Shin splints!

[JohninColorado]

I am in Burgos and have developed shin splints and I’m not sure how long it will take to recover. I am investigating renting a bike to ride to Leon, however, I am tall (198cm) and availability is in doubt.
What advice would you have for me? How should I recover? Ideas welcome.

 

[jungleboy]

I would seek professional medical advice.

Anecdotally, I have had shin splints a couple of times on camino. I kept walking and they went away after a few days. But this is not professional medical advice.

 

[Robo]

I would seek professional medical advice.

Anecdotally, I have had shin splints a couple of times on camino. I kept walking and they went away after a few days. But this is not professional medical advice.

100%. See a doctor or physio.
The physios in Spain are great!

I've had shin splints a couple of times.
Though it didn't stop me.

I carry a foam roller to ease them a bit.
I've used a frozen bottle of water in the past.
Strapping from a physio can also help.

But get a professional opinion!

 

[David]

Sorry to hear this. Shin splints on Camino are common, usually males .. just inflamed muscles from over use .. it isn't a worry. RICE of course but the R - can you take a couple of days off? The I - frozen peas are cheap - not direct to skin though, layer in between. Gentle massaging, Voltaren gel .. light - light! - exercise for those two days ... watch the video below.

Whilst you are resting try this, today, now. Stand straight and relaxed, hands down by your sides. Focus your mind (don't look down) on the front of your legs ... now, without moving the rest of your body lean forward a little from the waist - you will feel all of the front of your legs (and knees) go into tension ... this is what happens when you put a heavy backpack on and lean forward instead of standing upright - put your pack on, lean forward and there you go! - you already have all that tension before you have even taken one step ..

So work on that, repacking, refitting pack to body, your stance .. and when you start walking again - take much shorter steps .. no, really, take shorter steps, stop over extending with long steps as it pivots the ankles too much, extends the feet too far, over-stretches the shin muscles - not good, walk shorter steps, in a relaxed way and slower, give those shin muscles a break - take it easy ... you are already thinking of a bike so you can "get going" and that is a good hint re getting shin splints, urgency .. so take a break, slow down, take much shorter steps - when you do start again go easy, shorter days, build up to it again ... all will be well.
And Hey! you are in Burgos - be a tourist, enjoy.

Note - when he is showing finger/thumb massage that is a good time to be applying the Voltaren (anti-inflammatory gel) - orange and white tube available in pharmacies

 

[Grousedoctor]

I am in Burgos and have developed shin splints and I’m not sure how long it will take to recover. I am investigating renting a bike to ride to Leon, however, I am tall (198cm) and availability is in doubt.
What advice would you have for me? How should I recover? Ideas welcome.

Seeking medical advice is the best recommendation that anyone on the forum can offer you.

You are coming up upon the Meseta (Burgos to Leon). Cycling it might not be a bad idea. I am currently contending with plantar fasciitis certainly not the same condition as shin splints. However, although my long distance walking is restricted, I seem to have few limitations or problems cycling. As the Meseta is relatively flat, cycling should give your shins a rest for a few days as you cross this section of the CF as you could take it at a speed that works best for you.

There are a couple of companies that deliver bikes around Spain. You might want to check out BikeIberia and Cycling Rentals for bikes that they might have to fit you.

Seek medical attention and get their recommendation. Good luck and Buen Camino!

 

[davejsy]

I got them really bad on one leg, all red a swollen and I thought I was in trouble. I carried (hobbled) on and got away with it, but was ultra careful to not do anything to aggravate it. I also knew what I'd done to cause it, so I kind of knew what not to do after the event. I was closer to Santiago than you though.

I did get some compression socks, but I'm not sure they helped - hard to tell.

But yes, seek medical advice and rest is the best advice if possible.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

What advice would you have for me?

You've been given plenty of advice to seek medical attention. I'm going to add that you should do all you can to pay for it that day. As an American you will find there are extra bank charges if you paying the bill from home.

 

[BROWNCOUNTYBOB]

I experienced shin splints during our first camino frances in 2015. Painful swelling in my shin above my ankle. I was able to walk and most of the pain subsided after an hour or so of walking. My sister is a physical therapist, brother is a doctor, sister in law also a doctor. They advised me that for a short period of time (7 or 10 days), I can take a higher dosage of ibuprofen - up to 1,600 mgs per day to reduce the pain and the swelling. Another pilgrim laughed and said most pilgrims can experience this and within a week the swelling would disappear. He was right! And I never took 1,600 mgs / day. Usually 600 mg in the morning and that was sufficient, but sometimes follow with a few 200 gel capsules in the afternoon. Bob

 

[Stephan the Painter]

I am in Burgos and have developed shin splints and I’m not sure how long it will take to recover. I am investigating renting a bike to ride to Leon, however, I am tall (198cm) and availability is in doubt.
What advice would you have for me? How should I recover? Ideas welcome

The problem with shin splints is that sometimes they turn into stress fractures. Commonly you can tell the difference because if you have shin splints, the pain should get less as you walk, but if you have a stress fracture, it'll get worse if you walk. If you have a stress fracture, it can get worse and take months to recover. So it's very important to know. Because you have to stop walking if you have a stress fracture.

