Shin splints are a painful condition that can occur when running or walking. The condition is marked with pain located on the front portion of your lower leg and is generally caused by a severely fatigued anterior tibialis muscle. This muscle becomes increasingly active in stabilizing your legs as you move, and the strength in these muscles needs to be improved to reduce the chance of developing this painful condition. Since men generally weigh more than women, the anterior tibialis muscles are forced to stabilize and transfer more force during exercise. Workout routines for shin splints should include three primary exercises that are effective at strengthening the anterior tibialis and other muscles associated with stabilization of the lower leg.
Heel Walk
The heel walk requires you to actively contract your anterior tibialis muscle to hold your toes off of the floor. To perform a heel walk, stand with your feet shoulder width apart and lift your toes off of the ground as high as you can. Lift one heel off of the ground and move it about 6 inches forward. After that heel lands on the ground, lift your other heel off of the ground and move it six inches forward. Continue alternating forward movement of your legs and continue to do so for at least 60 seconds. After you have completed 60 seconds of walking, you can rest for one minute and repeat.
Toe Pulls
The toe pull exercise strengthens your anterior tibialis muscle during plantar and dorsi flexion action of your foot. You need to sit next to a cable machine or utilize exercise bands for resistance. Wrap a band around the top of your foot so that the resistance pulls your foot away from your body. Then actively contract your anterior tibialis muscle and rotate your foot and toes toward your body. After you have rotated your foot as far as possible, relax and allow your foot to rotate back to the initial position. You can then perform another repetition.
Toe Hops
The toe hops exercise requires your anterior tibialis muscles to dynamically stabilize and work to slow your descent during each repetition. This is similar to the demands on your anterior tibialis during running and walking; however, it is in a more controlled manner. To perform toe hops, stand with your feet together with your heels elevated off of the ground. Now, bounce up and down off of the floor, keeping your heels off of the ground and only elevating one to two inches high. Continue hopping for 30 seconds and relax. Take 30 seconds of rest and repeat.
Workout
Perform the heel walk, toe pull and toe hop exercises in that respective order for maximal challenging of your anterior tibialis muscles. For the heel walk, three, 60-second walks will be sufficient. Perform three sets of 20 repetitions for toe pulls for each leg folowed by three 30-second toe hops. The workout should last 20 to 25 minutes and you should do it twice a week. You should see reductions in the severity and occurrence of your shin splints after six weeks of training.
References
- MayoClinic.com; Shin Splints - Definition; December 2010
- MayoClinic.com; Shin Splints: Prevention; December 2010
- American Council on Exercise; Why Would I Start Getting Shin Splints 6 Months after I Began Running?; Fabio Comana
- TheWalkingSite.com: Shins
- American Council on Exercise: Ankle Flexion
- "NASM Essentials of Personal Fitness Training"; National Academy of Sports Medicine; April 2007
