Shin Splints

Shin splints typically develop from a combination of training errors and biomechanical factors that overload the muscles and bone along your tibia. The classic scenario is too much, too soon - suddenly increasing your running mileage, intensity, or frequency without allowing your body to adapt. Your muscles, tendons, and bone all adapt to increased loads at different rates, with bone being the slowest to strengthen. When you progress faster than your bone can adapt, you get the painful periosteal irritation characteristic of shin splints.

Running surface and footwear changes are major contributors. Switching from grass or trail running to concrete or asphalt dramatically increases the impact forces your legs must absorb. Similarly, running in worn-out shoes or switching to shoes with different cushioning properties can alter the loads placed on your shins. Many people develop shin splints when they start a new running program on hard surfaces after being sedentary, because their bones haven't had the gradual loading needed to strengthen appropriately.

Biomechanical factors significantly influence shin splint development. Overpronation (excessive flattening of your foot) increases the eccentric load on the muscles along the inside of your shin as they work to control the foot's motion. Tight calves force these muscles to work harder to lift your foot during the swing phase of running. Hip weakness, particularly weak glutes, can alter your entire leg alignment, creating abnormal stresses throughout your lower leg. Even factors like running primarily on cambered roads or always running the same direction on a track can create asymmetric loading patterns that predispose one leg to developing shin splints.