shin splints Archives | Colorado Springs Functional Medicine

March 25, 2015 By Dr. Kurt, DC

Shin Splints and Plantar Fasciitis – It’s All In Your Head

If you’re a runner or competing in the CrossFit Open with nagging shin splints or plantar fasciitis, you probably think I’m nuts saying your pain from injury is all in your head. What I’m getting at is this, ‘is your brain cheating on you?’

One of the key characteristics of shin splints and plantar fasciitis is that you are using the big toe to cheat your movement and cover for some other movement or body part not pulling its weight when you are running, jumping, or lifting. Your shin splints or plantar fasciitis is a symptom of a different problem, most likely one between the ears.

You may be thinking, “But my big toe and brain aren’t anywhere near each other.” Stay with me on this. If you don’t think your big toe and brain are connected, read on.

Shin Splints

If you’ve never had shin splints, then skip to the next section. If you HAVE had shin splints, you know how painful, debilitating, and frustrating it can be to treat and recover. What I want you to do is STOP TREATING YOUR SHIN. Your shin is not the problem. It’s the symptom. If you really want it to stay a nagging injury, keep competing and covering the pain with some caffeine and NSAIDS. [Read more…]

Fence Post or Bicycle Seat: Creating Life Balance 10% at a Time

Many of my clientele are either business owners or high end management/executives in their companies. What does this mean? It means they are drivers and achievers. They push themselves hard to reach a goal. The problem is that they often end up in my office totally tanked. They have fatigue, sleep issues, depression, and chronic […]

Concussion and CTE: Repetitive Trauma or Autoimmune

I love football. I was the quarterback of my alma mater’s back to back, intramural flag football championship team at Roberts Wesleyan College in the late 90s, early 2000s. I was even captain of my 8th grade football team (the very peak of my athletic career) at dear old Glens Falls middle school. Everything was […]

Two Cardiac Markers To Consider

Brainwashing works. It’s also really hard to unlearn. It’s amazing how many conversations I have with potential new clients that are either worried or excited about their cardiac health based on cholesterol levels. The cholesterol-heart disease connection is about as relevant today as paying for AOL. That’s an even harder conversation to have with someone. […]

Testing for Leaky Gut: Yes, It Does Exist

‘Leaky Gut’ has become a household term, at least from the clients walking into my door. A gut’s leakiness is can be linked to mental/emotional issues, behavioral issues, auto-immune issues, and virtually any disruption in the body’s intelligent expression. But the elephant in the room is that it’s hard to quantify. You’re convinced there is […]