Fall Cross Country/Race & Shin Splints: Start Building Now

Hey everyone, this blog post is for all of the high school cross country athletes or parents and/or guardians of high school cross country athletes.

I just wanted to take a note of the time of year. We’re in the middle of June and that means we’re about eight weeks from the middle of August when cross country training might pick up. And for all of you who suffer from shin splints, one of the best ways to mitigate the risk of shin splints next season is to take eight weeks or more to slowly and gradually build up your running capacity.

So now’s the time to start. Again, gradually working up to some of the volumes that you’ll be doing with cross country. Now’s a great time to also work on your single leg stability, to again further mitigate the risk of shin splints.

So here are a few ideas:

1. One is working on soleus strength. Ideally off a stair, doing some single leg heel raises. Hang on to the railing or something, so it’s not a balance activity.
2. Doing some single leg RDLs. So standing on one leg, reaching out, and coming back up.
3. A three way squat. So standing on one leg, reaching forward, side, back. If you want to get crazy you can add a curtsy in there
4. And then some Bulgarian split squats. So having your back foot up on a chair or bench. Squatting down and coming back up.

Really working single leg stability and starting now to slowly build up running volume. So now’s the time to give yourself a great cross country season and set yourself up for success.