About a week ago I incurred what I BELIEVE to be a stress fracture in my left shin about half way up, but I’m not sure. I got Navy medical to check it out, but after a negative x-ray they just suggested motrin & water and said it should cure (yeah right).
The Pain was a walnut sized pain on the inner part of my left shin that kinda said “hello” when I jog up stairs and flamed up for like 30-40 minutes of pretty high irritation after anaerobic circuits and sprinting sessions. That is why I came to such a conclusion about having it.
A friend suggested lots of rest (cardio the non-impact way), which I have done. I’ve rested on it for approximately 2 months now maybe, and want to do so for only 1 more month. I still feel the “hello” slightly when I jog upstairs occasionlly or when I do a brisk run to they gym. If my diet is almost completely lacking in calcium (don’t really get cottage cheese that I want & the galley only serves fatty milk), should I consider supplementing w/ calcium? Is there another possible source of this problem or is this not out of the norm as far as recovery time for injuries go?
I’d say you have “shin splints.” I’ve gotten them every year during the track and field season. Running less-impact cross-country style never hurt my shins as yours do, but running sprints and doing the sprint drills during practice killed my legs!
I’d say you should look up some info on treating “shin splints” online. You’ll find specialized excercises and stretches. Hope this helps.
Yeah, as Paul said, you need to start stretching. The machine cardio is still aggravating them since shin splints are in your muscles, not the bone. It is basically where muscles on one side overbalance the muscles on the other. Mainly, you just need to do a lot of stretching of your calves to loosen them up. Maybe get a massage too to start out with.
If the stretching doesn’t help, you can do “toe raises”, sit and raise your toes, and keep doing it. This will work the muscle on the front of your legs which doesn’t get worked.
If you can point to a single spot with one finger that hurts and only on one leg, then stress fracture needs to be considered. If the pain runs up and down your leg its most likely not.
Shin splints is a garbage basket term for pain in the front of the lower leg. Usually occurs from overuse. But that is also how a stress fracture starts.
Sometimes it can take a few weeks for the spot to show up on an x-ray, and even then its not a crack through the bone, but more of a soft cloudy looking area.
So extra mineral supplementation may be unnecessary? Also, I am a guilty candidate of those who often neglect stretching. I can almost feel the verbal assault coming now, but stretching is something that I’ve been working on to incorperate it into my programs. I guess I find it boring, and if this was the cause, didn’t know how dangers “not” stretching could be.
I didn’t stretch and now have IT band syndrome (where the outside of the leg is tight and the pain is in the knee). and can’t do any cardio at all involving my legs without searing pain, so all I can do is swim.
Just think 3 weeks ago I ran a 1/2 marathon in 1:46. Now I can’t even walk more than a half mile. But it was just a little bothersome thing that would come and go and I ignored it. And that is what happened.
I will be out another 6 weeks.
So … don’t do what i did and make sure to stretch. Tree may be right, if after a few weeks of stretching the pain is in one spot only maybe you want to be re Xrayed or have it looked at again.
you’ve been taking it easy for 2 months, typical healing time for fractures is 6 weeks. You may be able to elicit pain by pushing into your sore spot and by stretching your foot back; if you don’t need to push very deep and stretching hurts then you have differentiated between soft-tissue and bone, as being the cause of your symptoms. You could go to someone who can diagnose and treat sporting injuries - massage chiro osteopath physio