Lower Leg Pain While Running

[AFeedz]

I've recently gotten in to running and signed up for my first 5k. I've been training for a few weeks and it was going well at first, but lately when I run, no matter how fast or slow I go, I get intense pain in my lower legs.

I can't run for particularly long distances so my training is usually a combination of walking/running the 3.1miles. The pain only comes about when I'm training - not when I'm walking just for daily life purposes - but the pain persists even when I walk in between the moments I'm jogging.

The pain isn't so much in my calves, the outsides of my lower legs feels the worse. I wasn't really sure if it's shin splints, because the pain is on the outside, rather than front or insides of my lower legs.

I've read a few different causes - overstriding, overpronation, etc. but I'm really not sure.

I'd really like any advice you guys have for correcting it, because my 5k is coming up soon.

 

[RottenWillow]

I've recently gotten in to running and signed up for my first 5k. I've been training for a few weeks and it was going well at first, but lately when I run, no matter how fast or slow I go, I get intense pain in my lower legs.

wow that is not good at all. If it's that bad I'd suggest you consult a doc. I know shin splints can hurt pretty damn bad, but it sounds like you're describing something even worse.

Just a few ideas. Are you wearing proper running shoes? do you have any visible vein problems, varicose or spider? Oxygen deprivation in the tissues could cause some pain.

 

[AFeedz]

I know I'm wearing proper shoes. I was fitted for some by a store that specializes in just that. And no, no visible veins of any kind.

Ughhh, I really wanted to avoid seeing a doctor, but I guess I should if it continues. Thanks!

 

[shirlene29]

did the store do a stride test? otherwise they may NOT be the correct shoes... I went through ohhh like 4 brands and about twenty different "models" before I found something that worked best for me..but I have chronic plantar fasciitis

it can also be the surface you're running on...and treadmills are TERRIBLE to train on...the bounce on them is just wrong..avoid at all costs...train on a good track if you can instead
when I had shin splints it was all inner front of the shins and it felt like the bone was broken on both legs..it effin hurts bad and they were caused by running on a treadmill

also, I second what RW asked...veinous issues. Look into something called horse chesnut and investigate garlic capsules...see if either of those things might be appropriate for you.

and I don't know your fitness level so look into a program called the couch to 5k...just google it...you can jump in anywhere in the program that fits your comfort level
I was never a runner and I used it to prepare for basic training (Army) and still run to this day years later

 

[trex74]

Yes I get shin splints very badly on a treadmill-not so much outside though.
Mine are on the outer side of my shins though. Like if the front of my shins were twelve o' clock, the pain goes from twelve to two o clock, and never on the inside.

 

[shirlene29]

weird, when i had em it was like a very sharp 11 oclock to 12 oclock and felt like someone was trying to peel the bone up

 

[AFeedz]

No, no vein issues. And my pain is the outer part of my lower legs like maybe 7-11 o clock.

When i was fitted for shoes they did watch my foot movement (barefooted) while walking before suggesting shoes, so I'm not so sure it's the shoes, though I'm sure getting another opinion on shoes couldn't hurt (or I guess it could, haha). I also don't think it's a treadmill that's the problem, reason being the pain is equal whether I run on a treadmill or outdoors.

And I've heard of the couch to 5k program. I'm sure it works. I'm not world's most fit person, but I've been doing the running thing for a little while, so the problem right now isn't my heart rate, which I think is the real purpose of couch to 5k, no? Because people who aren't used to running have elevated heart rates too quickly in to their run, which is usually why they stop and the point of the program is to build that up. Correct?

Right now my breathing is fine. The only reason I'm needed to stop is the pain in my legs.

 

[shirlene29]

well, you're thinking of running as a strictly cardio venture when it does in fact involve muscle...

how long have you been running for? at what rate for what distance?
some new pain is normal to a degree (doms like pain) some isnt (joints/fascia issues)

 

[AFeedz]

No, I know it involves muscle because if it didn't, I wouldn't be having this problem.

Anyways, I had some pains when I first started, but they've since subsided. I've probably been training for two months, and I thought I was already over the pain-in-my-leg-muscles portion of this whole thing, because I haven't felt any pain for a while now until recently.

I read something about anterior shin splints, it seems as though that's where my pain is. Though since I've started, my calf muscles are way stronger than they used to be, so I'm probably doing something technically wrong thats putting lots of stress on my calves, which may be contributing to my problem, but I can't seem to/dont know how to fix that.

I jog pretty slowly, probably at a 13 minute mile pace...and usually I'm jogging off and on for about 3 miles - sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less. All I've been training for is a 5k. I'm usually just jogging to work on my pacing and such, and when I want to do cardio I usually do it via things that cause my body less stress.

 

[footdoc]

Everyone who runs a lot would benefit from custom foot orthotics. The only qualified people to really do this is a board certified podiatrist not ortho. You will be amazed at how much they help you. You have shin splints and that is a direct result of a biomechanical imbalance in the feet.