Your shins can hurt after running for a variety of reasons. The most common is a shin splint. This is actually a term commonly used to describe medial tibial stress syndrome.  What? Yes, stress causes pain along your shin bone and can even cause a stress fracture. In the early stages the painis actually myositis (irriation of the muscle that runs along the shin bone) and this will “warm up” when you run. Stress fractures don’t “warm up.”

Why does this happen? Most common reason is either worn out running shoes or inappropriate shoes to start with. If you have a very high arch, you need a more cushioned shoe. If you have a flat or low arched foot, you need a more stable shoe. Lots of times you just need to part with your old beloved super worn-out running shoes.

Other reasons can be a change in surface like going from the treadmill to concrete. Or a rapid increase in training mileage or increased speed.

When is it time to stop the home remedies and go to the doctor?

  • Pain 5-7/10 or in a pinpoint spot can indicated a stress fracture!
  • Pain that has lasted more than a few weeks with rest, ice and over-the-counter anti-inflammatories.
  • Lastly, if you have changed shoes, tried stretching and icing and still have pain daily….time to come in for a visit.

Some people need help buying shoes, some people need functional foot orthotics to re-align their gait and some people need to rehab their injury with physical therapy.

So the take home point is that your shins shouldn’t hurt after you run!! If they do, you should take a look at you shoes and training patterns! When in doubt, give us a call so we can take a look and make your shin pain go away!