Can't run because of shin splints

Have you tried slowing down? Most running issues are solved by slowing down and changing form if necessary. Many people try to run too far or too fast right off the bat. Practically guarantees an injury right there. Additionally, you didn't mention the method with which you tried to change your foot strike, nor did you mention how long your rests were or how long you tried ice massages. Shin splints are one of those injuries that you simply cannot run through. You have to rest until the pain is gone. And if you're changing your form, you have to start slow. Switching right away and trying to run 3 miles will not go well. Run 60 seconds, walk 90 seconds. Repeat 8 times. Then slowly up the amount of time you're running. A good program for this is Couch to 5K.

However, since you are getting pain very quickly, you may have something else going on. GO TO A DOCTOR. Preferably, a doctor who is well-versed in sports medicine. The internet and random internet strangers can only help you so much. Because stress fractures are a very real possibility for shin splints that just won't go away, you really should get it looked at.

I don't think I really had shin splints but I found that if I ran fast and took big strides then my shins really hurt after about 1km. This is also true if I take big strides when I walk.

I slowed down (8kph from 10kph) and upped my cadence so I was taking shorter strides which seemed to do the trick.

I'm now back up to about 10kph without problem but my stride is shorter and my cadence is still at about 180.

Good luck.

Have you tried minimalist running shoes...doesn't have to be the Vibram Five Fingers, many manufacturer's make them now. Strangely I used to get shin splints when I was on high school track, but just don't really get them anymore.

That said, one of my friends who runs a lot and got shin splints a lot switched to minimalist running shoes and hasn't been getting them.

A stretching technique that has worked for me is to point my toe toward the floor and basically "write the alphabet" a few times with each leg. That and straight ice. In school the trainer made ice in Dixie cups. He'd have us sit on a towel and just rub the cup of ice up and down our shins, tearing the cup down as the ice melted. We would do it until it was gone.

Try elliptical trainer instead of running or treadmill...much easier on my shin splints

I don't need to be told 'go to a doctor'. If that's your advice move on. Looking for useful experience and insight if you have it.

It's not invalid advice. Honestly shin splints usually don't come on instantly.

Have you tried minimalist running shoes...

Good point - I also switched to a pair of Nike Free running shoes from a more supportive pair - I didn't get on with the more supportive pair.

So this worked for me:
- run in less supportive shoes
- run slower (8kph)
- run with quicker cadence (180bpm - try podrunner for some music at that speed)
- set the treadmill to a slight incline (1 - 1.5%)

I get pretty bad shin splints when I run for long. I have, like you, tried a lot of different things. Different shoes, different techniques, different surfaces. Back when I needed to run (I was in the military, so I didn't have a choice), I went to a lot of different doctors about it. The usual "prescription" was to take a lot of ibuprofen.

The conclusion I eventually came to is that I am not cut out for running. I do great on the elliptical, swimming, or other lower-impact sports. But running is more painful for me than it seems to be for most people, and I never found anything that would change that fact. I'm sorry this isn't particularly helpful advice, but I thought I'd let you know that you're not alone in having these issues.

Alright, so you have unsuccessfully tried everything that everything everyone has offered to you. You win. Sounds like it's time to see a doctor.

Do you run on pavement or treadmill? Asphalt or concrete? Changing the surface you run on might help.

When I had shin splints, my dad had me do toe raises on the edge of a stair. You put your toes on the edge and then lower your heels as far down as possible and then raise them up as high as possible. He would have me do them 3-4 times a day as many as I could do. I was skeptical because it seems like you are working the wrong part of the leg but within a week they were a ton better and within a few weeks they were gone. I still continue to do them when ever I think about it and they have never come back.

I had terrible shin pain when I started C25k. It would get so bad that I overcompensated by trying to run different ways (on toes, ball of foot, no heel), and my feet fell asleep, while jogging. It was crazy (and I was always in danger of falling).

To get rid of the pain, I slowed down, took much smaller strides (sometimes during the first days of a new week, it seems like I'm faster when I'm doing the brisk walk instead of the jog, but over time my speed increases) and I will repeat days (so if I end a day with awful pain, I will repeat that day until I have no pain). To get rid of the foot sleeping, I changed the lacing on one of my shoes (the foot that fell asleep more would start at my toes, so I didn't cross at the top, only at the bottom).

I really feel like running barefoot of with those minimal shoes would be the best for me, but my changes have helped with the pain for now (and again, I repeat days until I can finish a day without pain). For example, I'm in the middle of week 4 now but I've been doing it since September 16.

I also make sure I'm not "leaning forward" too much. I do this by lowering my hands to my waist level, and relaxing my shoulders.

So yeah - what worked for me was slowing down, taking shorter strides, repeating days, trying to stay more upright, and re-lacing my shoes. As a point of reference, I'm morbidly obese, on week 4 of C25k, and walking/jogging about 2 miles in the program (which goes from 28-32 minutes, depending on the week) without pain.

Why are you so set on running?

Ride a bike.

When I had shin splints, my dad had me do toe raises on the edge of a stair. You put your toes on the edge and then lower your heels as far down as possible and then raise them up as high as possible. He would have me do them 3-4 times a day as many as I could do. I was skeptical because it seems like you are working the wrong part of the leg but within a week they were a ton better and within a few weeks they were gone. I still continue to do them when ever I think about it and they have never come back.

That was good advice. Sometimes the shin pain is due to weak calves. Weak calves cause more work for the shins.

It could also be caused by excessive heel striking or just too much too soon. You can increase cadence which should help heel striking, maybe take a Good Form Running class.

Please don't offer him any common sense answers. He only wants to hear answers he's expecting.

I thought I was done in here, but I so baffled by what the answers he is expecting are. I don't really think there are any other logical answers. Oh wait, I think I've got it...

Shin removal surgery!!!!