Shin Splints Stretches And Exercises - Feel Better FAST!

Summary

In this video, Dr. Jared Beckstrand, a Doctor of Physical Therapy, presents six effective exercises to alleviate shin splint pain that can be done at home. He explains that shin splints are an overuse injury affecting the tibialis anterior muscle, commonly experienced by runners and athletes. For acute cases, he recommends rest, ice, and gentle stretches. For chronic cases, he suggests more aggressive measures like massage and strengthening exercises. The video demonstrates how to perform massages, stretches, and strengthening exercises, including toe taps and walking on heels, to target the anterior tibialis muscle and promote healing.

Takeaways

• 🏃‍♂️ Shin splints are an overuse injury that causes pain in the front of the lower leg, often due to excessive activity like running or sports.
• 🦿 The tibialis anterior muscle, which runs down the front of the shin, is the primary muscle associated with shin splints.
• 🔍 Shin splints are common in runners, especially those who've recently increased their running volume, and in athletes involved in soccer, football, track, aerobics, and weightlifting.
• ⏱️ If the pain from shin splints is less than two weeks old, it's considered acute inflammation and should be treated with rest, ice, anti-inflammatory medications, and gentle stretches.
• 👐 Massage is an effective way to loosen the tibialis anterior muscle, improve blood flow, and promote healing.
• 🧘‍♂️ Stretching exercises are crucial for treating shin splints, with seated shin stretches and upward-facing dog being effective options.
• 🤸‍♀️ Advanced stretching can be achieved by kneeling on the heels, which requires a greater range of motion and can be substituted with a standing toe drag if knee pain is present.
• 💪 Strengthening exercises like toe taps and resistance bands are essential for building up the tibialis anterior muscle and reducing shin splint pain.
• 🚶‍♂️ Walking on heels is a functional and aggressive exercise that can significantly strengthen the anterior tibialis but should be done carefully to avoid exacerbating pain.
• 🔗 For those interested in home exercises, resistance bands are a versatile and space-saving tool that can be used for various strengthening exercises.

Q & A

What is shin splint pain?

Shin splint pain is an overuse injury to the tibialis anterior muscle, which runs down the front of the shin and can cause pain and inflammation in that area.

What causes shin splints?

Shin splints are caused by excessive activity that overworks the tibialis anterior muscle, often seen in runners, soccer players, football players, track athletes, aerobics participants, and weight lifters.

How can you differentiate between acute and chronic shin splint pain?

Acute shin splint pain has been present for less than two weeks and responds better to rest, ice, anti-inflammatory medications, and gentle stretches. Chronic pain lasts more than two weeks and requires more aggressive treatment including massage and strengthening exercises.

What is the first step recommended for treating shin splints?

The first step in treating shin splints is massaging the tibialis anterior muscle to loosen it up, warm it up, and promote healing.

How can you massage the tibialis anterior muscle?

You can massage the tibialis anterior muscle using your hands or fingers, or using a foam roller. The foam roller is preferred for its effectiveness and ability to reach deeper into the muscle.

What are some simple stretches for shin splints?

Simple stretches for shin splints include sitting with legs out and pulling the toes towards the shin, and an upward facing dog position to stretch the anterior tibialis more aggressively.

What is the recommended duration for each stretch when treating shin splints?

Each stretch should be held for about 20 seconds and repeated three times.

How can you strengthen the tibialis anterior muscle?

Strengthening exercises include toe taps, using resistance bands for ankle dorsiflexion, and walking on heels to engage the muscle more functionally.

What is the recommended starting point for resistance training with bands?

Start with 10 to 15 repetitions and aim to do three sets. As you get stronger, increase the number of repetitions and time spent on the exercises.

What is the most functional and aggressive exercise suggested for shin splints?

The most functional and aggressive exercise is walking on heels, pulling the toes up off the floor and not letting them touch the ground, which can be done for time increments up to two minutes.

What should you do if the heel walking exercise causes pain?

If the heel walking exercise causes pain, it's an indication to stop the exercise for that time period and adjust the intensity or duration accordingly.

