383

I'm curious as to how hard I can push it on the bike. Will cycling make the shin splints worse?

tn9

Just flex your shins by pointing with your toes and pulling them back with your heels pointed. Also some foot circles while balancing on one leg in both directions help prevent shin splints.

It will probably make it worse if you push hard, it's your body so only you can gauge that. Stretch it out every now and then, and you should be good to go.

recon455

Never heard of cycling causing shin splints, and I don't see how it could if you know anything about fitting.

As a proactive measure for shin splints, when sitting try "writing the alphabet," tracing each letter, with your foot suspended, to work your shin muscles.

deep_sky

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shin_splints

Had them so bad when running I eventually gave up the sport as nothing seemed to help it, so I concluded that I was simply not put together correctly to tolerate the stresses of running long-term. I don't suffer from splints with cycling, however. The pain of shin splints is your body's way of telling you that it can't tolerate whatever stress is being placed upon it.Only way I can think of to aggravate the shins during cycling is to continually drop your heels to the point where your shins are straining to keep the heel so far down. The stress of that might trigger the same sort of irritation and pain. I would at the very least dial down the amount and intensity of riding, and try to do regular icing, stretching, and massaging (if you can tolerate it) to lessen the discomfort.

Are you a heel down or heel up style of pedaler? Did you get the splints from cycling or from running and are now trying to cycle to maintain fitness?

tadawdy

Not so much the stress of running itself, as having flawed running mechanics. Landing on the heel rather than the fore/midfoot, either because of overstriding or inexperience (we walk with a heel strike, and beginners often see running as fast walking) leads to a higher rate of force development and higher peak forces. Not to mention giving you a nice eccentric contraction of the tibialis anterior with each stride.

G0L0UD

I used to get some pretty bad shin splints from running, the writing the alphabet with your foot thing and sitting on your feet with them stretching did somewhat of a fix but it wouldn't last. What did seemingly permanently fix it for me was strengthening the tibial muscles. Most gyms have a little device for it near the calf machines (heres a picture of one https://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...4L._SS400_.jpg ). Otherwise you can use a weight stack with a foot strap to do it. I'm pretty terrible at describing exercises though, so I'd say find a video on youtube or something.

kieraine

Make friends with a foam roller, releases some of the tension in your shins. Yeah you look like a dork using it but it worked for me.

383

I'm definitely a heal up pedaler - I've never gotten true shin pain from cycling. And rightfully so too: cycling is non-impact so I don't see how it would really cause shin splints (except through calf tightness leading to imbalances etc.) I was worried more about the force exerted downward and hence through the shin bones, and if this was sufficient to prolong symptoms.

383

For me it was getting back into running after a long time of no running. My heel strike is not a problem, it was just the return.

stonecrd

The main cause is flexing the muscles of the foot and toes upword. This as mentioned usually happens when running with a heal strike stride when overstriding. I don't think pedaling motion would in any way duplicate this as your foot should be level on the pedal and you are not using the muscles that move your foot and toes all that much when pedaling. So I think you can push as hard as you want.

jsigone

never heard of it, never hard it. Your working 99% of the calf area on the lower leg not the front. Non impact movements so doubt you'll ever get a shin splint ever

rmflood

Yup, I have shin splints also. Never heard of shin splints from bicycling either. The only thing I've been doing differently is on my off days, I've been spinning with a higher cadence in lower gears to give my legs a rest from beginning season overuse. I guess that wasn't a good idea. Doc said to rest, message and anti inflammatories

TimothyH

This is about right.

Shin splints won't go away without some form of stretching.


-Tim-

TimothyH

Shin splints are caused by inflammation or small tears in the thin membrane covering the front of the Tibea. The membrane is called the periosteum.

Calf muscles have thin fibers which attach to the periosteum. Flexing the calf muscles pulls on the inflamed periosteum, causing pain.

Inflammation and tearing of the periosteum can be caused by any number of activities, not just running and jumping.


-Tim-

jsigone

holy 7 year old thread

mcours2006

Shin splints never get old.

silversx80

This comment deserves a trophy.

TimothyH

I got duped.

99Klein 

I use to get them when I ran, but never have on the bike. Give it a shot and see what happens.

kbarch

I got em from NOT cycling.
When at the gym, I like to warm up on a stationary bike, but the other day, they were all taken, so I got on a treadmill. Once I got warned up I decided to crank it up and really run, like 10+ mph for a little bit. That might have been OK, but for my next interval, I decided to max out the incline, to, like, attack a hill. That was Tuesday. That afternoon my shins started feeling sore. Here it is Saturday and they still do.

zymphad

Never heard of shin splints in cycling either. Shin splints usually associated with high impact sports like running. Cycling is so low impact, you lose bone density. It's been proven professional cyclists have lowest bone density among athletes since they spend the majority of their waking moments on a bike. And there are exercises you can do to prevent them, they only take a few minutes to do.

kbarch

Came back and realized the original question, pertinent as it was, wasn't quite answered. The question being: will cycling AGGRAVATE shin splints or delay healing/recovery? The first reply was that cycling might make them worse, but no one seemed to have any experience with the effect of cycling on 'pre-existing' shin splints. Somehow I doubt the mile or two/ 7-10 minutes at a time that I spent riding a Citibike each day this past week was enough to make a difference either way....

zymphad

Do this exercise, it will help heal and prevent shin splints. Cycling would probably good, since heavy running can aggravate it.

Just stand straight. And lift your toes up as far as you can, tilting slightly back on your heels. Do this 60 times every day. If you do this, I swear, you can do all the interval running you want and it will keep the shin splints away. It's the easiest solution to recover from an injury IMO.

Best part, you can do this anywhere. I do them waiting in line at a grocery store for example.

I'm not a physical trainer or a doc, but if I had shin splints, it definitely would not stop me from cycling, but I would lay off the running for a week or just jog slowly on soft ground like grass.

joesch

NOTE: Reviving this thread with my recent experience

I found that stretching and riding seems to help my shin splint. Got one on my left shin from planting my leg and pushing forward while serving in tennis. Hurt to walk and play tennis. Did not hurt to ride and infact riding seems to help stretch and healing blood flow. I also recommend heat treatments like hot tub and sauna with stretch/massage.

canklecat

I used to get shin splints from running, especially in boot camp when they issued those horrible cheap gym shoes with inadequate support. As soon as I could get back into my own shoes or boots I was fine.

For years my favorite running boot was my old pair of Herman Survivor hiking boots, which I still have 45 years later. Boots can be useful for relieving some impact injuries because they force a fast shuffling gait -- variously known as the recon shuffle, paratrooper shuffle, etc. It's more of a fast walking double-time with little elevation of the foot, minimizing heel strike. It's difficult to "run" per se, in boots, so it forces adopting a style with less impact for recovering from shin splints and injuries usually caused by impacts.

But I can't recall ever getting shin splits from cycling. It's primarily an impact stress injury. It might be possible to aggravate shin splits by pedaling on the toes, or ahead of the ball of the foot, especially with poorly placed cleats in clipless or cleated toe clip shoes. I prefer my cleats well back behind the ball of the foot, closer to the arch.