Hardening shinbones

[Megalodon]

Is this really possible? I've read & heard things about slowly rolling bottles with boiling water over the shinbones, or to kick against bags, but is HARDENING really possible, or are you just killing some nerves?

If it is, what are the best methods?

To me it seems that the bones is as it is and that you can't change the thickness or hardness of it, but ofcourse, since I'm not a thai-boxer; what do I know...

[little bullie]

i think that you do deaden the nerves a bit. i train w/ several thai guys and they all say the same thing. you toughen your shins by kicking. just get in there and do it. it may seem oversimplified but w/ over 700 fights between them i am inclined to defer. good luck w/ it.

[retired]

http://www.defend.net/deluxeforums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7356&highlight=hard+shin

http://www.defend.net/deluxeforums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6473&highlight=hard+shin

[Disciple]

From a scientific stand point, it is not possible to "harden the shin bones" Maximum bone density occurs at age 30, assuming you do not have an underlying pathologic medical condition. What kick boxers are actually doing to "harden their shins" is deadening the peripheral nerves in the skin and creating callouses through repeated trauma.

[Khun Kao]

Actually, my understanding is that from a scientific standpoint, it *is* possible to harden your shinbones.

I've been told, and have read, that the stress created by constantly kicking the heavy bag, Thai pads, and your training partners signals the body that the shinbone is under stress. This causes the body to grow the bone more densely to compensate for it to protect against breakage.

Someone once posted a long article with references on this on another discussion board that I post on. I believe that I have it archived somewhere, and will try to remember to look through my files for it.

But, as others have mentioned, another BIG part of the equation is that the constant kicking causes you to get used to it. I don't believe that it is so much "deadening your nerves" as much as it is that you are raising your pain threshold.

Khun Kao

[Lizard]

It is possible to increase bone density. People who go into space don't get any excercise and they lose a lot of bone density. Just walking, running, jumping increases bone density to some extent.

[Khun Kao]

I also remember a special on either Discovery or TLC re: sports, and they were featuring gymnastics. They explained that due to the nature of their sport, gynasts have some of the densest bone structures of all athletes.

Khun Kao

[Lizard]

Yes, gymnastics involves lots of jumping, things that cause stress on bones. If you lived on a high-gravity planet you would be shorter, stronger and you would have a higher bone density. Someone born on the moon however would be tall, weak and have a low bone density. Fighting on the moon would be interesting, you would probably use more leaps and grappling. Flying grappling styles?

[platinum_angel]

so basketball is good for bone density

[Lizard]

Yes but only on bones that are put under pressure. Example, if you do basketball then your shin bones should become denser from the jumping. It's the same as muscles or brains, the more you use bones the better they become. If I force myself to think and excersise hard it will make me a better person.

[Disciple]

Weight bearing exercise (i.e. weight lifting) increases bone density, it is often perscribed as adjunctive therapy for women with osteoporosis. Repeated trauma such as thai kicking the bag does not.

Destroying the cutaneous nerves by thai boxers is a real phoenomenon. For example, people with burn injuries often lose pain/temperature sensation in the scar tissue overgrowing the burned area. Old school martial arts training methods such as repeatedly thrusting your hands in hot coals/ash was an attempt to do this.

[ULIKEIT]

yes it is true that you can make ur bones harder the thai boxer does it by kickin trees of bambo and or other ppl's shins shaolin which i train does it with banging sticks and like the thai boxer with other ppl. The bones in the forarm are also traind the same way. the reason for the iron body training is for destruction of hte limbs for the other person to hurt badly or really to brake there forarm or shin when i block with mine.




PS: srry to jump in the fourm like this nice to meet you all

[Disciple]

Thai boxers kicking trees, as I said before, are destroying the cutaneous nerves in there shins. Take a stick and hit your shins until they bruise. Do this daily at the same spot on your leg and see what happens after a few days/weeks. You will lose sensation in the spot eventually.

I developed this same problem after years of playing baseball in my younger days in which I would occasionally foul balls off my instep at the same location. To this day that spot is numb to pain/temperature.

[Lizard]

The attempt of humans to turn thier bodies into weapons. All very well if you are in a shoalin temple and have to beat up bandits but in modern society being a weapon is not a good thing. Black Mask is a Jet Li film in which he plays someone who cannot feel pain, this gives him super fighting abilities. There are people who cannot feel pain, they end up being disfigured and losing fingers and toes.

[retired]

Thaiboxers dont "kick tree's", who ever told you is talking out of their arse, the only tree's which they kicked where bananna tree's which were soft anyway.
This is were the thai-pad evolved from as the bark was soft & when beaten enough it was removed from the tree and tied to their arms for protection while training.