Physiotherapist Guide to Shin Splints

Shin splints, everyone’s heard of them, most people have had them at some point in their lives, but it’s a condition which is often poorly managed.  The reason why, more than likely, has a lot to do with a lack of understand and misguided “help”.  A common misconception is that you can just “run through shin splints”.  Put simply, this is plain wrong.  Read on if you’d like to find out the how, what, why and treatment options.

Shin splints refers to both medial tibial stress syndrome and anterior tibial stress syndrome.  Both are the same condition apart from symptom location on the lower leg.  The soreness is related to irritation of the connection tissue between the muscles of the lower leg and bone.  If left untreated, shin splints can develop into more serious stress fractures.  Patient’s typically present to the clinic reporting a dull ache localised to either the front or inside lower aspect of their shin.  The pain is typically aggravated with activity and can become bad enough to force you to stop.  On questioning, patient often reveal a significant sudden increase in their training loads, commonly associated with sport pre-seasons or people kickstarting their exercise habits.  If incorrectly managed, shin splints can be debilitating for an extended period and lead people to quit their chosen sport, exercise class or activity.

There are many physiotherapy treatments available in the management of shin splints.  Load management strategies, isolated and global lower limb strengthening, dry needling, massage therapy, foot and ankle taping, and footwear assessment and/or adjustment are commonly required to complete a thorough assessment and treatment of shin splints.  

Strengthening Tip for Shin Splints - The forgotten muscle of the calf complex – Soleus!  The bent knee calf raises shown here are an easy way to train this muscle at home without the need for any equipment.  Bodyweight exercises alone though normally aren’t enough.  When you consider the amount of load that goes through our lower limbs every time we run/land on one leg, it makes sense you’ll need to do a lot harder strength training.  This exercise though is a great starting point.  Build up to again that 3 sets of 15 repetitions.  You will require more advanced exercises and load management advice if you’re dealing with shin splints, so we recommend working closely with your physiotherapist.   This is not a complete rehabilitation plan – if you require further advice or an individualised management plan please consult an experienced physiotherapist.  

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