Running a little differently kept shinsplints away
While it seems completely obvious in retrospect, I changed my running style slightly this week and had an immediate improvement in the amount of pain in my shins immediately after my run. For the past few weeks, I’ve been running uphill whenever I do HIIT interval training, partly because it seems to be less stress on my body as I’m not pounding along every step, but leaping upward and stopping before my weight can really get momentum and ‘fall’ back down. With each step, I’m caught at the top of my stride, and just push off from there. Well, my thoughts were this would be better on my shins as they would take less abuse. However, I was still feeling very sore after every run. This week, I tried something different, and not necessarily on purpose.
While running uphill, I had been landing on my forefoot, toward my toes, and never really landing on my heels at all. I had read that this was better form, and could be easier on your body, but for me, the problem was landing on my toes, and making my shins catch all that weight, then push off again immediately. It was a huge strain. So, I just started landing more on the mid-sole of my foot, with a little tendency toward my heal, and suddenly, my shins were much better. And since I’m running uphill, I’m never really catching all my weight on my heals, but simply landing on my whole foot at the same time. I hope to continue to strengthen my legs and my muscle surrounding my shins to be able to handle any style of running, but for now, I’m happy to not be afraid of what I’m going to feel like immediately after the run.
This week I’ve only done one session, and it was doozy. I’m still tired from it, but I’m planning on doing a short one maybe tomorrow. I’m also snowboarding this weekend for the first time in a while, and I’m sure that will bring about all sorts of pain and confusion onto my body Saturday night as well.
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Feb 21st 2008
hi how long should hiit last on a bike?
May 10th 2008
I use to be just like that. I talked to this personal trainer one day and he said the best way to stay motivated is to make a journal of exactly what you do every single day. Honestly it really work when I looked at it on paper it was different. When you see no improvement on paper in terms of reps, sets, and distance and haven’t done anything you feel like a lazy asshole that day then get motivated to get on them running shoes and pull out the wieghts.
Aug 14th 2008
Hi, I did a google on HIIT as I want to add it to my routine. Like you, I hated running. Notice the past tense. I now like running because I’m now on a hormonally balanced diet called the Zone Diet. You can google it for more information, but it is a moderate, balanced diet that yields amazing results. Joslin Diabetes Centers recommends a diet that is almost identical. Dr. Sears, the creator, has worked with athletes that have brought home 24 gold medals. Jenny Thompson was the most prolific Zoner medalist and her count was just surpassed by Michael Phelps a day or two ago.
Christian Vande Velde is a Zoner - he recently finished 5th in the Tour de France.
I’d also recommend spending some google time on “pose running.” It has helped me a lot, but takes some time to get your calf muscle strong enough to support the work load.
I’m a decade your senior and I feel better than ever - and I mean this factually. I really really do feel better than ever. I effortlessly lost 25+ lbs of fat while adding ~70 lbs to my bench press - I started pretty weak.
My foundation is the Zone Diet, pose running is a great tool and I hope to add HIIT as another tool in my arsenal.
Best of luck in your exercise adventures.