Shin Splints? :(

I suffered from shin splint just over a year ago, the staff at the gym recommended buying a decent pair of running trainers. The pain is usually caused by inadequate shoes, excess weight, not warming the muscles up properly or not running properly. I think i suffered because of all of the above.

I usually stretch and massage the muscles in my lower leg to get them fully warmed up before running, and i paid extra attention to the way i was walking/running, and with the help of trainers designed for running its not very often i get pain.

Wow this is spooky....I was jsut discussing the same with ym collaurges in work. I get them whenever I use my old trainers (usually because I cant find my new ones) I also sufferr really bad when I road run as opposed to treadmill running.

Rest is the best way to ensure they heal properly though! xx

Here is a little more insight on my situation before I get to my actual question about shin splints. Ok, now I'm a cyclist that has started running and found that I have a muscle imbalance by my trainer. I know that the muscles used for running are a little different and can take a bit getting used to when you haven't run in such a long time. I am heavy and my weight hasn't changed but my physical appearance has. I have lost a lot of weight around the legs and now what is left is these huge muscles over my shins. It really looks like I have popeye arms on my legs.

Now my concern:

I had to do a 1.5 mile run/walk for my fit test and because of the muscle imbalance I had to stop for a minute to stretch my back after walking each lap. One thing I noticed is that my shins were burning up a storm. First I was suspecting that it may be shin splints but after 3 laps the pain actually died down. Once I was done, the pain did start up again after long periods of staying still. This was 2 days ago, now today my shins just feel like they are sore. This is happening on both legs, not just the one. I did bring up to my trainer that I was worried it may be shin splints but she told me not to worry about it that the training we have been doing would not cause that. And really we haven't done anything different than what I'm used to for the last few years.

Should I be worried about shin splints or could this be due to the muscle imbalance getting accustomed to the new physical activity?

I had knee surgery 3 years ago which explains the muscle imbalance and I've been able to cycle into the 30+ miles category. Believe me when I tell you that the shin muscles are huge and I've had people tell me that they have never seen them developed like that. Hey, I at least have one good thing to be proud of.

By the way, I have been fitted with proper running shoes and I was walking/running on a track. One oddity I do have when I run or walk is that I've been told by my doctor and physical therapists that I no longer use my big toe for balance. So my guess is that I don't use it when I run. Apparently I run and walk along the outside of my foot and touches the groun before my heel does. Funny what some people see when they watch you walk.