Shin splints

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  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    Ohhh... I need to look these things up! Thanks for the vids, I'm going to practice changing my form :-)
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
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    Edie30 wrote: »
    Ohhh... I need to look these things up! Thanks for the vids, I'm going to practice changing my form :-)

    What I found most helpful was rather than trying to change how I was landing, but increasing my cadence and shortening my pace. That forced a midfoot landing in a way that was more natural for me. When I tried to concentrate on my landing, it was very awkward for me and I didn't make progress.
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    Yea I can see that might happen, I'm going to get on the treadmill tommorrow and see how it all feels. Shortening my stride might help a lot. This running business is more complicated than I ever thought!! :-)
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    I actually thought I had a moment of thinking I had it cracked!!! I'm sure I'm going to laugh at myself a lot on my running journey. Thanks for all your help guys, I really appreciate it. I never thought I would be a runner!!
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    Aha so my run this morning. I followed the advice to shorten my stride and run the whole run with a mid foot/ ball of foot landing. It felt totally natural once I shortened my stride and actually felt better than heel striking, kind of easier. So I am jolly pleased :-)
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    Oh and also the shin pain has gone with a couple of days rest :-) happy days!
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    Congrats on recovery and improvement. Once you get that cadence down to 85-95, which requires that shorter stride until strong enough to go longer, it's like a foundation to future progress.
    Just like learning proper lifting form. May start out light doing it right, but it means you can progress faster once you have it.
    Once you get the cadence and landing right, distance will change as needed, going up a hill, down, getting more fit, ect.
  • RosieWest8
    RosieWest8 Posts: 185 Member
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    Another thing to start doing is strengthening those muscles on your shins by doing toe raises or simply 'writing' the ABCs with your toe. This will help to prevent shin splints in the future.
  • Sam_I_Am77
    Sam_I_Am77 Posts: 2,093 Member
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    Good chance you're running flat footed. If the flexibility tips don't help then do some strength training for your hamstrings, glutes, and calves.
  • myjourney16
    myjourney16 Posts: 17 Member
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    I used to get shin splints horribly!

    First things first, you MUST let them heal. This means not running on them for 'x' amount of time. For me, it took 2-3 weeks of not using them to heal them up. If you try to run through the pain you are at risk of actually getting tiny fractures on your shin bone (which you obviously don't want).

    After they are healed you have to be preventative. Since you have had them once you will be more prone to them. I had to buy compression calf sleeves for both of my legs and new and more supportive runners and soccer cleats.

    After that, they are good to go. If I stop using my compression sleeves I can still actually feel my shins. Take care of them!
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    heybales wrote: »
    Congrats on recovery and improvement. Once you get that cadence down to 85-95, which requires that shorter stride until strong enough to go longer, it's like a foundation to future progress.
    Just like learning proper lifting form. May start out light doing it right, but it means you can progress faster once you have it.
    Once you get the cadence and landing right, distance will change as needed, going up a hill, down, getting more fit, ect.

    Thanks so much I will work on it, you've been super helpful I appreciate it :-)
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    RosieWest8 wrote: »
    Another thing to start doing is strengthening those muscles on your shins by doing toe raises or simply 'writing' the ABCs with your toe. This will help to prevent shin splints in the future.

    Thanks Rosie yes I have found some exercises for that and I'm going to do them :-)
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    Sam_I_Am77 wrote: »
    Good chance you're running flat footed. If the flexibility tips don't help then do some strength training for your hamstrings, glutes, and calves.

    Thanks Sam I'm doing that too... I've done a lot of Bikram yoga in my time so I'm going to get my stretch on :-)
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    myjourney16 wrote: »
    I used to get shin splints horribly!

    First things first, you MUST let them heal. This means not running on them for 'x' amount of time. For me, it took 2-3 weeks of not using them to heal them up. If you try to run through the pain you are at risk of actually getting tiny fractures on your shin bone (which you obviously don't want).

    After they are healed you have to be preventative. Since you have had them once you will be more prone to them. I had to buy compression calf sleeves for both of my legs and new and more supportive runners and soccer cleats.

    After that, they are good to go. If I stop using my compression sleeves I can still actually feel my shins. Take care of them!

    Yep I ordered compression sleeves too in a funky red colour... I'm such a dag :-)))
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    My calves hurt now :-) that's normal right? Change of running form I guess. I need a personal masseur to follow me around daily :-)
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    Very normal, and you'll need longer recovery until not sore to run again. Since absorbing shock in calves and quads now, the calves really feel it.
    Usually when going to mid-food strike, you want to slow down and shorten the run so you don't get hit so bad with the change.

    Because you will have tendons and muscles not used to this form at all, and they can be injured easily at the start.
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    Gosh there's so much to think about! So do you think 3 times a week is okay? I've been doing about 4 times a week and generally run for about 30 mins with a 5 min warm up and cool down. I'm doing an interval thing now too so get a 1 min walk too about every 7 mins. I had got up to 30 mins continuous but now changed to 8 k training so it has a different programme. I'd like to run everyday but from the injury side of things it seems very wise not too! I have the bug! I read somewhere that you can't run every day until you've been running for a year... All kinds of things are starting to make sense! :-)
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    If you do that jog/walk intervals, that provides some relief.
    Go by soreness, which is the bodies way of telling you there is damage to repair.
    Repair happens during rest, that applies to all exercise, improvements come during recovery and rest.
    Use the same sore muscles in exercise, you are killing the repair process, therefore not improving. Basically just wasted a workout then, and just added stress to the body. Unrecovered exercise is the way to injury.

    After getting over this initial time, if you were to do every day in like Recovery HR zone, you might be able to handle that daily, outside the pounding (which could be substantial depending on weight). But that means there are no days for going harder to actually cause improvements.
    Day after day of recovery runs is like lifting 5 lbs dumbbells, obviously at some point its maintenance, no longer a workout asking the body to improve. That's fine too though.

    Now for cardio, building a base of doing recovery type runs for a while is fine to build up the aerobic system to max, your red blood cells, mitochondria for handling oxygen, tendons to take the pounding, ect. But eventually you'll reach max speed doing that level of running. If further improvements desired, you gotta put weight on the bar in essence, gotta get more intense, that now means needing a rest day to repair from that more intense workout.

    While running does seem like a simple exercise, it's also incredible the number of injuries in it compared to say lifting weights or biking.
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    That's great information. Yep there's definatly a difference with weight. At 32 kg heavier it was pretty impossible to run but I'm only 12 kgs off goal weight now and I see that's made a huge difference. I also do other stuff and a fair bit of weights so I don't have to run everyday I just feel the urge! I don't think I'm too bothered about speed but then sometimes I am, like at the moment I'm keen to get to 5k in 30 mins for some reason but I'm trying to let that go a bit! I think I manage 37 mins at the moment for that. Your goals change as you go along eh? I mean initially I just wanted to manage 5 k but now I've said I'm going to do a 10 k run in March so maybe the bug gets you. I'm enjoying the journey though and will reassess as I go along. At the moment I haven't got marathons in mind but who knows. I'm learning something everyday about running. I can see its definatly a thing that more injuries are involved in but I'm happy to work with that as I'm just loving it! Who am I??? I never thought I would ever say that!!!!
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    My calves are feeling a bit better today by the way! I think I will run tommorrow and take it steady and see how I go :-)

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