Shin splints can be extremely painful but are surprisingly easy to heal. Overstressed or weak muscles and connective tissues that run through the front of the legs are the culprits behind the ailment. They can be brought on by over-training, unbalanced training, and bad shoes and are common in new runners. They are primarily caused by a hard landing on your heel when using a heal-to-toe transition, which is the most common style of long distance running.

These exercises are very effective in relieving pain. These four moves can even prevent them from coming back. Do 15 repetitions of these simple exercises in sets of three to get rid of this painful condition fast.


Shin Stretch: Sit on your feet with the top of your foot and legs flat against the floor (best done on a mat). Slowly lean back to increase the stretch supporting your upper body with your arms.


Toe Pull Backs: Sit with legs together, straight out in front of your body. Use a slow controlled motion to pull your toes back towards your torso. If you do this exercise properly, you will feel the front of your shin tighten. This is the gentler of the exercises and is good to do while you’re actually experiencing pain.


Toe Raises: Balance with your heels on the edge of a step, then pull your toes upwards and in towards your shins. Again, you will know you are doing this exercise right when you feel the front of your leg tighten.


Heel Walking: Balance on your heals barefoot and walk around in circles or a figure eight for a set period of time. Start small with only 15-20 seconds then build up to a minute or more.


Do the Stretch, and Toe Pull Back exercises a couple times a day when you are experiencing pain. Once you are healed, do the Toe Raises and Heel Walk 2-3 times a week to help prevent them from reoccurring.

Don’t let the pain sideline your fitness goals! You can do these exercises before you develop pain in order to help prevent it from occurring in the first place. If you are returning to exercise after a long rest, you should be especially proactive about protecting yourself from developing this painful condition.