days. Be careful, because if you push too hard through the pain, you're liable to end up with higher degree stress fractures…this happened to my brother… Though I never thought I'd run or jump again without shin splints at my side, I'm pleased to announce that I haven't had them in over 4 years now. I can't say I have flatfooted-ness to the extent you do, but I think I can help you with some ways to make the shin splints go away. You're right, icing and anti-inflammatories only offer temporary alleviation, if that. You have to nip other possible roots of the problem. First of all, rest is #1. This means 8-9 hours of sleep a night. This is often hard for high school athletes who stay up late doing homework and have to rise early. But log the hours in somehow…make them up on the weekend at the least. Rest also means the time elapsed in between high intensity sessions. This is why the setup that most coaches on this board advocate works so well (on so many levels). Since your nervous system takes roughly 48 hours to recover after prolonged high intensity work, many coaches pair fast sprints, higher intensity plyos, heavy lifting, etc. on the same day. Then, every other day is used for active recovery and regeneration, where if running is done, it's often 70% or less effort. If you try to sprint when your body is still broken down from the previous day(s), your form will be off as a result. So every time your foot strikes, it won't be in the right place. Sprinting and jumping require great precision in ground contacts, and this will be off (though perhaps not visually noticeable) if you're not fresh enough for the workout. So examine your current setup and consider restructuring your weekly workout plan. I don't feel you need to lower intensities across the board, just know where to place them. During outdoors, are many kids on your team getting shin splints? Back-to-back meets or 3 meets a week where you are doing 3-4 events in each meet will kill you. That's too much breakdown, not enough buildup, baby! Also, you say you have excellent shoes. This may be true, but are they excellent for you? Just because they're a good brand, doesn't necessarily mean they're suited to the structure of your feet. Once I found the right shoe for myself, I've stuck with it ever since (over 5 years). And with regular use, you should be buying a new pair every 6 months. People don't realize how quickly the structure of a shoe breaks down, even though it may still look good. Also, I bet you wear a different pair of shoes at school. Just walking around in those all day may be causing problems, as well. Those should be new, too, and provide good support/cushioning. Don't think penny-loafers will do the trick. Furthermore, a proper warm-up before each session is key. Make it progressive, just easing into it as you get the blood flowing again. Go from easy, lower speed drills at the beginning, such as backward skipping, or side shuffling, to the quicker stuff toward the end of your warm-up, when everything is more fluid. During the high school outdoor season, I lead the entire team through a warm-up together, precisely to prevent this problem, as well as unnecessary strains. Out of the 120+ athletes, the only ones who have shin splints now are the couple girls who go from 2 hours of track practice to 2 hours of dance, back-to-back. So your warm-up should accomplish just that–warming up! Use it to raise body temp. and don't think a warm-up means sitting down and doing those in-place 30 sec. at a time, static stretches. Create some movement. And wear your sweatpants and sweatshirt. Our athletes keep them on during warm-ups and throughout the session, only taking it down to shorts during the actual sprints, jumps, etc. I'm not sure if you're in a colder climate, but maybe this isn't as much of an issue if it's always over 80 degrees+ outside and sunny. On a side note, orthodics may work for you. Have you tried putting the molded inserts into your shoes? It never really worked for me, though…not like a great shoe in and of itself. But all of the above mentioned sure did! I just checked a couple of your previous posts. I understand you do short sprinting events. Your training plan is tell-tale. It will kill you, if I'm interpreting correctly what I think you're doing. You say:
I was just wondering what you guys think about my training plan, probably up until february.
I am a highschool sophmore.also, i rotate weeks one and two (1, 2, 1, 2, etc)
WEEK 1
mon- lower body weights (lots of reps), tempo running (longer, muscle endurance)
tues- plyos, upper body and core weights
wed- lower body weights (lots of reps), tempo running(longer, muscle endurance)
thu- plyos, upper body and core weights
fri- lower body weights (lots of reps), tempo running (longer, muscle endurance)WEEK 2
mon- lower body weights (fewer reps), tempo running (muscle speed)
tues- plyos, upper body and core weights
wed- lower body weights (fewer reps), tempo running(muscle speed)
thu- plyos, upper body and core weights
fri- lower body weights (fewer reps), tempo running (muscle speed)Tempo running could be done on Tues/Thurs, and don't consider it speed work. Reduce the effort to around 70%, and use it as a recovery tool. Plyos could be done Monday and Friday, so you get them away from one another. Be careful about how many total contacts of plyos you do, and don't fluctuate too much with those numbers. You could follow them up with weights.
Anyway, just remember that rest and your setup are clutch, and that should help within the limits of your flatfooted-ness.
