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It's been a couple of years since I last had bad shin splits but I can still recall how painful they can be. I was able to heal them before mostly with a couple weeks rest.

If the pain came back when backpacking, a day or so away from transportation, what methods can be used to at least control the pain enough to get back to civilization without having to leave all my gear on the trail?

I prefer answers that do not include an additional person to carry weight since I often backpack alone. I also don't need answers on how to treat it once I am home.

Is there anything better than a couple of ice packs and aspirin? Obviously I would prefer the lightest solution to reduce pack weight and the chance of the shin splints in the first place.

Justin C
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    Please don't use aspirin as pain-killer, especially not when in the backcountry alone. It inhibits blood coagulation which can prove fatal in an accident. Also see https://outdoors.stackexchange.com/questions/6291/taking-aspirin-in-higher-altitudes – imsodin Sep 09 '17 at 10:46
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    As a therapist, what we would look for in first place are your shoes and how you walk, including your stride, often too long of a stride is the problem. It could be also due to compensation so a whole assessment should be performed. You need to understand that there isnt a one solution fits all. I know you ask for remedies but you also talk about reducing them in first place and the lightest solution of all is to not get them. Out there you treat them as inflammation, thats why you get to ice and aspirin, but that doesnt help if you have to go on with it for a long time – Erik vanDoren Sep 09 '17 at 13:57
  • @ErikvanDoren - write this up as an answer! Especially the part about stride and if you can suggest any other possible solutions that people can DIY, that would be great. – Ryley Sep 11 '17 at 00:34
  • @ErikvanDoren - I second the comment from Ryley . I would love to hear more details if you have them. Like is there a rule of thumb for stride length and height? I'm pretty tall and hike slowly so I doubt I take too long of a stride but I would love to find out. – Justin C Sep 11 '17 at 13:22
  • @Ryley, as an answer it would have to be complete, and to be complete it would be way too long. Shin splints are a matter of stress on the lower leg, Its a bit of an umbrella term that covers different kind of problems with different causes each with its own remedy. There isnt much to DIY: in an emergency one goes through the usual suggestions as long as its understood to not make an habit out of them, but beyond that one should see a sports medicine professional of their choice... – Erik vanDoren Sep 15 '17 at 03:05
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    @JustinC, there is a correlation obviously but not a rule of thumb, while its very easy to spot on the sunday jogger that takes extremely long steps because of bad technique, when you are taking someone walking, its way less obvious as the whole muscle usage is different switching much more effort on the calves, sometimes can be a matter of small changes and terrain and weight do have their importance. Then some really slam their heels, some do it only with an heavy pack. You need to assess people in person, see how they walk to pick on the problem, if thats where the problem is. – Erik vanDoren Sep 15 '17 at 03:09
  • Well, the question is "how to treat shin splints WHILE backpacking"... I doubt that going to see a physical therapist is possible in this situation :) If the existing answer is wrong, I'd still be happy to see an improved one appear! – Ryley Sep 15 '17 at 16:01

2 Answers2

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I have suffered pretty badly from these on a couple long hikes. Here's my best suggestions from my experience:

  • If at all possible stop hiking for a week (I know the scenario you set up precludes this ).

Assuming for the rest of these you have to keep going:

  1. Whenever you stop, lie down with your feet up. If a cold stream is nearby, sticking your legs in it would be preferable.
  2. Take NSAIDs (Ibuprofen would be the my preference). My personal, probably body-destroying dosage is to take a lot. I'm ~200lbs, so if it gets bad I'm taking 4x200mg tabs at a time, every 4 hours. I've gotten by on 2x200mg but it was painful.
  3. Wear compression on your shins. The best thing I've gotten was a neoprene calf sleeve, but I've also done it successfully with just a normal ACE bandage. Anything that provides compression on your shin really, I once doubled up a stretchy ankle brace and used that.
  4. If you are far enough out that you have to camp with shinsplints, sleep with your feet and knees raised (put a log under your tent, or use your backpack under your knees).

With just the Ibuprofen and compression, I was able to hike 10-12 hours a day, 30+km for 5 days, and only truly suffered for the first 2 days, it started healing almost immediately once compression was added. Just taking the Ibuprofen, I have not successfully shaken the shin splints off.

Ryley
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  • I asked a similar question to this by the way - more about prevention than controlling symptoms - http://outdoors.stackexchange.com/questions/596/why-do-shin-splints-happen – Ryley Feb 23 '12 at 21:22
  • Thanks, great ideas. I had seen your earlier post and found it very helpful. It left me wondering about the question I asked and that is why I tried to differentiate my specific question from yours. – Justin C Feb 23 '12 at 22:54
  • Yep Justin, I agree that this is a good question and definitely different than the one I had! – Ryley Feb 23 '12 at 23:14
  • FYI, 1,200 mg is considered the maximum daily dose for over the counter use of Ibuprofen. – furtive Feb 24 '12 at 00:17
  • @furtive, I suppose I should have made it clearer above that I'm aware it's not healthy :) – Ryley Feb 24 '12 at 00:49
  • Doctors can prescribe up to 3,200mg a day, so 4x200mg means you've hit your daily dose in 16 hrs. – furtive Feb 24 '12 at 04:27
  • he did use the words, "my personal, probably body-destroying dosage". I'm 6'4" and around ~200 pounds as well. If I was in pain and needed to get out of the woods safely, I would not hesitate to use that dosage, I would just be sure to stop as soon as it was possible. – Justin C Feb 24 '12 at 14:35
  • this. sounds. bad. but very interesting – Wills May 26 '14 at 21:06
  • Definitely agree that cold and elevation help. I once had shin splints deteriorate a lot on day 1 of a 2-day run/camp, but the night was so cold (and I only had a 3/4 length mat to save weight) that by morning I was beginning to wonder whether frostbite in my feet was a danger. That cold night did fix my shin splints for day 2 though. – aucuparia Jul 02 '15 at 20:07
  • Re: NSAIDS - don't do this for too long at high dosages, you could wear down your stomach lining. Source: personal experience, can no longer take NSAIDs. – Naftuli Kay Nov 25 '15 at 01:09
  • Shin splints is a stress syndrome and its main sign is inflammation, and the first step is to treat is as such. Theres no cure for it, you just find the root cause and fix that. Not everyone should or even can take NSAIDS, depending on other health problems or other medications taken some people can take only very low dosages or none at all. I know you said its your choice to take them as you do but advice can be given even without throwing out there dosages that might be excessive or harmful for some. – Erik vanDoren Sep 09 '17 at 13:45
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Compression sleeves work really well. In addition I would add stretches for your calves and arches. Carry lacrosse ball to roll out under your foot and lower leg muscles, especially if you get shin splints often.

Narine
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