Sore shins after week 1

[Pymander10]

I’ve just completed (through the help and advice of this forum!) my first week of runs! My problem is my shins. They are quite sore when I first start running but it calms down after I’ve been running for a while. They are also sore to touch. My question is what is the best way to avoid injury? Is it best if I do the first week again or carry on through to my second week? I’ve done a bit of research online and I’ve found one or two exercises I can do but any advice would be appreciated as I would be devastated to have to stop running. Thank you

[Instructor57 Graduate]

Welcome to the forum and the program !And well done on completing week 1

Sore shins (or shin splints) can be caused or aggravated for many reasons .

Firstly , have you read the program guide ?

healthunlocked.com/couchto5...

It is not unusual to have a few aches as a new runner, the guide will help you avoid a lot of the issues .

Are you doing the pre run Dynamic excercises ? And the after run stretches ?

That could help .

Are you road running or grass ? A softer surface can also help .

How about your shoes ?

Are they high street trainers or proper running shoes fitted after a gait analysis ?

Also keep the runs slow !

You want to run at a pace where you could talk full sentences without gasping for breath !

If you can't then it is too fast

You will find information on all this and more in the guide .

Hope that helps !

[Teejay113 Graduate]

Well the best advice I can give you listen to your body, and take advice from heathunlocked. Wish you all the best. Peace

[Teejay113 Graduate in reply to Teejay113]

Sand and grass mainly.

[IannodaTruffe Mentor]

Reduce impact, strengthen your legs, stretch after every run and hydrate fully.

It is all covered in the guide to the plan.

[Over60sRunner Graduate]

The four things that helped for me most at the beginning with shin splints and the most horrible calf pain were:

1. Drink, drink and more drink. I go through at least 3 lites of water daily now, run or no run, and not only has it helped with the sore muscles it's also the clearest my skin has been in many years and it also seems to have "cured" some minor post-menopausal urinary issues I had....win/win/win!

2. Stretch like you have found a new religion. I hated it at first, as it can be a bit uncomfortable, but I persevered and am now AMAZED at how far I can pull my calves out post-run and my legs just feel so much better overall, even in day-to-day life.

3. Get a decent pair of running shoes, preferably after having your gait analysed. I did the wet foot test, which showed that my feet were almost flat as I push out of stride, so I decided to have my gait properly analysed. I am miles away from a shop that does this, so I got my husband to video me running (well jogging!) on his phone and sent that off to an online gait analysis company. As I suspected, I have very marked overpronation (my feet roll in as I walk/run) and they recommended a type of shoe to compensate for this. Best £25 I ever spent and I now have perfect showes for my gait which have made such a difference to pain, performance and stamina.......I'm not saying I don't still get calf/shin pain, but it's no more than a niggle now and often doesn't kick in until I've been running a solid 25 minutes or so.

4. Find the NHS Strength & Flex programme and do this on you non-run days. Making your legs stronger means they don't get so sore and the programme also includes stretching which helps the muscles recover and get longer.

Hope this helps. Keep at it. I was nearly at the point of quitting by the end of Week 3 as I was just in so much pain, but the lovely people on this forum gave me some pointers and slowly but surely things improved.

Onwards and upwards - you can do this and with just a few little tweaks you can make the journey so much better for yourself.

[Pymander10 Graduate in reply to Over60sRunner]

Thank you so much for your advice. I do need to remember to keep drinking more. I’ve added ice to my water to make it more appealing!I’ll check out those stretches. I’ve been doing stretches after every run but I’ll check that out and do more! I quite like the stretches as I find them quite relaxing

I’m glad it’s helped you with other things and I’m sure it will help me with other things. I have poor mental health and it has helped keeping my head clear and sleeping better.

Sadly I can’t afford new shoes this month but I’ll definitely look into gait testing to get the right shoes. I do have running shoes but maybe they are not right for me.’

I just started doing week one again as the pain stops me going further. It’s not exceptionally painful but it’s there. Would you suggest going up to week two or keep going again with week one. I feel very frustrated as I feel I can go further but I don’t want to do more damage.

Thanks so much for your reply and advice it’s very much appreciated as I’m not sure if I can do this alone.

[Over60sRunner Graduate]

I repeated several of the early weeks as my fitness levels were just SO low (even worse than I expected!). There's nothing wrong with doing this and if you feel it would benefit you then go for it, there are no hard and fast rules apart from skipping weeks because you think it's "too easy" which often is a ride (or run!) for a fall.

I took just under 12 weeks to eventually graduate and am still only covering 4k including the walking sections some 3 weeks into consolidation. I envisage that 5k goal is still a few weeks away yet for me, but that's OK: as long as I continue to make progress, then I'm happy with that.

This programme has done wonders for my self-confidence and my faith in myself - I have achieved what I first thought to be totally unachieveable. I would agree with many people on the forum who say it's just as much about your head as it is your legs, and it has made me so much stronger mentall yas well as physically.

Go at your own pace and just enjoy the process, no matter how long it takes. Each run will make your tougher, mental and physically, and the sense of achievement will grow week on week. You've got this 💪🏃‍♀️💪