Hi, In recent months I have been having pain on the outside of my right shin after playing sessions. It only affects my right leg (I play right handed) and seems to always hurt in the same area, on the outside portion of the shin near where it meets the knee. I usually play on fairly hard surfaces, but the last session I played was on rubber courts. The pain tends to lessen after a few days, but for a day I feel it even when walking, and this seems to recur every time I play. Generally it doesn't affect my walking and cycling, though, unless I try to push hard. Any thoughts on what could be wrong, and what I could do about it?
Sounds a bit like "shin splints", there are exercises for that condition. Best take it up with a sports md/physio and get some peace of mind - badminton places a lot of stess on legs and we want them to last a long time...
I had been having them in both legs since 10 years with no relief whatsoever. It was so severe that it pained a lot even when touched. I tried all types of footwears but it didn't help. Turns out I had altered foot arches which distributed the pressures in wrong areas. The solution to your problem is - Orthotic insoles. These are insoles which has elevations in them on inner or outer sides depending on your problem diagnosed by podiatrist. Just replace your regular yonex insoles with these and your pain will be gone in a single day! For me, it was magical. Hope it helps you too. I try a combination of yonex shoes + vasyli's insoles (prescribed by a podiatrist after examining my foot). Google for "orthotics malaysia" and hopefully you will find your answer. You need a proper orthotic - probably customized insoles. Visit a good podiatrist if you can. The results are magical. You need to experience them to believe them.
From my personal experience, there are few things that you can do to avoid shin splints. First get a good pair of shoes and get a proper support for your feet (you might want to check insoles). Second, even more important thing is to properly stretch during and especially after your badminton session. Also you can pay a visit to the osteopath who can check if any of the sore muscles are causing the pain you are experiencing. You can do the massage yourself by buying a "foam roll", one of the things that helped me the most to get rid of the shin splints problem. Good luck, it is painful and annoying but it is not so difficult to get rid of!
As mentioned, a good pair of orthotic insoles - possibly to increase your foot arch may do the trick. Until you find root cause of it, might be worth strapping the painful area up also.
If you have a choice, play on courts that have sprung floors that absorbs some of the shocks caused by jumps and quick changes of direction during a game of badminton.
Bah, had this **** once and it took like weeks of almost doing nothing for the pain to disappear. Walking stairs was a nightmare
Thanks for the advice. I'll look at the orthotics now that I have got back to the UK. I do have flat (there is an arch, but less than usual) feet, which might explain why I seem to be getting shin splints despite always streching my lower legs before play. Also discovered my shoes' cushioning had 'expired' and took advantage of lower badminton kit prices in Malaysia to pick up another pair. Was strongly recommended this pair of Asics Gel Rocket which apparently offers much more cushioning, shall see how it goes with this week's sessions. As a side note, one of the reasons I took up badminton and stopped playing football was that I frequently got shin splints (in both legs) while playing 5-a-side. No escape from this injury, it seems. :-S A related side question: are there common footwork errors that would contribute to this? I am wondering if I've picked up a bad habit somewhere, as I'm getting the shin splint only on one leg.
