Advice on shin splints?

[sophiamaria]

Hi everyone!

I'm just looking for a bit of advice. I've begun the C25K plan many times yet have always had to quit after week 1 due to awful shin splints which take ages to heal.

Any advice on how to stop this happening? I'd love to be able to do the programme properly

Thanks for your help!

Sophie

[agedsnailspace Graduate]

Shorten your stride length and take things slow (really, really slow if you are not used to exercise - which was certainly the case for me!). Over striding makes things much harder all round and puts a lot of stress on the shins, so try to take small steps and if things stat to hurt, listen to your body and slow down to a walk. Good luck - let us know how you get on.

[sophiamaria in reply to agedsnailspace]

Thanks for your advice, I'll bear this in mind when I'm on my next run and let you know how it goes. I might go out tonight since my shin splints have finally healed from 3 weeks ago!

[danzargo Graduate]

Hi Sophie,

Don't despair. I used to suffer from these awful pains regularly and it took ages for them to go. But there are things you can do to minimise them and also repair them. First off check out this link and follow some of the exercises ;

healthunlocked.com/couchto5...

I've done loads of research on this and bought some compression shin guards. These ones here ;

amazon.co.uk/Compresspo...

These when worn are incredibly tight and grip your shins like billy-o!! I found they gave me confidence and support when running, so these might help you.

Main thing to do after a run is put an ice pack on your shin for 15 mins. Do this 4 times per day if you can. Give yourself two days off resting instead of one day as this can help the healing. All I can say is that now I don't get any shin pain - all I get occasionally is a dull ache which eventually goes after 24 hours. But try the exercises, try the shin compression guards and give yourself enough rest time (if they're really bad).

Finally, a physio can be of some help too, cos they know how hard to press and where to press when massaging. This can be pricey though.

take care and good luck!

[sophiamaria in reply to danzargo]

Thanks for all your advice- really helpful. Unfortunately neither of your links seem to have worked? I'll try everything though, really appreciate your help.

Sophie

[danzargo Graduate in reply to sophiamaria]

How annoying? Here's the compression guards link again...hope this works

amazon.co.uk/Compressport-C...

And the other one about shin splint exercises ;

healthunlocked.com/couchto5........

[helcl Graduate in reply to danzargo]

Ooh! Look at all the pretty colours they do!

[sophiamaria in reply to danzargo]

Thank you- definitely considering investing in a pair of these! And what a great post about exercises- going to try some of these. Thanks for all your help!

[danzargo Graduate in reply to sophiamaria]

Tis but a pleasure

[danzargo Graduate]

Forgot to say - do you have a foam roller? They are GREAT. Might be worth investing in one. They're fairly cheap on Amazon.

[sophiamaria in reply to danzargo]

I'll look into them! What are they used for?

[sophiamaria]

Hi all

Went for my first run, shortened my stride length and iced my shins afterwards and that seems to have done the trick. I don't feel like I burned that many calories though, having shortened my stride length, I normally like to feel like I'm really pushing myself but I guess this is why I end up with shin splints instead of building exertion gradually!

Hope you are all doing well and thanks for all the advice.

Sophie xx