Surely My Shin Should Not Feel Like That!

Tuesday morning, I set off for a easy 4 mile run.  After about 1 mile, my shin started to cramp.  It wasn’t a shin split, but a serious cramp.  I stopped and stretched my calves with a few lunges and calf dips on the curb.  The pain subsided a bit, but my left shin was still tender.

 

For this 4 mile run, I decided to not stop for water.  As I mentioned in my Sunday post, I am trying to build up my endurance by running farther before stopping for water.  It’s a good strategy to improve my time, right?  Unfortunately, I began salivating like Pavlov’s dogs when I passed my usually water stops.  How sad am I?

 

Despite my thirst and shin situation, I had a pretty decent time.

Distance: 4:36

Time: 42:00

Average Pace: 9:37


The past two days, my 3 y.o has been sick with strep.  Since my shins seem to be telling me they need a break, I elected to use this time as a little rest and squeeze in some core training.  Hopefully, the rest will allow me to score a PB at Saturday’s race.

10 comments

  1. Chloe says:

    Have you tried running with a water bottle? I have a little gadget gots on my water bottles so that it’s eaiser to hold while running. Not a big fan but I got used to it! I don’t know if depriving yourself of water will help you get faster 🙂 Shins – have you tried running on trails? We do about 60% of all of our runs on trails, and that seems to help out big time on the shins.

    So busy at work today. I could KILL for a glass of wine!! And it’s like a mini hurricane outside!

  2. Run DMT says:

    Sometimes I do run with water. Most of the time, I try to go 3 miles before I take a swig.

    I do run in the grass along the mile long sidewalk in my neighborhood. That definitely helps with my legs.

    I’ll drink to that!

  3. morethananelectrician says:

    I go about 8 miles before water…it is what I did for the Marathon until the last 5.

    I had a shin issue and Absorbine Jr. was the only thing that worked. That was 1986 (?) and I din’t know if they even make the stuff anymore.

    Make sure your heels are hitting first…since you are running faster now, you might be up on your toes more and putting some extra strain on the shin.

  4. thequestfor135 says:

    I’m going to agree that there is likely something wrong on the form of your running. Break it down starting at the toes and work your way up.

    If that doesn’t do the trick, it could be your shoes. As you pick up speed and distance, the proper shoe is essential.

  5. lindsay says:

    uck shins! hope they feel better. definitely go easy on them, ice, stretch… seemed to help my aches go away after a couple of days.

    with the weather getting warmer it’d be ok if you drank more often… maybe throw in a few sips while in motion?

  6. thequestfor135 says:

    I was reading another blog that I have linked from my blog, eatliverun.com. She apparently has had a very serious shin splint problem. You may be able to get some good information from her site. Check it out. Best of luck.

  7. dwyatt64 says:

    All the above is good advice. I used to have serious shin issues. But since then, I’ve had luck with beginning my runs with a quick 2-3 minute fast walking warm up, then a serious stretch out (hold shins especially at least 20 sec.) Varying your route like Chloe suggested worked for me, too, as did concentrating on heels hitting first (morethananelectrician). Another good exercise for flexibility that also helps shins is to “air trace” the alphabet with your pointed toes every night. Finish up with ice when all else fails and you still have pain.

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