Sore Shins

H

Herzog

0
Hey everyone.

I have been having an issue while running on the treadmill. I get to the point in my workout where I really get a good sweat going......20 minutes or so. But then......the muscles on the outside of my shins begin tightening up and feel so heavy that I can't hardly run anymore. The pain is awful. I get so frustrated b/c I want to keep running and working on my cardio.....but I simply can't as a result of the pain and soreness on the outer part of my shin area. Could this be something as simple as the shoes I wear to run? Or should I avoid a treadmill altogether?

Thanks!
 
It's conditioning, mainly. I used to get the exact same thing when I first started running and it didn't go away for about 3 months -- mainly because I had never really run much before and I was overweight.

You definitely want good running shoes, and you should invest in these whether or not your shins hurt. Without good running shoes you run the risk of shin, knee, even back injuries.

Another possibility, and what it was in my case, was that my bones weren't strong enough yet to support the impact that came with running (esp. with my weight at the time).

Your bones grow in strength after you bend them. So through a high impact leg workout like running, you're bound to bend your shin bones somewhat. During your periods of rest, given that you have enough Calcium and Vitamin D in your system, osteoblasts (bone cells) will rise to the surface of your bones and become part of your bone matrix -- thus increasing the diameter of your bones overall.

So my tip is when you start to feel that, take the speed down quite a bit and jog or walk. Work through it, if you can. Sometimes people just need to break past their cardiovascular threshold to overcome "starting pain" like that. If it gets to a point where walking is out of the question, switch to something else -- but don't give up on jogging/running altogether. It's a great workout.
 
Great advice. Thanks. Hopefully the wife will let me spring for a new pair of Nike shox or something! :)

I am able to slow down and walk or jog very lightly when the pain gets to be too much. However, if I have a target of burning 300 cals in 45 mins, this presents a problem. My "fat burner" program on the treadmill has me going from a 6.5 mph run to a 4 mph walk ever 3-9 minutes. Just gets frustrating when I can't get past the 20 or 30 minute mark. Cardio-speaking, I want to keep running and running......but can't simply b/c I can't move my darn legs!
 
imo - nike shox aren't the best running shoes.. they look great, but asics and adidas, i thnk, are better..
 
Okay. All of the advice so far is great.

STRETCH your calves before and especially after your runs!!! Check this site to help:


In addition to that, are you working out with weights at all? If not, perhaps some leg workouts are in order.

Aside from your upper legs, when you work the calves, be sure you hit the entire lower leg.

Here is a breakdown:
- Gastrocnemius (major part of the calf): hit this with standing calf raises.
- Soleus (outsides of the calf): do seated calf raises.
- Tibialis Anterior (shin muscle): place a weight plate on your toes and lift your toes (toe raises).
 
In addition to Asics, I love Saucony... They have come a LONG way in the past couple of years.

Go to a walk/run store and get professionally fitted to a shoe! This will help a good amount.

-Rip
 
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