Shin Splint Help

Runningfreely

Hey all-

I have been running now for the past 6 months. I started the c25k program, and have kept my running pretty consistent. The most I run in one sitting is 3 miles. Over the past two months I have been experiencing what I believe to be shin splints. I'm wondering if anyone else gets them and what are some solutions go keeping them away? I used to run outside but lately I have been on a treadmill and the pain is the same either way. I have good running shoes- once I completed the c25k program I went to a local running store and had them fit me for shoes that work for me. I dont usually run everyday, mostly every other day. However, the pain makes running every other day uncomfortable. I'm bummed out because other than my shins, I feel like I can go so much longer and as I am hoping to run longer distances for races over the next year, this is cramping my style!

daphnemoon

ooh I sympathize, I've had shin splints off and on and hate having to trade my high impact classes in favour of things like cycling and swimming.

What has helped me greatly is using a foam roller (it will hurt to begin with, but you can definitely feel the difference after repeated use). If you search in google/youtube there are lots of sample exercises to use with the roller for shin splints. I also roll a golf ball around under my feet every day and that definitely helps - if I can't do the roller exercises I always use the golf ball and it seems to do the trick. I think I found that tip from a video on youtube. You can usually find foam rollers in your gym, or you can buy one for around £30.

Oh, I also have special insoles in my trainers which reduce the impact when jumping etc. They also cost about £30 - getting injured is an expensive business

About three months ago I was having really bad pain in my shins because I increased my exercise frequency too soon and used the wrong footwear. However, a combination of the above things has really helped me and I very rarely feel any pain now. They do take a while to go though, and I did lay off all cardio for about a month to kickstart the recovery programme, and then build up again gradually. I totally understand how annoying that would be, but from what I've read if you don't rest up at the beginning it could lead to a longer-lasting problem which will make you sit out even longer.

Hope this helps a little bit, and that you can run pain-free very soon!!!!