~Salto
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Participant
thanks a ton for the reply salto, i really appreciate it.
i changed my plan , and ended up never doing the one i posted. right now i am currently doing:mon: lifting full body, and speed work (100, 200, 400, 800, 400, 200, 100)
tues: plyos
wed: lifitng full body, light hurdle work (no longer than 15-20 min)
thur: plyos, lighter speed work (100, 200, 400, 400, 200, 100)
fri: lifting full bodyi also try to fit in a 2-4 mile jog somewhere during the week or weekend.
and to answer your question about shoes, my dad and i researched the matter extensively, and we got one of the best shoes on the market for shin splints, asics gel-evolutions, which are for people who have extremely bad over-pronation, like me. i will try to warm up better, because i know i dont do that as well as i should. do you think my new schedule is better? or does it still need work? i cant really change the days of the plyos, because i run them through my track coach with about 15 kids. i only get 6-7 hours of sleep too… maybe that will help. i have been told orthodics help, maybe ill try those. i have a prescription for some, i havent acted upon it yet. do you know of any anti-inflammatories or pain killers i can get? possibly through a prescription or my doctor? or will simple aleve or something like that help? thanks again.
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Participant
No problem, kozzo. Come to think of it, I am flatfooted and overpronate a good deal. The shoe that has been a godsend for me is the Adidas Supernova Control. What has also helped a lot is that if I don't get at least 7 hours of sleep, I won't work out that day. But then, I'm at liberty to do that at this point in my life. Your new plan will still cause you problems. I believe the setup of your workouts is even more of a problem than your flatfooted-ness. If you're doing plyos like I think you are (and not easy, low intensity multi-jumps in circuit fashion), then it's not good to do them the day after speed work and full body lifting. Your body simply can't recover and you'll be defeating the purpose of plyos. Many people make use of plyos incorrectly. They are most effective as a power-development tool when your legs are fresh, when done with fewer contacts, and with full recovery between each set (I typically use 2 minutes between each set of explosive plyos). Plyos are the icing on the cake, and shouldn't be the main focus–your speedwork and strength training should. Once you get strong enough, you'll see more benefit from the plyos. Your technique will also sharpen up, contacts will become more effective, without the braking forces, and you'll be doing less pounding on the shins. Your brain registers your every movement and makes your movement patterns more and more permanent. Hence, you must stress quality sessions over quantity, especially at your age, when you've got the opportunity to learn great form, and not bad habits due to training through a beat-up state. Some of my best training came when I did heavy weights and sprints on Mon & Wed, then two days of active recover/rest, and then one great plyo session on Saturday, when my legs were fresh. If you must do plyos on Tues and Thurs, consider shifting the heavy lifting and speed work to Tues, Thurs, Sat, as well. I'm not sure what type of full body lifting you are doing and at what intensities, but if you turn Wednesday's lifting into light weights less than 40% circuit-type lifting, that could also help, and would complement the light hurdle work nicely. I'm sure that you're in a bit of a bind because you've got to work within the parameters of what your coach has you doing. It's important to honor that, but on the flip side, one always hates to see an athlete (especially at a young age) driven into the ground. Perhaps you could sit down with your coach and agree to revise the plan a bit.
I'm not into recommending anti-inflamatories or pain killers. Those just attempt to mask what your body is trying to tell you about what you're doing to it. You'd have to take high dosages, anyway, and that is not good for your liver/kidneys. Pain is your friend if you listen to it and use it to change what is causing it.
On a side note, the 2-4 mile jog won't help with speed development. Do it only if you need it for self-satisfaction. Ha! This coming from a guy who ran 4 years of cross-country alongside the jumps (but then again, that was my era of shin splints LOL).
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Participant
salto, thanks again. your answers to my questions have been more than enough.
alright, i am in football in the fall, and we earn lettering points for going in to lift on the lifting days, mon, wed, and fri, so we can lift with the team and build chemistry. the football players do a football specific workout, but i talke dto my coach and i have set up a track specific workout, mostly legs, 3 sets of 8-15 on the different lifts. i also do 2-3 sets of 6-10 for my upper body, of course with more weight. i still would like to earn lettering points, but right now track is the utmost priority. if youre suggesting i have more intense workouts on tues and thurs for plyos, what do you suggest i do on the other days? i usually dont workout on the weekends too. i am in all advanced placement classes at the highschool and the weekends are usually a time to unwind for me, but i suppose i could change that too, if needed. would i benefit from a weekly workout like this:
mon: high intensity lifts
tues: plyos, speed
wed:low intensity, hurdles (should i just do the same lifts, but less intense than mon wed fri?)
thurs: plyos, speed
fri: high intensity liftsit seems to me the stacked plyos and speed would be pretty hard on my legs.. but then again ive never done plyos without doing speed work the day before.
also, i hope i dont seem like im using you too much to my advantage, but could you please tell me a good weekly regimine, possibly without plyos? if plyos are really just the icing on the cake, by no means do i have to go to them. my coach would like me to, but there is no pressure. he especially knows of my shin problem, and i believe he would be willing to compromise if it means faster times this season. maybe i could go once a week instead of twice? any combinations are doable, if you think it will help my shins. they are driving me crazy, because i know i could do so much better without the pain! again, any help is greatly appreciated.
also do you think i would benefit from a pair of the shoes you got?
