“To get to the finish line, you’ll have to try lots of different paths.”
– Amby Burfoot
My shin pain has finally healed, but it hasn’t been easy or quick. Despite resting for most of November, I still had shin pain. I was pretty much sick with bronchitis for most of the month of December, and I thought after a few weeks of rest, the shin pain would be gone. But the opposite was happening.
The more I rested, the pain would go away for a day, but as soon as I went on a walk or a light jog the pain would return. I have read so many articles on shin splints, shin pain, etc., I am like a walking encyclopedia on the subject now. I tried countless stretches and different running techniques trying to heal them. While some of these things helped, nothing really “cured” them for good or stopped the pain completely.
My friend, Alison, recommended a foam roller to me in November, but I had been too busy to get around to ordering one. I finally did a few weeks ago, and experienced pain using it on my shins that brings tears to my eyes, just thinking about it now. (She warned me it was going to hurt at first!) But after using it for about five minutes (that was all I could stand), I noticed the deep muscle pain I had around my shins seemed a lot better. The next morning the pain was almost gone. That had been the most relief I had experienced up to that point.
Another friend suggested a walking / light running plan after the shin pain had stopped, and I credit that plan with not only keeping me in the game so to speak, but helping me improve. I was able to walk and run while I healed, and was doing the 5K distance faster than I had been able to run it previously. It was really amazing to see that my body was capable of performing like that, but it hardly felt like any work at all.
About two weeks ago, after going for a run on my lunch hour, I had immediate shin pain- again. I was frustrated why the pain seemed to be gone at times, only to return at other times. I kept using the foam roller, and worked up to using it for 15 minutes at a time, and the pain was no longer deep- but just more on the surface. After I was done with the roller, there was no pain at all in my shins. I started to wonder if it had something to do more with my muscles being weak in my shins.
I came across a very short video a few days later, that has no medical backing whatsoever, but what the person was saying, seemed like it made sense. They said shin splints and pain in the shins is simply a muscle imbalance. In short, the shin muscles are not as strong as the calf muscles. They suggested a very simple stretch for five minutes a day, which would strengthen the shin muscles. I figured trying it once couldn’t hurt anything.
Like the foam roller, the stretch hurt! I was hitting my pillow the last few minutes, but when I was done, there was no pain at all! Not even light pain. I was amazed. I wondered if it was a fluke, but the next day my shins felt wonderful. I tried the stretch again, and it didn’t hurt quite as bad, and I had the same results. Not only was the pain gone, it wasn’t coming back. This was right around Christmas, and I have been doing the stretch every other day or so, and I haven’t had any shin pain at all! Sometimes after running the muscles are tight around my shins, but a few minutes with the foam roller works the tightness out. I know not everything works for everybody, but this simple stretch, along with the foam roller, really helped relieve my shin pain.
I also started working with some visualization techniques and started doing more mental preparation. I realized that I could be in the best physical shape, but if my outlook and thoughts weren’t “in shape,” too, my physical condition will only get me so far. So much of running success is connected to my thoughts, as I am learning.
After this work for the last two months, I have decided I am ready to try another 5K race and it is tomorrow. Alison is going to run in it as well! It is going to be cold. It just snowed here, and there is likely to be ice and snow, but I’ve been running for the last few weeks in these conditions. Yak Trax had been suggested to me several times, and I got a pair last week. They work awesome on the snow and ice!
I went on a pre-race run the other day, with the path almost completely covered in snow and ice- most of it wasn’t even plowed or shoveled. It was impossible to get any kind of pacing down, because it was so uneven and rough. I am pretty certain the actual race course won’t be this bad, because it is through a town, where most of the streets will at least be paved. My time for the 5K distance on this run was 29:16. Other than the last 5K race I did this was my second best time ever!
I have rested, I have rebuilt, and I found my path back. Now it is time to put it all together and run!
And I couldn’t be happier.