Tibialis pain?

Discussion in 'Injuries and Prevention' started by Teflon, Apr 8, 2012.

  1. Teflon

    Teflon Valued Member

    I recently did an hour sparring session at the gym (Muay Thai), which went fine. Anyway, around 5-10 mins after finishing I began to feel an intense pain in the muscle next to my shin on the right leg. It hindered my ability to walk or put weight on the leg, but was not as bad by the next morning. I nursed it through the day, resting it as much as possible and stretching it gently. The day after this, there was no pain at all and I attended my usual morning lesson. As soon as I threw my first roundhouse on the pads, the pain returned instantly and intensely.

    I've spoken to my trainer about it and he believes its a common injury caused by repeated impact, and has advised to avoid using that leg and just give it time to heal.

    Can any of you perhaps shed some further light on how this may be caused? Or any tips to help it heal quicker? Its aggravating as I cant use the leg to check kicks either, so I'm eating all roundhouses on that side
     
  2. Osu,


    Sounds like an early case of shin splints.
    Rest for a few days (maybe a week) for it to cool down a bit, and eliminate the intense DOMS that might be part of it.

    Then toe raises sets of 100 both legs, twice a day to activate blood flow.
    Toe stretch: in seiza, half the feet on a cushion to elevate them a bit, lean back and stretch the toes and foot in pronation. Sets of 15 before and after your toe raises.
    You can foam roll too; it might help relax the tibialis anterior.

    Hope to see you soon back at it. :)


    Osu!
     
    Last edited: Apr 8, 2012
  3. slipthejab

    slipthejab Hark, a vagrant! Supporter

    Sounds like a bit of heavy bruising. Was there any discoloration at the point where it hurts? How long have you been training Muay Thai - eg. how conditioned are your shins?

    During sparring usually there is so much adrenalin in your system that you wont feel most things... you will register them... but the pain won't be debilitating like it can be after you've slowed down and adrenalin has subsided.

    The best remedy if it's bruising and general trauma from impact is to RICE it... Rest.. Ice... Compress... Elevate...
     
  4. Teflon

    Teflon Valued Member

    Thank you both for the replies :)

    I've been training for around 6 months now, but I do put in quite a lot of time per week (4-6 MT sessions + cardio + the odd circuit). My diet is not perfect but is pretty good in my opinion also. My shins are not conditioned to the level of a fighter, but again I put in a fair bit of time for it.

    There wasnt any discoloration at all, the shin looked normal but to the touch it was very tight and hard. With the impact of kicking the pad it was near unbearable, but the pain does fade gradually over the next 24-48 hours until its not there at all. I made the mistake of assuming I was over the worst earlier in the week - an elbow hitting my shin during block + counter practice stopped me cold despite that we were working at half speed.

    Again it feels perfectly fine now, but I do not want to risk it and get another nasty surprise like that. My trainer has recommended training with only the left leg and to wear a pad at all times on my right, only tapping if I must use it for anything. This still leaves me unable to use it during sparring though.

    It is the muscle next to the shin bone that the pain centres from, even tapping lightly with a shinpad I can feel that the area is very tender. I did read something on possibly turning over the leg too much when kicking, and striking with the muscle instead of the bone. I'm not sure if I'm feeling it during pad work now because of that, or just because the area is so sensitive to impact.
     
  5. Osu,


    SlipTheJab is correct, it could be bruising or impact trauma if not bruised sensus stricto.
    Thai ointment (the special spicy one) and either ice or hot, whichever works for you (I like warmth better) & rest for a bit.

    Then you'll see where you are at.


    Osu!
     

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