Do your shins hurt when you walk, run or jump?
If the answer is yes, then you likely have shin splints. Thankfully, there are a few easy exercises you can do to help alleviate this pain.
1. Muscle Scraping
As intimidating as this technique might look, muscle scraping actually does not hurt. In fact, it’s actually very therapeutic and relaxing.
Sidekick develops high quality Muscle Scrapers trusted by Physiotherapists, Olympic runners and 50,000+ customers.
After applying emollient (lubrication) on your shin, you simply take your tool and glide it along your muscles for 20 seconds in each area that needs recovery. The refined scraping edge creates localized pressure that alleviates pain and accelerates recovery unlike any other technique.
It’s common to see your muscles turn red after scraping with bright red spots. This is a positive sign as it means old, blocked blood vessels are being replaced with new vessels that encourage more blood circulation, and thereby recovery.
2. Stretching
We’re always being told to stretch, and there’s good reason for it. We recommend stretching after scraping to increase the effectiveness of recovery. Our favorite stretch is the kneeling stretch:
Simply kneel down and lean back while feeling the muscles around your shin lengthen.
How is Scraping different from a massage?
You must have already tried massaging your shins if you’ve made it this far, and you probably didn’t notice any improvements. The reason Scraping is great for treating shin splints is because of the localized pressure the tools are able to generate.
The refined scraping edge is sharp enough to create deep pressure in your muscles (hence why you’ll often see bright red spots after scraping), without being too sharp to leave lasting damage.
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3 Easy Steps:
- Apply emollient on skin. This is included free with your purchase and provides lubrication to the surface.
- Using the edge of the Sidekick tool, apply moderate pressure while you glide the tool along your shins
- Experience unparalleled pain relief.