How to Use a Massage Gun to Relieve Shin Splints + Stretches & Exercises
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With Shin Splints, pain can be felt on the front (anterior shin splints) or on the inside/medial ankle (posterior shin splints). Using a massage gun on the painful area, as well as stretches & exercises, can help with pain relief.
Shin Splints is the common term for Medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS).
One great way to loosen up the area is to use a massage gun. Today I am using the Mebak 3. A massage gun can be used for a superficial (surface) massage following along the length of the muscle, which helps increase circulation to the area, and/or you can use a cross friction massage (also called deep friction massage), which can help reduce and prevent scars or adhesions.
Stretches such as a seated anterior tibialis and seated posterior tibialis stretches are great ways to relieve pressure in the area.
Finally, some hip strengthening can also help. Sidelying hip abduction and prone hip extension exercises can help retrain the muscles.
An achy knee is often caused by tightness or weakness in the muscles around the knee. These knee stretches and exercises should help relieve the knee pain.
The ACL helps keep the knee stable, and prevents it from sliding forward. When you have a torn ACL, your knee can become painful and unstable. These stretches and exercises are for a non-operative or pre-operative injury.
For knee pain exercises and stretches to work, you must work all the muscles around the knee. There are several that cross over the joint and help with movement.
Hamstring pain or a hamstring strain can be very painful. The hamstrings help us walk, lift our legs backwards, and bend our knees. When you have a hamstring strain, all these movements can be painful. These hamstring stretches and exercises should help relieve a hamstring strain.
Knee pain can be caused by tight or weak muscles around the knee joint. If you have general knee pain, the muscles you most likely want to stretch and strengthen are the quadriceps, hamstrings, and the calf/gastric.
With a total knee replacement, it’s important to do physical therapy on the knee (prehab) BEFORE the knee replacement because the stronger and more flexible the knee is before surgery, the better the recovery and outcomes will be.
Knee pain can be caused by many things. Often a tight quadricep muscle can cause knee pain. My favorite stretch for this area is a quad stretch. It’s great for the knee, hip, and thigh area.
Knee pain strengthening exercises should focus on strengthening the muscles that attach to and cross the knee joint. Strengthening these muscles will help keep the knee strong to relieve knee pain and reduce knee injury.
Stretches such as a seated anterior tibialis and seated posterior tibialis stretches are great ways to relieve pressure in the area.