Outlines

00:00

🏃‍♂️ Understanding and Treating Shin Splints

Jared Beckstrand, a Doctor of Physical Therapy, introduces viewers to six effective exercises to alleviate shin splint pain. He explains that shin splints result from overuse of the tibialis anterior muscle, which runs down the front of the shin and connects to the ankle. Pain occurs when this muscle is excessively active, often due to activities like running, soccer, football, aerobics, and weightlifting. Beckstrand emphasizes the importance of distinguishing between acute inflammation (pain lasting less than two weeks) and chronic pain (lasting more than two weeks), as treatment approaches differ. For acute cases, he recommends rest, ice, anti-inflammatory medications, and gentle stretches. For chronic cases, he suggests more aggressive measures including massage, stretching, and strengthening exercises.

05:01

💪 Exercises for Shin Splint Relief and Prevention

Beckstrand demonstrates various exercises to help with shin splint pain. He starts with massage techniques for the tibialis anterior muscle, using either hands or a foam roller to improve blood flow and promote healing. He prefers a medium-density foam roller for its effectiveness and comfort. Next, he presents three stretching exercises: a simple seated stretch, an upward-facing dog stretch for more intensity, and a kneeling stretch on the heels for an even more aggressive approach. For strengthening, Beckstrand suggests toe taps to activate the muscle and build strength, progressing to resistance bands for added challenge. His favorite exercise involves walking on heels to engage the anterior tibialis muscle functionally. He advises caution with this last exercise due to its intensity and potential to cause discomfort if overdone. Beckstrand also provides links to recommended equipment in the video description for viewers' convenience.

Keywords

💡Shin Splints

Shin splints refer to pain along the front part of the lower leg, typically caused by an overuse injury to the tibialis anterior muscle. In the video, the speaker explains that this condition is common in runners and individuals who have recently increased their physical activity, leading to inflammation and pain in the shin area. The video aims to provide exercises to alleviate this pain.

💡Tibialis Anterior

The tibialis anterior is a muscle located on the front of the shin, responsible for lifting the foot upward. The video script describes this muscle's role in causing shin splints when it becomes overworked. Exercises in the video are designed to target and strengthen this muscle to help with shin splint pain.

💡Overuse Injury

An overuse injury is a condition where a muscle or tendon is damaged due to repetitive stress or overexertion. In the context of the video, shin splints are described as an overuse injury of the tibialis anterior muscle, which occurs when the muscle is excessively active, leading to pain and inflammation.

💡Inflammation

Inflammation is the body's response to injury or irritation, characterized by redness, heat, swelling, and often pain. The video discusses acute inflammation as a response to shin splints, where the pain is relatively new (less than two weeks), and suggests treatments like rest, ice, and gentle stretches to manage it.

💡Massage

Massage is a therapeutic technique involving the manipulation of muscles and soft body tissues to alleviate pain and promote relaxation. In the video, the speaker recommends massaging the tibialis anterior muscle as a way to loosen it up, increase blood flow, and promote healing for shin splint pain.

💡Foam Roller

A foam roller is a cylindrical device used in physical therapy and fitness to apply pressure and massage to muscles. The video suggests using a foam roller to massage the shin area, which can be more effective and allow for deeper pressure than manual massage.

💡Stretching

Stretching involves lengthening muscles to improve flexibility and reduce tightness. The video provides various stretching exercises aimed at the tibialis anterior muscle to help alleviate shin splint pain. These stretches are intended to increase the muscle's flexibility and reduce the strain that leads to shin splints.

💡Strengthening Exercises

Strengthening exercises are designed to build muscle strength and endurance. The video outlines exercises to strengthen the tibialis anterior muscle, which is crucial for preventing and treating shin splints by ensuring the muscle can handle the demands of physical activity without causing pain.

💡Toe Taps

Toe taps are a simple exercise where one lifts their toes up and down, targeting the tibialis anterior muscle. In the video, toe taps are suggested as an initial exercise to activate the muscle and improve its function, which can be progressed by adding resistance with bands.

💡Resistance Bands

Resistance bands are elastic bands used in strength training to provide variable resistance. The video demonstrates using resistance bands to add challenge to toe taps, making the exercise more effective for strengthening the tibialis anterior and treating shin splints.

💡Functional Exercises

Functional exercises mimic everyday movements and are designed to improve overall body function. The video's final exercise, walking on heels, is a functional exercise that targets the tibialis anterior in a way that closely resembles natural movements, aiming to strengthen the muscle and reduce shin splint pain.

Highlights

Jared Beckstrand, a Doctor of Physical Therapy, introduces six exercises to eliminate shin splint pain.