My first walking Camino, I had stress fractures, and after resting for over a week I ended up buying a used bike and finishing the Camino that way from Pamplona.

But my last Caminos, I just had minor shin splint pain and it went away after about a week. I used a plantar fasciitis ball to massage them and that seemed to help. There are also exercises that you can find online that help. For example, lie on a bed with your feet raised on a pillow and write the alphabet with your feet. Moves all the muscles around.

Shin splints are often caused because you're carrying a pack, which changes your balance, and which muscles you use. So if it doesn't bother you, you could transport your pack also.

Unfortunately, I think there's no simple answer to your question. I found a podiatrist on Google maps and saw a very knowledgeable woman. But she said that it's really hard to know if someone has a stress fracture even with an x-ray because they're too small to show up.
Good luck.

 

[Stephan the Painter]

You've been given plenty of advice to seek medical attention. I'm going to add that you should do all you can to pay for it that day. As an American you will find there are extra bank charges if you paying the bill from home.

It wasn't while I was on the Camino, but I was in Almería in Andalusia, and had to go to the hospital (because I had Bell's palsy and thought I might have had a stroke. But it turned out to be nothing serious).

I gave them my address for billing, and when I received a bill three months later back in the States, they had a lovely little QR code on it and when I scanned it with my phone, it just took me to a website where I put in a credit card number and it was all done. Let's hope that other provinces in Spain adopt this system.

 

[WayWalker]

I am in Burgos and have developed shin splints and I’m not sure how long it will take to recover. I am investigating renting a bike to ride to Leon, however, I am tall (198cm) and availability is in doubt.
What advice would you have for me? How should I recover? Ideas welcome.

Don't forget to ice and rest. Check that it may be your shoes.

 

[joramos]

I am in Burgos and have developed shin splints and I’m not sure how long it will take to recover. I am investigating renting a bike to ride to Leon, however, I am tall (198cm) and availability is in doubt.
What advice would you have for me? How should I recover? Ideas welcome.

I have had my shares of shin splints during my hiking and running days. And during my two recent Frances. The remedy that I discovered was (and deviced), at the symptom or onset of tightening shins, as you are coming out of a step; heel-toe, right: I would kick my heel up (50-60 times) or until the shins muscles relax, and the splint goes away. Repeating the process 2-3 times while walking works for me all the time. I guess the process stretches the shin muscles therefore relaxes them a bit. No meds. No physios. No docs visit.

Ultreia . . .

 

[CanadianBarb]

As all the useful suggestions above and consider K taping also also slow your pace down till you recover! There are several good You tube videos on various ways of taping using the K tape effectively. Buen Camino!

 

[jpboudreau]

I am in Burgos and have developed shin splints and I’m not sure how long it will take to recover. I am investigating renting a bike to ride to Leon, however, I am tall (198cm) and availability is in doubt.
What advice would you have for me? How should I recover? Ideas welcome.

Hi, I too had shin splints and had to rest a few days in Astorga. Met a physiotherapist walking the Camino (Hi Elizatbeth!) Who recommended I get some kinesio tape or Ktape and watch a few youtube videos on how to tape for shin splints. She said: "it will change your life". Maybe not my life but it certainly let me continue my Camino. That and a few days of Naproxin (pain and anti-inflammation). BTW...I was at the Indian Way Albergue, when Antonio the wonderful hospitalaro called a friend in Astorga to bring some K-tape to us. Wonderful family running this Albergue of 3 huge teepees. Beautiful dark skies for star gazing. Support the Indian Way as they are getting pressured by some people in the nearby village to pave with asphalt their driveways. Very expensive! And needless as the only people they host are pilgrims!.

 

[C clearly]

My sister is a physical therapist, brother is a doctor, sister in law also a doctor. They advised me that for a short period of time (7 or 10 days), I can take a higher dosage of ibuprofen - up to 1,600 mgs per day to reduce the pain and the swelling. Another pilgrim laughed and said most pilgrims can experience this and within a week the swelling would disappear. He was right! And I never took 1,600 mgs / day. Usually 600 mg in the morning and that was sufficient, but sometimes follow with a few 200 gel capsules in the afternoon

I am glad that you consulted with 3 medical personnel before getting this advice on dosage for ibuprofen. However, that was based on knowledge of your medical situation. I don't think it is a good idea to pass it along to random strangers.

Readers should be aware that ibuprofen and other over-the-counter drugs can interact badly with other medications or conditions, especially when taken at higher doses than the standard recommendation.

 

[peregrina2000]

I am going to chime in with a non-medical intervention that has worked wonders since my trainer recommended it in 2021 when I had a bad camino injury.

STRETCHING! At the first sign, at the first little twinge, I stop walking and stretch whatever muscle is starting to get my attention. Do not wait till the next rest stop, do not wait till you fnd a comfy bench, do it right then and there. There are tons of stretches for shin splints on youtube. I may be lucky, but this has worked wonders for me, primarily with shin muscles, but also in the quads, glutes and hamstring.

