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Monday, April 27, 2009

I am training for the Police and have shin splints

I’m 43 and training to become accepted as a NZ policeman. Unfortunately, I’m not as fit as I used to be but, through regular running and swimming my levels of fitness are improving. The downside to the running is that I am suffering badly from shin splints and in turn can’t run often enough to help reduce my 2.4km run time to that required.

In your opinion, should I seek professional assistance for a tailor-made insert or would it make financial sense to try your product. Are Formthotics Active designed to rectify stance and running faults over time or are they manufactured just to effectively alleviate small inaccuracies quickly?
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Gary responds:
First of all; 43 is not all that old. While it may take some time to make up for lost ground, there is nothing to stop you from being as fit and strong as you were in your 20's.

Please click on the "Key Words" tab of this web page and look for key words such as "shin splints" and enjoy the reading.

The best you can do for your shins is get the Formthotics Shock Stop and get the legs massaged weekly. There is seldom, if ever, the need for expensive orthotics. Have a look at all the nutrition advice, perhaps starting with a daily Balance Ultimate Recovery Stack drink.

Do the exercise for foot pronation, as demonstrated in the video, every 2nd day.



Please take careful note of the wealth of running training advice on this site. Shin splints happen when you exceed your capacity to recover by either running too fast, running too long, running uncontrolled downhill, running on hard pavement, running in lousy shoes, or not having enough recovery between sessions - or all of the above! have a look at the articles under the keywords "Oxfam Trailwalker" for a start.


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3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Shin splints (or medial tibil stress syndrome) present a fiarly grey area when defining the exact pathology. Initialy, MTSS blamed the EDL muscle,as it origionates from this aproximate area and biomechanically is placed under stress when there a foot pronates. However, more recent research has shown little support for this initial theroy. The new theory that seems to have some scientific backing, is that the pain is related to the lower 3rd of the tibia being the smallest in diameter and due to this, being the area that the bone will bend when enough force is applied (i.e. during exercise). This does leave a room for biomechanical correction, though custom made foor orthoses (position the foot so that bending forces are limited). But otherwise, it comes down to good training and not over doing it with gradual increases.

Gary Moller said...

Thanks for the comments and reference to the latest theory.

Biomechanical correction in the form of restoring correct balance between the lower leg muscles is much preferred to a forced foot correction by use of an orthotic.

Seldom, if ever, are such devices needed to solve a case of "shin splints" in sports people - in my experience, such devices are totally over-prescribed and often cause secondary problems that are equally, if not more disabling.

Anonymous said...

I would have to agree with Gary on this one. I had constant on going lower leg problems, calf strains, tendonitis, "shin splints" etc. Eventually had prescribed orthotics and 6 months later ended up with a tibial stress fracture (MRI proof). I have thrown the orthotics away. I am not saying they were the cause but I am convinced beyond doubt they did not help my situation and contributed towards the SF. Unfortunately for me I am still off the road and its been 3 months.