Shin splints are caused by overuse of the tibialis anterior muscle, which runs down the front of the shin.

Common activities that can lead to shin splints include running, soccer, football, track, aerobics, and weight lifting.

For acute shin splint pain (less than two weeks), rest, ice, anti-inflammatory medications, and gentle stretches are recommended.

For chronic shin splint pain (more than two weeks), more aggressive treatment like massage and strengthening exercises are necessary.

Massage the tibialis anterior muscle with hands or a foam roller to improve blood flow and promote healing.

A medium-density foam roller is recommended for massaging the shin area.

Seated shin stretch is a simple way to stretch the tibialis anterior muscle.

Upward facing dog is a more aggressive stretch that requires upper body and core strength.

Kneeling on heels is a stretch that requires a greater degree of knee range of motion.

Standing stretch with one toe dragged back is a good alternative for those with knee pain.

Toe taps are an effective way to strengthen the tibialis anterior muscle.

Resistance bands can be used to add difficulty to toe taps and strengthen the muscle further.

Walking on heels with toes off the floor is a functional and aggressive exercise to strengthen the anterior tibialis.

If exercises cause pain, it's a sign to stop and adjust the intensity.

The video provides a link to a recommended medium-density foam roller in the description.

The video also links to resistance bands that are useful for the exercises demonstrated.

