No 30 Day Shred today, as it is my day off (for birthday purposes).
Erin has been insistent that we do this running program. And that's fine, I'll run. But the problem is...SHIN SPLINTS.
It seems as if I walk wrong, and am rewarded with shin splints. Yesterday I sneezed. Shin splints. I know what they are, I know what my foot does to make them happen. I try not to do the thing! But there is nothing I can do to stop my over-pronation. So there's that.
I do the stretches! Stretching! It is supposed to help! It does nothing. The only thing that prevents shin splints is my sitting still in front of the television until I slowly grow to resemble my couch.
Does anyone know something helpful I can do? Do those tight sock things work? And I am in the market for new running shoes (in the vain hope that changing shoes will fix me, even though all of my shoes cause this problem), so maybe someone knows of shoes with really awesome arch support or something else that should help me avoid agony*? Is there something specific and anti-shin-splint-y that I should look for in a running shoe?
Or should I just give up and go to the doctor. I really would rather not have the whole x-ray kit and caboodle. Plus he would advise rest, and I honestly have done that REPEATEDLY over the years and it doesn't fix the problem, it just delays it until I pick up my exercise program again. Resting and letting the shin splints heal...that's why I end up quitting various methods of exercise. Always. And changing programs doesn't help. I don't just need a low-impact exercise, I need a NO-impact exercise. Walking is enough to aggravate the problem.
I need Dr. Temperance Brennan to come down here and tell me what I'm doing wrong.
Any advice you might have would be greatly appreciated.
* Agony can include, but is not limited to: shin splints, blisters, and random slices across the back of the heel so shoe can drink runner's blood like little Nike vampires.
Inserts. and new shoes, but probably both. The problem is your impact isn't being cushioned, so the force from your feet hitting the ground is causing your shins to hurt.
ReplyDeleteYou need a good shoe insert, and while new shoes will help this if fitted right to your foot, eventually you'll wear that new sole down and still want the inserts. Inserts are a pretty cheap way to avoid shin splints ($10-$15 per pair), but you'll have to replace them every few months. They don't last as long as shoes, but it's cheaper than either super shoes OR going to a doctor who will charge you to say "buy inserts."
Also ice and heat. and continue stretching. Shin splints just take diligence -- it's easy to prevent them but they can come back with a vengeance, too.
I am icing/heating, and I am going to go to the running store in Fort Wayne, because they will properly fit me for shoes! I have never been fitted for running shoes. Or had any help picking them. Until I started researching a few weeks ago, I didn't even know there was a difference between the types of running shoe! I thought they were all meant for the same kind of activity. Apparently, it makes a difference, and I had purchased trail running shoes when I intended to use them on the street...yeah.
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