Repetitive foot strike is a primary cause of shin splints, which means that the more asphalt, the worse for your shin splints. I used to be fanatical about walking along the shoulder of the road in weeds and grass, which slowed me down but helped a lot. The other thing that has helped is my switch to trail runners - the more padding the better as far as shin splints are concerned.

Just my two cents, not medical advice. I avoid those anti-inflammatories and painkiller as much as possible.

 

[Purple Backpack]

Retired ER Nurse Practitioner here. Shin splints tend to be micro tears in the muscle lateral to the tibia/shin bone. Also tends to occur in males (lucky you!) and pronators (wearing the inside of your shoes more than outside?). Stress fractures are micro fractures in the tibia itself and I remember reading a post by a MD recently that ended up with horrific tibial plateau fractures from continuing to walk with a heavy pack. I haven’t read all the posts above but resting it, getting rid of excess pack weight, stretching, etc may help. If not, I was looking at renting a bike for the Meseta and https://bicips.com/ had Treks. They will overnight from their location on the Norte to a Correos office anywhere. You need to put it together but that’s pretty minimal and they carry Trek extra large frames, on their chart appropriate up to 6’5”. Happy healing, good call getting off your leg for a bit!

 

[Sarge63]

Tough news but rest assured you can make it... I limped into Leon last year and went to the pharmacy. Rest, Advil, Ice, and a good compression sock made all the difference. I also had my pack shipped which helped. Good luck…

 

[joramos]

Word of caution: Ibuprofen, advil, motrin, naproxen, etc, and other branded or generic non-steroidal anti-inflamatory drugs (NSAID) should only taken with food and never on an empty stomach. I had an upper GI bleed from taking NSAIDs trying to ease pain quickly.

Cuidado. Buen Camino.

 

[dick bird]

I experienced shin splints during our first camino frances in 2015. Painful swelling in my shin above my ankle. I was able to walk and most of the pain subsided after an hour or so of walking. My sister is a physical therapist, brother is a doctor, sister in law also a doctor. They advised me that for a short period of time (7 or 10 days), I can take a higher dosage of ibuprofen - up to 1,600 mgs per day to reduce the pain and the swelling. Another pilgrim laughed and said most pilgrims can experience this and within a week the swelling would disappear. He was right! And I never took 1,600 mgs / day. Usually 600 mg in the morning and that was sufficient, but sometimes follow with a few 200 gel capsules in the afternoon. Bob

Google Ibuprofen before you start self medicating. Even better, see a doctor.

 

[M2ME]

I had shin splints on VdLP. I used compression socks at days end, ibuprofen and a topical anti inflammatory cream purchased from a pharmacy on the way. Stretching before walking also helped. Advice I heard from someone who had through hiked the Appalachian Trail was for the first 30 mins each day start slow and easy. At the 30 min mark stop and fully stretch then head off at your usual pace. Best of luck.

 

[Robert Long]

Plenty of medical advice here, so now I will add my experience. Seems that 30 days of walking is the max for my right shin. Suffered Shin Splints twice. My solution was KT tape, available at all pharmacies. The internet demonstrated how to apply the tape -- three different ways dependent upon where the pain is. and Advil. I continued my walk with no rest days and very little discomfort. Other than shaving my leg and then almost removing a layer of skin when I removed the tape.
Buen Camino
Bob

 

[David with new Kit!]

My bit too.....
When my wife had shin splints in 2022 we got a lot of good advice on the forum which allowed us to continue, as follows

We stopped for 4 days of rest
Applied ice packs once a day
Daily massage to the shin to reduce swelling (it works really fast)
Sent rucksdack onwards each day
Changed from shoes to sandles

Doing everything above let us continue with a lot less discomfort

Your own mileage may vary.,...

 

[Mayoracer]

This happened to both my husband and I on the CF. We slowed down, took shorter strides had our packs sent ahead for a few days, and most importantly, loosened our shoe laces. My shoes were too big so I had to tie them tightly to keep my feet from sliding around inside. Someone told us this could irritate tendons that go up through the shins, mimicking shin splints.

We also used voltaren gel and iced our legs in the evenings. It all helped but I still limped into SDC.

On our next camino we had lighter packs, walked more slowly and didn't tie our shoes too tight. No issues. Another good lesson the camino has taught us, slow down you silly humans!

 

[gml]

When I got shin splints on the camino (my first and only experience of them), I shortened my days to 10-15 km instead of 20-25 km and took ibuprofen. But the thing that helped the most was changing the way I walked. My typical way of walking was to toss my foot and calf ahead of me, but that was horribly painful with shin splints because it put a lot of stress on my shins. I discovered that if I made better use of my thigh muscles to lift my whole leg and then planted my foot down with my knee directly above it, aligned with my foot, the stress on my shins was dramatically reduced. After three days of shorter distances and (for me) proper walking, I was cured, and have never had shin splints again.