Transcripts

what's up guys jared beckstrand here

doctor of physical therapy toning titan

and these are six of the best exercises

that you can do at home to eliminate

your shin splint pain

coming at you right now

so what does shin splint anyway and why

do you get pain down the front of your

leg

well you've got a muscle that runs down

the front of your shin

it's called your tibialis anterior and

it looks just like this

actually that's a horrible picture it

looks just like this

okay that one's a little bit better but

basically here's your shin bone right

here

that muscle comes right down the front

and it attaches right into the top of

your ankle

when it activates it pulls your foot up

in this direction right here

so why do you get shin splints why do

you get pain in that area well

it's an overuse injury to that muscle so

anything that you're doing that causes

it to be excessively active

is going to result in some pain and some

inflammation in this area

so what are some of those activities i

most often see shin splints in runners

and especially runners who have recently

increased the amount of work that

they're doing the amount of running that

they're doing

but it's also common in other places

soccer football

track aerobics if you go to aerobic

classes often

weight lifting all are reasons that are

going to cause that muscle to be

overworked and overused and result in

these shin splint type

problems now luckily there's a lot of

really great exercises that are going to

help you out of some of this pain that

you're experiencing

however before i jump into those we need

to make one very important distinction

if you've had this pain for less than

two weeks you're dealing with

acute inflammation if that's the case

it's going to respond better to things

like rest

ice anti-inflammatory medications

and some of the gentle stretches that

i'm about to show you

if you've had it for more than two weeks

you need to be a little more aggressive

and include some massage in addition to

those stretches

and then supplement that with some

strengthening exercises that's exactly

what i'm going to show you in this video

let's get into those

right now the first thing we want to do

is start with some massage to that

tibialis anterior muscle

this is a great way to loosen the muscle

up warm it up

prior to some of the other activity that

we're doing and then also get some good

blood flow going in there to help to

promote healing

two ways that i like to massage you can

use your hands you can use your fingers

what you're going to do is just find the

inside part of your shin

and come up and down that area push in

there just as much as your pain

will allow that's a good way that we can

just work it over with some massage

i personally prefer the foam roller i

feel like that's a little bit more

effective and maybe a little easier to

get in there a little deeper

what you're going to do is get down in a

kneeling position with just that bad

shin up on top of the foam roller

and then we can use that to roll in

and out just like this it's actually

going to be a little more effective

if you point your toes inward what that

does is rolls your tibia to the outside

so that we can get right on that muscle

a little bit

more effectively and again you want to

go all the way

up and down the length of that muscle

you're going to spend

about a minute doing that now for this

i prefer a medium density foam roller

not one of those really hard rigid high

density foam rollers

this is actually the one that i have at

my house this is the one that i have in

my clinic

if you're interested in a good medium

density foam roller check the

description down below

and that's where you can find the link

to this one but again we're going to

spend

about a minute doing that doing that

massage just trying to

loosen that area up get some good blood

flow into that spot

next we want to follow that up with some

stretching

the simplest way to stretch is seated

with your legs out in front of you and

then i'm just going to pull my legs down

in this direction

you should feel a good stretch along the

top

part of your shin if you're very acutely

inflamed meaning there's a lot of pain

in that area

this may be enough for you this is a

very simple stretch

you would hold that for about 20 seconds

and then you would repeat that

three times now if this is too simple

you don't feel a very good stretch with

this

the next more aggressive stretch that i

like

would be an upward facing dog and so

you're going to lay down on your stomach

make sure that your toes are pointed so

the tops of your feet are down on the

floor

and then what we're going to do is press

up into this position

with your hands now obviously there's a

little more upper body and core strength

require

required with this one but it's a great

way that you can

put a little more stress on that

anterior tibialis

stretch it out a little more effectively

again 20 seconds

three times is what we would shoot for

with that now

if you're looking for the next level

something even a little bit more

aggressive

my personal favorite stretch would be

kneeling just like this

on the on your heels again the tops of

my feet are down

flat so pulling my ankle into what would

be a plantar flexion motion

in order to stretch that top side of my

shin right there

you're going to hold that for 20 seconds

you're going to repeat it three times

now you can see that this is a little

bit more aggressive i can put a little

more weight

on my heels but it does also require a

greater degree of range of motion in my

knees

a lot of times if people do have knee

pain as well as that shin splint pain

they're not going to tolerate this very

well and so a good substitute here would

be to do this

actually standing up you can kind of

drag one

toe back behind you and then as you push

your hip and push your thigh

forward you're going to introduce a

stretch into that tibialis anterior

muscle

now again it's not quite as aggressive

as this one

but if you do have some knee pain going

on or any other issues

that one is typically a little bit

better tolerated so those are the

stretches that i like

let's show you some ways that you can

strengthen that muscle

now i mentioned in the introduction to

this video that anterior

tibialis is responsible for pulling your

foot up in this direction

that's the motion that we want to make

strong in order to

treat and eventually eliminate this pain

the simplest way to start is just with

some toe taps i like to do these seated

all you're going to do is lift your toe

up and down just trying to get some

active range of motion just some

activity

into that muscle get it used to firing

and hopefully work it out of some pain

i would start with about three sets of

10 to 15 and you can work up to about

three sets of 30.

by the time you're doing about 90 of

these it's time to add some resistance

to that motion

the simplest way to do that is with some

bands so you'll see that i've got

all kinds of bands here i've got tubing

i've got these bigger ones i've got

these smaller loops

these smaller loops are my favorite but

let me show you how to do this with some

of these more

common things that you might have

available a lot of people have this

tubing what you're going to do

is just hold both the ends in one hand

you're going to loop that around your

foot

so right now if i was treating my right

side i've got that looped around

around my right foot in my left hand i'm

going to pull those tails

out to the side now with my left foot

what i can do is just step

on the top of that band and that's going

to be my anchor point now what i want to

do

is pull up with my toes use that

anterior tibialis muscle right there

to pull my toes up towards me all of a

sudden now

i have a little bit of resistance

pushing me down

to demonstrate that with the smaller

loop again that's going to fit a little

more comfortably around your foot

pull it out to the side step on it with

your other foot

and now you can use that to pull up in

this direction

about 10 to 15 repetitions as a number

as a good number to shoot for

and you're going to repeat that three

times if you're interested in some of

these loops this is a great addition to

a home gym

they're inexpensive they take up no room

and there's a lot that you can do with

them

once again i'll link to these in the

description down below

this last exercise is my personal

favorite it's a little more functional

it's a little more aggressive

that's also the one that you're going to

get the most awkward looks the more that

you do it especially if you do it in

public

we're going to walk around on our heels

basically what i want to do

is pull my toes up off of the floor and

then as i walk around

do not let your toes hit the floor take

you know 10

15 20 feet whatever you have available

and then we're just going to keep those

toes

up off of the floor the goal is to do

this for

time meaning i would set a 30 second

timer initially

and try to go for the 30 seconds when

that becomes easy go for 60 seconds

90 seconds up to about two minutes worth

now please keep in mind

that this is a little more aggressive it

looks simple kind of looks a little

silly

but it's a little bit more aggressive

you're definitely going to feel those

this in those anterior tibialis muscles

if it does start to hurt if it does

start to cause pain

that's your indication that you need to

be done with this exercise

for that time so i hope you guys found

these helpful hope you found them useful

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