Holy c**p my shins hurt! Whats the deal?

Question

I've been running for a few months now and have been following the coolrunning.com "couch to 5k" schedule. I finally hit the 5k mark a week and a half ago but my shins have been killing me since I've reached and surpassed 2 miles. It seriously feels like my shins are going to snap in half the day after I run, especially when I go down stairs. I have to do the old lady shuffle until the advil kicks in.

I purchased good shoes from a running store with the advice of a knowledgeable employee (Asics cumulus 9) and also use superfeet berry insoles for a little more arch support. I run on a treadmill at 6mph with no incline. I warm up for at least 5 minutes with a 3.8mph walk and stretch my shins, calves, hamstrings, and groin before and after running. I also cool down with a 2.5mph 5 min walk after running.

Is this something I should go to my doctor with? I want to keep running but this pain does not feel normal at all. Any tips or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Answer 1

It's just that your shins aren't strong enough.

I've had shin splints from the 3rd week of xc to the end of spring track where I ended my year with 3 stress fractures in my shin.

RICE

Rest-Ice-Compression-Elevate

This happened to me in cross country.  I felt like my shins were going to snap and they would swell after my races and practices.  There wouldn't be really any point in going to a doctor at this point.  If the pain is in your shins general, follow the RICE and look at the website below.  If the pain is focused into one point, go see a doctor.  I knew I had a stress fracture when I lightly tapped my shin, it hurt insanely but I kept training to a point it was difficult to stand.  If it gets to that point, go see a doctor immediately.

http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,71...

^For shin pain.

Answer 2

Ice your shins for 10-15minutes 3X/day, take advil if needed.  This will help keep the inflamation/soreness down.    Check and see if your strides too big, shorten your stride will ease the pressure off of your shins. (this is normal for beginner runners, your body is using muscles that hasn't been used before, after time, conditioning it will ease)

Careful running under the influence of advil (should take after run, not during) it takes away the pain when you run but your shins are still suffering.

Other than that, your doing everything right.

Here is a great website for beginner runners:

http://find.runnersworld.com/vignette/rw...

Answer 3

So there are several scenerios that can cause shin splints or pain the in shin area. The two most common are that it is a stress fracture and the other is that there is inflammation of the connective tissue. You may be in the early stages of one of these 2 items. You may want to take some time off and ice a bit and do some stretches. If you have an old pair of shoes that you are running in, it may be time to retire them and get a new pair.

Now let's take a step back for a moment and look at the cause. Think about your legs and how much work they are being put through. You are putting your entire body weight on one leg for multiple miles. Not only that, but because you are moving, you are now increasing that body weight. World class sprinters put between 2-5x their body weight worth of power into the ground per stride. Because many of us have not been properly taught how to run, non trained athletes actually increase that level to 4-6 their body weight. For a distance runner the individual step will not generate those types of forces but even at 1-2x the body weight per step for multiple miles, you are in trouble if you form is not perfect.

Many runners tend to plantarflex our ankles when we run (i.e. point them). This means that the upper ball and toes of the foot lands first and their is a few inches of space between the ground and our heel. In order for the foot to do this, it lands out in front of us thereby acting as a brake and then we "pull" our body forward. The other incorrect form that is exhibited is a dominant heel strike. You are less likely to "pull" the body forward, but you are now increasing the braking forces into the ground. Instead of allowing your muscles to absorb the impact of your stride, you are now allowing the ankle, shins, knees, etc to take all the forces. You should be working your glutes, hamstrings and to a lesser extent, calves when you run. Most people tend to use their quads. The quads should act more as a shock absorber and helping the leg get back into position for the next stride. Anything else and you are risking injury.

Some running advice is to land on the balls of the feet with the heel slightly grazing the ground or a credit card worth of space between. You head/shoulders should be even to the ground (no bouncing movement) and the foot should strike just in front of the body. If you start moving towards longer distances such as marathon, you may need to have a little more heel strike as to limit the amount of stress on the calves. This is an advanced form of running so you should try to ask an expert who can properly see your form and make adjustments.

I used to get shin splints every year that I ran track. I work on form using a proper active dynamic warmup where I am warming up my body to prepare for the movements which is much more effective than the jog a bit and static stretch. My form now puts less stress on the braking forces and more in the shock absorbing qualities of the my glutes and legs where it should be.

Good Luck!

Answer 4

You could have shin splints.  That's what my mom has it occurs when you walk too much it goes away in about a month or so.  If the pain persists go to a doctor.  She also had these from marching in the military.  They are extremely painful and annoying.

Answer 5

You have shin splints.

Answer 6

move ur ankle joint in both directions - not just pointing upwards.

Answer 7

I'm not sure if you mean they hurt especially when you walk down the stairs in your house, or if you mean that your running route has some stairs and it hurts when you run down those.

I ran track and cross country in high school.  The track was at the junior high, about a mile from the high school.  To get there, we had to cross a footbridge over the freeway, and the coach always made us run up the stairs and over the footbridge, but then walk down the stairs on the other side.  Running down stairs is probably the best way to get shin splints - don't do it!

Answer 8

Ah, the dreaded shin splints.  They hurt like h**l and don't go away easily.  You should take some time off.  I used to get them all the time.  Ice the area and it will make it feel a little better.