Shin Splints!

9Apr/090

Yeah, that's exactly what I wanted to hear at practice today. We're doing pace laps, I'm keeping pace pretty well, and then... bam! Severe pain in the lower legs. Don't get me wrong, I've been having dull pain in my shins since Monday (damn parade), but nothing as debilitating as what I felt today. It got to the point where lifting my legs wasn't even an option. I guess that's what I get for constantly pushing myself beyond my limits.

Gotta love having to Google shin splints to figure out what the hell they are. According to MedicineNet.com:

Shin splints are injuries to the front of the outer leg. While the exact injury is not known, shin splints seem to result from inflammation from injury to the tendon (posterior peroneal tendon) and adjacent tissues in the front of the outer leg.

Shin splints represent one member of a group of injuries called "overuse injuries." Shin splints occur most commonly in runners or aggressive walkers.

Or skaters, it seems.

Shin splint discomfort is often described as dull at first. However, with continuing trauma, the pain can become so extreme as to cause the athlete to stop workouts altogether.

I can agree to that.

A primary culprit causing shin splints is a sudden increase in distance or intensity of a workout schedule. This increase in muscle work can be associated with inflammation of the lower leg muscles, those muscles used in lifting the foot (the motion during which the foot pivots toward the tibia). Such a situation can be aggravated by a tendency to pronate the foot (roll it excessively inward onto the arch).

Similarly, a tight Achilles tendon or weak ankle muscles are also often implicated in the development of shin splints.

Yeah, that all sounds like me too. Grrreat!

Thanks to our wonderful Dr. Kil-Dear, I should be back to normal in no time. Ice and anti-inflammatories will be my friends. Now the Icy-Hot is kicking in. Ahhhh....

Shin Splints!

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