Every 3:00 for 5 sets:
3 Thrusters
Then:
For time:
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Unbroken Thrusters 115#(75#)
Post results to comments or BTWB
SHIN SPLINTS!! YUCK!
There has been some good running workouts lately, and some have done a little complaining about their shins hurting. I wanted to share a great article about what shin splints are and what you can do to help alleviate the pain. You can see the full article from Tony Gentlcore here
What Are Shin Splints?
Shin splints (or, for the more hoity-toity in the crowd, Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome) is a common injury found in endurance athletes (namely runners) as well as those who engage in a lot of jumping activities, and is often described as “my fucking shin hurts” “pain or discomfort along the inner edge of the shin bone (tibia).”
As far as the root cause?
It can be left up for debate, but the consensus tends to point towards increased activity that overworks the muscles and soft-tissue surrounding the area of the lower leg leading to swelling and pain.
In short (and more often than not): It comes down to someone doing too much, too soon.
OMG, I Have Shin Splints. Am I Going to Die? No
Whew, Okay, How Do I Address It? There are a number of obvious, if not overly simplified approaches that are worthwhile and canget the job done.
Commonly these range from rest (from the problematic activity, not just Netflix and Chilling) to stretching your calf muscles (Gastrocnemius & Soleus) and Achilles tendon to implementing some additional manual therapy in the form of massage, Graston, and/or self-“release” with The Stick or foam roller.
Like I said, these are all fine and dandy….albeit a bit reductionistic in nature; or a quick Band-Aid if you will.
Some other poignant options to consider:
1) Reduce Training Volume
Hey, here’s an idea: If shin splints are often the end-result of overtraining or surpassing one’s ability to recover, why don’t we, you know, latch onto the crazy idea of reduce training volume?
Weird, I know.
But something to consider and not to be trifled with.
2) Strengthen Anterior Musculature of Lower Leg
Namely, this means strengthening the Tibialis Anterior (front of the shin).
A popular exercise prescribed in this case is something like standing upright and “pulling” your toes towards your knees for “x” sets and reps.
Okay, cool.
I prefer something like ACTIVE ankle dorsiflexion vs. a band.
WARNING: Possibly the most boring video on the internet.
But Wait, There’s More (The Really Important Stuff)
Orthotics are often seen as the end all-be all fix.
However, for the bulk of people trying to conquer shin splits I do not feel what follows is the most germane approach. A few years ago I remember reading something physical therapist, Bill Hartman, wrote on the topic that really resonated with me and helped to shape my current thoughts on the topic.
Think about what happens when someone (over) pronates:
Pronation —-> Tibial Internal Rotation —-> Femoral Internal Rotation —-> Anterior Pelvic Tilt
What’s going to offset that trend?
HINT: Probably not an orthotic.
If we were to reverse engineer the anatomy/biomechanics it would look something like this:
Do More Anterior Core Work & Butt Stuff (Glute Work) —-> Nudge Posterior Pelvic Tilt —-> Femoral External Rotation —-> Tibial External Rotation —-> Supination of Foot.
PS – Tony has A TON more great videos with drills to help with Shin Splints…..
