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I ordered some online from Rocktape and bought a second roll in a shop to see if there was any difference between the two. When training for my 10k last summer I started getting shin splints to the point I could barely walk some days. Not knowing what the pain was, I tried to run through it and think I made it ten times worse. Since then I’ve spent months avoiding running until recently, I’m now trying to train for my two 10k events this summer. Knowing I was going to end up facing the same pain again, due to the way that I run; I’ve looked into everything that can help shin splints. This is when I came across Kinesiology Tape (or KT Tape). I’ve now completed three runs using the KT tape on my shins and I can happily say that so far, so good. I’ve experienced absolutely no pain in my shins, I’ve made sure to stretch after each run, trying to stretch my shins out more than I usually do too, and it’s making training much more bearable. As I’m no professional in physio or taping, I went online and found some videos to show me how to tape for shin splints. I used this video here and I will be sticking with this method in order to hopefully keep the pain away. There’s loads of great videos on this website demonstrating ways to tape for different injuries.

Kinesiology tape is being used more and more by professional athletes and I saw probably 2/3 runners with it on at the London Marathon a few weeks ago so it must have its benefits. One of the downsides that I have found with the tape though, it says that it should stay on for about 3-5 days, I find that where my trainers rub around my ankle when running, it starts to push the tape up causing it to come off by the time I shower. However, I’m going to invest in some longer running tights to try and overcome this, and hopefully save myself a bit of money on tape! The tape works by lifting the skin away from the muscle that is causing pain when stretched over your skin, which increases blood flow to the painful area. This will then ideally help the muscle to recover quicker. Although, I have used this tape on my groin where I have muscle pain too and it doesn’t seem to be doing much at the moment for it. Instead, I am going to book a sports massage to try and help with that problem. My advice around this would be to see if any injuries you may experience, if KT Tape can really help with it. I’ve seen a lot of people use this for shin splints before, as well as knee problems, shoulders and back. 

I ordered some online from Rocktape and bought a second roll in a shop to see if there was any difference between the two. I haven’t noticed much of a difference between the two tapes, one I bought from Rocktape (£13.50 plus P+P) and the other at an Intersport Sporting Pro shop (£7.99). Although, I must admit I have used the Rocktape roll more, purely for the cow print design (I LOVE!). Rocktape offer a range of different colours and designs but they are slightly more expensive. My next step to battle shin splints is to invest in some trainer moulded insoles. These balance your feet out by providing support under the foot arch. I over pronate my feet, meaning I run on the inside of my foot; so by putting support under my arch, it should balance out pushing my feet upwards. However, I know it will be hard to find a decent pair of insoles that are actually going to make the difference I need – this obviously means spending a rather big amount of money. My answer to injury is to not let it stop me, I will find what works for me and do my best to stick with it. I want this to be my best 10k yet!

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