shin splint update

"Joe" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I think I've come down with stress fracture in my right tibia. Started

out

Quoted message said:

with a shin splint and then developed into a very localized tender spot. I've ruled out it being
anything else, unless its the bone sheath. I ran

on

Quoted message said:

it for about 10 days (~80miles) before I finally stopped. I'm seven weeks out from Boston as of
this next monday.

What are my chances at salvaging the race? I could do elliptical and pool running, but I think I
could lose my mind really fast.

I was in great shape for this race and I have never been so depressed

about

Quoted message said:

something. I mean, I was in really great shape, racing and training-wise. Everything was pointing
at a great race in April and now I've got to throw it all away because I didn't listen to my body
and wife.

On the off chance you do NOT have a fracture, you could confirm this with a medical diagnosis, cross
train hard, do some tuneup runs and race without fear of serious damage.

In article said:

I think I've come down with stress fracture in my right tibia. Started out with a shin splint and
then developed into a very localized tender spot. I've ruled out it being anything else, unless
its the bone sheath. I ran on it for about 10 days (~80miles) before I finally stopped. I'm seven
weeks out from Boston as of this next monday.

See a doc and make sure it's really a stress fracture. I had a heart-stopping experience where I mis-
diagnosed tendonitis ("shin splints"😉 as a stress fracture. I recovered from my "stress fracture"
with a 5 day layoff.

Quoted message said:

What are my chances at salvaging the race? I could do elliptical and pool running, but I think I
could lose my mind really fast.

Sounds to me like a fairly high risk proposition, and you might not run a great time. So if you
consider yourself risk-averse, the answer is "no", and read no further.

Still reading ? If it's your first marathon and you don't have big expectations, it still could be a
good experience, provided you don't re-injure yourself. What you're proposing doesn't sound
impossible to me, though it's way outside the bounds of "conventional wisdom" (and probably any
other type of wisdom)

If the fracture heals in 4 weeks, *and* you're feeling fantastic on the morning of the race, *and*
your gut tells you to go and race, maybe you should do it-- but again, it is a risky proposition.
Are you a betting man ? I've taken risks and raced just after recovering from injury -- the reason
was that the layoff was short, and I figured I'd still run a good time. I ran a very good time, but
I knew that I was taking a risk.

You also have to ask, "what you lose by *not* racing ?" Can you run a marathon in Fall instead ?
(But it won't be Boston ... you'd need another year for that) You've got to decide whether or not
stomaching the wait is worse than taking your chances on this race. No-one can answer this for you,
because it all boils down to your own gut feelings and how willing you are to gamble. Your layoff
will probably be long enough to hurt your performance, so you've got to take this into account.

Cheers,
--
Donovan Rebbechi pegasus.rutgers.edu~elflordOpen ↗

Quoted message said:

See a doc and make sure it's really a stress fracture. I had a

heart-stopping

Quoted message said:

experience where I mis-diagnosed tendonitis ("shin splints"😉 as a stress fracture. I recovered
from my "stress fracture" with a 5 day layoff.

did you have localized pain along the bone? I've been off (other than x-training) for about four
days and feel a little relief, but not a lot.

I decided I am going to bite the bullet and go to the doc. I found out my university has a clinic
that is free to students and they have sports med services there.

thanks, jOe

"Joe" <[email hidden]> wrote in news:9Qq0c.33602$LD5.2433
@twister.rdc-kc.rr.com:

Quoted message said:

I decided I am going to bite the bullet and go to the doc.

I hear they have anesthesia these days. No bullet needed. Good luck and let us know how it goes. ;-)

Phil

--
If all our misfortunes were laid in one common heap whence everyone must
take an equal portion, most people would be contented to take their own and
depart.
-Socrates

Good to hear you've finally gone to see the doctor, you can't stuff around with niggles and injuries
and it's no point trying to guess what the problem
is. Once you know what you've got you can decide what action you need to take. Don't get too down,
it's all just part of the ups and downs of being a runner which I guess is part of what makes
the sport so great!

In article said:

Quoted message said:

See a doc and make sure it's really a stress fracture. I had a

heart-stopping

Quoted message said:

experience where I mis-diagnosed tendonitis ("shin splints"😉 as a stress fracture. I recovered
from my "stress fracture" with a 5 day layoff.

did you have localized pain along the bone? I've been off (other than x-training) for about four
days and feel a little relief, but not a lot.

It was a very sharp pain towards the bottom of my shin and felt completely unlike achilles
tendonitis (which is a blunt pain). It was the location that led me to wrongly believe I had a
stress fracture.

Quoted message said:

I decided I am going to bite the bullet and go to the doc. I found out my university has a clinic
that is free to students and they have sports med services there.

Sounds great. Good luck, and I hope it's something else.

Cheers,
--
Donovan Rebbechi pegasus.rutgers.edu~elflordOpen ↗