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Member
So I have a jumper who is suffering from shin splints as well at the collegiate level. We are in the middle of our indoor season right now and find it hard for times to rest. Our trainers want him to go see a doctor, are there specific questions he needs to ask considering anti-inflammatories or other ideas to get a cure instead of minor pain relief. Thanks!
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Participant
Glad to help, kozzo. I think I've got a decent plan for you, given your situation:
alright, i am in football in the fall, and we earn lettering points for going in to lift on the lifting days, mon, wed, and fri, so we can lift with the team and build chemistry. the football players do a football specific workout, but i talke dto my coach and i have set up a track specific workout, mostly legs, 3 sets of 8-15 on the different lifts. i also do 2-3 sets of 6-10 for my upper body, of course with more weight. i still would like to earn lettering points
This type of lifting can work well for you now. This repetition range for the lifts that he has called for can be used for hypertrophy (where the breakdown will give you some desired muscle enlargement..a good strength base builder. You can go medium to heavy (50-85%) with the load for that range. This will give you some decent added muscle volume that is often good at your age, if you weigh less. On the flip side, during these weeks that you're lifting like this for breakdown, you DON'T want to be doing plyos. Plyos come in later weeks, during a phase when you're doing lifts with fewer repetitions and more recovery. You need to completely lay aside the plyos now, anyhow. Once you have shin splints, they can only go away with more rest and by avoiding for awhile the activities that inflammed them in the first place. You'll start with a new plan, and once they no longer hurt you, then phase in the plyos again gradually. I recommend going 3-4 weeks (1 meso) without the plyos. On the bright side, you'll be able to continue the lifting with your football team. As you pick up with the plyos again after 3-4 weeks, LISTEN TO YOUR BODY. You'll do really well for yourself if you ease up at the FIRST SIGNS of trouble. Right now you've slipped into what is called the principle of diminishing returns. You're trying to put a lot into it, but getting few results. For every step forward, you're taking two steps backward…and you don't want that.
if youre suggesting i have more intense workouts on tues and thurs for plyos, what do you suggest i do on the other days? i usually dont workout on the weekends too. i am in all advanced placement classes at the highschool and the weekends are usually a time to unwind for me, but i suppose i could change that too, if needed. would i benefit from a weekly workout like this:
mon: high intensity lifts
tues: plyos, speed
wed:low intensity, hurdles (should i just do the same lifts, but less intense than mon wed fri?)
thurs: plyos, speed
fri: high intensity liftsit seems to me the stacked plyos and speed would be pretty hard on my legs.. but then again ive never done plyos without doing speed work the day before. also, i hope i dont seem like im using you too much to my advantage, but could you please tell me a good weekly regimine, possibly without plyos? if plyos are really just the icing on the cake, by no means do i have to go to them. my coach would like me to, but there is no pressure. he especially knows of my shin problem, and i believe he would be willing to compromise if it means faster times this season. maybe i could go once a week instead of twice? any combinations are doable, if you think it will help my shins. they are driving me crazy, because i know i could do so much better without the pain! again, any help is greatly appreciated.
During the next 4 weeks, you could do:
mon: speed, high intensity lifts
tues: low impact active recovery (swimming, stationary bike, etc.) or extensive tempo (~70%)
wed:hurdles, low/medium intensity lifts (to vary the lifts this day over M/F is preferable. Stiff legged deadlifts, lunges, step-ups could be done in this range of intensity)
thurs: general strength body weight exercises, light weights circuit OR something like Tues.
fri: speed, medium/high intensity liftsThen, when your shins are feeling good again, you could do:
mon: speed, high intensity lifts
tues: low intensity multijumps (plyos, but in place or short travel with each contact) or extensive tempo
wed: low impact hurdles technique, low/medium intensity lifts (variety over M/F)
thurs: plyos
fri: rest, unwind
sat: speed, medium/high intensity lifts
sun: rest, unwindThis way, you'll be with the football squad Mon & Wed, and with your track coach Tues & Thurs. You'll just have to sacrifice Saturday's unwind and enjoy it Friday. The weights at this time will change to sets of 5 repetitions, for strength-speed, with 3-4 minutes of recovery between sets (lots of rest, yeah!) Then you could head for max strength 3-4 repetitions and all that jazz, which your coach can help you with.
also do you think i would benefit from a pair of the shoes you got?
