Running on the Treadmill and shin pain

horseryder77

Hello all! I have a question for everyone.

Here's a short little story about me so you can better understand my question:
I'm 25. Two years ago I was in college, riding from 1-4 horses a day, feeding horses, cleaning stalls, etc. and being very active.
Also- I trained for and completed a half marathon in 2011. I started training in May of that year with the c25k plan- after NEVER running before in my life- and completed the half in September.

It was fantastic.

In 2012-
Due to some bad information given at my local running store- I ended up injuring myself.
I was off running, riding OR barely walking for 8 months. Torn tendon in my foot. Crutches and all.

I was officially declared "healthy enough to run" in April of this year.

I put on 30 lbs in one year.... those 8 months were terrible. Got me into bad habits and no exercise. And I put on weight easily even with a healthy diet.
Genetics.
I've gotta have constant exercise.

Anyway- after dealing with the HUGE hassle of finding shoes that'd work and not aggravate that old injury, I FINALLY got a pair that are perfect.

Now I'm starting over- running on the treadmill at my gym because I once again have to start ALL the way over with the c25k.
I can't run outside in 8 degree weather when I'm still doing intervals. Believe me- it doesn't work.

So here's the question!

This is week 3 of me running on the treadmill. EVERY TIME that I run on it, my SHINS hurt. This has NEVER happened to me before.
Is there a way to prevent this? Exercises?
Is it my form possibly? Should I speed it up? I've tried to slow it down and it doesn't work. I don't go super fast- generally around 5.6 or 6.0 running speed on the treadmill. Just want to be able to run again without stopping.

Any advice would be helpful! I'm doing cross training- taking spin classes, etc. I can't run outside- I've gotta do the treadmill until either the weather gets better or until I can run for more than 2 minutes without stopping.

So I want to make this work.

I look forward to hearing from anyone! Thank you all!!

maasha81

I got shin pain from working out ... It was a combo of poor form and I had to change my shoes as well

momwhosbusy

I don't have any hard and fast fixes but a few thoughts...are you stretching properly before AND after you run? Is it possible your form is off b/c of running on the treadmill instead of outside? ( I have caught myself several times not using proper form on the treadmill. For some reason its easier outside for me.) Are you running with any incline? sometimes even just a small incline (1 or 2%) can help. I don't know if any of this will be helpful at all or not, good luck!

LosingItForGood13

Are you doing the warmup session on the tredmill before starting to run on it I had this problem when I first started on the tredmill and I wasn't warming up first before getting in my workout on the tredmill.

kckBxer396

sometimes even just a small incline (1 or 2%) can help.

This. I was having terrible shin pain that would go on for a couple of days. I checked my form, had great shoes, and noticed I wasn't having the same problem running outdoors. I decided to use a slight incline,and it quit happening.

SusanUW83

How old are your shoes and how many miles do they have on them? I advise to get new shoes every 300-400 miles or 6-8 months even if you aren't putting that many miles on them. This generation of shoes and midsoles looks good for a lot longer sometimes but the support just isn't there. Also if there is a running store near you, have them look at your form on the treadmill and recommend the right type of shoes for how your stride is. I had to cut back my pace and my distance when I started running on road instead of the treadmill - my stride is a lot different on the treadmill which is good as I'm trying to recover from a hamstring pull. Good luck. I use my old running shoes for daily activities but keep the new ones for running.

horseryder77

Huh those are all very helpful thoughts!
I never thought about the incline. I'll try that one out today.

Yep I do a 5 minute warm up and my first few intervals of running are just around 5.0 and 5.4 before I get to my normal speed.

And I just bought a new pair of shoes 2 weeks ago. They've got a total of 12 whopping miles on them haha. It took me a while to find decent shoes because I pronate so badly- but because of my injury I needed shoes with less stability and more cushion.
I ended up with the asics nimbus after trying out several different pairs. Even for a neutral shoe they keep me pretty stable and don't aggravate my injury at all.

I am stretching after running. I was always told to never do hard stretches on cold muscles though so I just use my warm up for a "stretch" instead of pulling on the muscles.
Is there anything else that'd help?

I really like the idea of an incline. I'll have to give that a go

wilsoje74

What will happen if you run outside?

Marleen55

There are several types of foam rollers you could try to massage the pain out. Also, I noticed you wrote that you pronate a lot. I don't think you shouldn't be using "neutral" shoes then. Pronation means you should be using shoes with some stability or motion control, depending on how you pronate. Also, do you land on your heel, mid-foot, or forefoot? Many running stores have video cameras near their treadmills to try to analyze your running motion and get you into the right type of shoes. The Nimbus many be way too cushioned for a treadmill. Most treadmills are already very "soft" for running. Good luck!

_Zardoz_

I'm confused why you can't run outside when it's 8 degrees. That not very cold. So it makes no sense. If you normally run outside with no problems and persist in something that is obviously problematic and could aggravate an old injury.