Shin Splints

I ended up going to my doctor who gave me an orthotic for my (right only) shoe. It helped a lot.

I get shin splints if I run after a break from running, sometimes when I wear new shoes the first couple of times and previously when I was heavier I got them all the time.
If you're new to running, aiming for every day is way too much. Go for 3 days a week, doing running and walking intervals if necessary, until your body is used to it and can tolerate adding more days in.

LyssaRonnell wrote: »

I would love to go on runs every day, but when I do I get awful shin splints, which is unbearable. Has anyone else ever had them? What do you do for shin splints? What do you do instead of going for a run? I usually like to run on the elliptical, but my school gym hasn't been unlocked when I go to workout, so I haven't been able to run.

When you say you run on the elliptical, do you mean you use the elliptical in as an alternative to running, of you use an elliptical?

If you get shin splints on the elliptical that's more of an issue than shin splints from running.

Make sure to stretch your calves properly, could be shin pumps

I used to get shin splints a lot in the beginning of soccer season because I would go from not running a lot to running like crazy.
Here's a couple things I do to get rid of them and prevent them
1) Stretch out your calves before you run
2) Increase your mileage slowly (10% per week is a good baseline)
3) If you do get them, ice your shins a couple times a day.
4) Get your shoes properly fit because poorly fit shoes definitely cause shin splints
5) Compression socks can be great too. I don't wear them when I run but afterwards and it seems to help prevent and get rid of them
I hope that helped!

I used to suffer terrible shin splints and out of desperation I tried barefoot running and I've been running almost 4 years pain-free. I realize it may not be for everyone but it works for me. You might want to look up "Chi running" and/or "the Pose method" to help you learn to run softly, with less impact. I believe that good form is the key to preventing most running injuries. Good luck and happy running!

Google "sock doc shin splints." Watch his videos and up on what he says. I was dealing with shin splints and plantar fasciitis and nothing was working. I found his website and out of desperation decided to try it.

After a couple days of massaging trigger points a few times each day, my pain was GONE. I try to continually massage these areas on my legs to avoid it happening again, but if I start to feel any achiness or pain I just commit to a few massage sessions each day and it keeps the pain at bay.

It sort of sounds like wacko witch doctor stuff, especially considering that he suggests NOT doing the popular methods of ice, stretching or orthotics. But it worked for me. And it's free. So it won't hurt to try.

LyssaRonnell wrote: »

I would love to go on runs every day, but when I do I get awful shin splints, which is unbearable. Has anyone else ever had them? What do you do for shin splints? What do you do instead of going for a run? I usually like to run on the elliptical, but my school gym hasn't been unlocked when I go to workout, so I haven't been able to run.

LyssaRonnell wrote: »

I'm sorry guys, I worded that odd. I go to college and am 22 years old. I get shin splints when I go on runs, so I use the elliptical as an alternative because it doesn't give me thin splints. I was wanting to seek out ways to prevent/help my shin splints so I can go on an actual run without being in pain.

I would love to go on runs every day, too. Unfortunately, my body doesn't like me very much when I try it. So I take a rest day every week. And this is after 2 years of building up my capabilities; three years ago running 5 days a week was scary aggressive for me.

So I "only" run 6 days a week while training for a marathon. Between marathon training sessions, I run 5 days a week, or maybe only 4 if my body tells me I need the time off. If I'm unlucky, that can shrink to running zero days because I didn't take enough days off.

Shin splints are one of the ways your body has of telling you to back off. There are things you can do to train so that they won't be as likely; I'm not terribly familiar with those things, because shin splints aren't on the list of various repetitive motion injuries I've had to deal with.

Free advice, worth what you paid for it: Don't run every day. There are people called "streak runners," who run every day; the ones who maintain long streaks don't run far, don't run hard, and are very active with techniques for injury prevention. Those of us who train for marathons take rest days.

If your shins bother you running but don't on the elliptical, use the elliptical. If the shin splints recur every time you try to run, it's time to seek professional medical help. A Physical Therapist can evaluate your running chain's strengths and weaknesses, tell you what issues you have that might contribute to shin splints, and give you exercises to work on your specific issues. This is important, because there are a gazillion exercises out there to work on various weaknesses. You can find any of these exercises on the internet, but you're wasting your time doing the exercises that are designed to help with issues you don't have. Finding out what issues you really have is the first step toward addressing them.

Things that helped me with shin splints. YMMV but running is much more pleasurable for me now.

Get new shoes. Even if you don't think your current pair is worn out, you may be surprised when you put on a new pair. In addition, if you don't know what you need in a running shoe, you'd probably benefit from going to a dedicated running store and letting them walk you through a fitting (literally).

Stretch your calves. A lot. Before and after the run.

Limit your running to 2 times per week at first. Give yourself plenty of rest time and slowly add sessions when your body is ready.

Slow your pace and add speed in a thoughtful way (for example, only one session per week to work on your speed, run the rest of them at a comfortable pace).

Don't overstride - this happens quite a bit when new runners try to run too quickly before learning proper form. Getting rid of bad heel strikes really took a load off of my knees.