Yes, I really do. It's got great structure and is built up well in order to protect from all that pounding. This matters more than shoes that bill themselves on cushioning.
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Participant
thanks again
what do you suggest i do for my speed work? that is when i felt my shins the most. should i alter my running in any way, like running barefoot or something like that? ive heard that helps a little. and what intensity should i do on the bike? should i do sets on the bike or one long endurance period? also i think we only have like 5 weeks before track starts, so should i just give up plyos until then? i talked to my coach and he said i need to do whatever i need to do to be healthy for the track season, so think he has a pretty open mind about it. what was the name of those shoes again, and how much do they cost?
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Participant
what do you suggest i do for my speed work? that is when i felt my shins the most. should i alter my running in any way, like running barefoot or something like that?
You felt them the most because the previous day was tough. Coming off an easy day, you should start to feel better with speed work. You could hold off on the speed work for a week, but I wouldn't recommend waiting 3-4 weeks, as with the plyos. The speed work your coach has you doing should be fine, as long as the volumes are kept rather constant from session to session. Sprint mechanics drills are good for insuring proper foot plant under your center of mass. Other than sharpening up your running form in this manner, I don't think you need to do anything else. Do speed work in your spikes for precision, and tempo running in your new shoes that have good structure. Tempo could also be done on grass, astro-turf, etc. Running barefoot could bring you back to overpronating with every contact, seeing as you don't have the built-up support of the shoes.
and what intensity should i do on the bike? should i do sets on the bike or one long endurance period?
A 4-5 minute warm-up, constant pace, then sets that mirror tempo running duration and pace sounds good.
also i think we only have like 5 weeks before track starts, so should i just give up plyos until then?
Quite nearly. 3-4 weeks off now. Begin with the plyos again, and then taper off with the volume again as your high season of meets gets under way.
what was the name of those shoes again, and how much do they cost?
Adidas Supernova Control. $90 retail, but I get them for $62 at a store that always gives a team or coach's discount. You could probably score a pair for around that price, too. Make sure they are the CONTROL, because there are 3 or 4 shoes in the Supernova family, one being the Cushion, which you don't want.
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Participant
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Participant
As a short sprinter, you probably don't need the 400 or 800 in there for tempo. Your tempo adds up to 2200m volume. I'd say that's the highest you'll want to get. The combinations are your choice, but I typically like to mix reps from 100m-300m. From here on out, you could reduce total tempo volume by 100m each week.
As for speed work, Mike has posted some good examples on this site, and there have been some good discussions, as well. For the template I recommended for your situation, I think it would work well to do acceleration development on Monday and max velocity or short speed for your Fri or Sat. speed sessions. These could then pave the way to the incorporation of short speed endurance and speed endurance early season (pre-comp). It all depends on your set-up, where you've come from, and where you were heading.
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Participant
ok thanks again.
ive been getting more sleep, like 8-8.5 a night. i worked out easy since last wednesday, had and easy weekend, and i was feeling good monday after school, but me and my friend went to do speed work and i started feeling them again.. did i jump in again too quick? should i lay off a little more, maybe another week or so? or will they gradually reduce, because they hurt, but it was less than usual. they make me so paranoid.. i will do anything to have them gone by track.
thanks, mike
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Participant
This being the case, laying off the speed work some more is definitely a better option than waiting for them to gradually reduce. In my experience, they don't go away unless you can steer clear for awhile of the activities which set them off in the first place. To do otherwise would be like continually picking at a scab; you've got to leave it be and forget it was there in order for it to heal. By holding off now, you won't be dragging out the nagging discomfort, and you'll be better off in the long run. However, don't abandon all the base work you've put in up to this point. You can just lean more heavily on activities which maintain your strength and conditioning levels, but which keep you more grounded/require less impact. Try fast water running in the pool to simulate intensive tempo, light weights circuits which parallel extensive tempo running volumes, and continue with the heavy and medium weights (proper rest between sets here is important, too– 2-5 minutes) with your football team on the recommended days. These will all help to keep your work capacity up…which is important heading into the beginning of your season. I'd say that if you can avoid discomfort for another week or two now, and then follow a plan like the one we talked about, you should be in the clear. It's good that you're getting more sleep now and can recognize when the shin splints are about to come on, and then back off accordingly. Keep playing it smart, and you WILL eliminate this problem from your life.
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Participant
I'm glad to help you get back on track. Let me know how it goes…
-BrianOh, and by the way, if you stick to a good setup for your training, you won't need any compression sleeves. Just you and the track.
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