Carrie on running: Shin splints

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Following my injury a few weeks back I made arrangements to see a physio. The visit was actually regarding an old injury to my shoulder, but I figured while I was there I’d be wise to ask him about my leg which by that point was no better.

I explained where the pain was, when it was at its worst and what the doctor had said.

Physio says no. Physio says shin splints. Physio made me cry.

Dammit. Shin splints? Really? Oh man that’s the last thing I wanted to happen. Is it ‘cuz I iz too heavy? Gutted.

The physio actually says it has far less to do with my weight or activity level and more to do with the fact that I’m about as flexible as an ironing board. He says I have extraordinarily tight calf muscles which are more likely to have caused the problem and so has given me some stretches to do which will begin lengthening out the muscle.

It’s not just my calf though, he noted a similar problem in my left shoulder which is causing me to unintentionally scrunch up which in turn knocks me off balance (but no, I don’t look like the hunchback thankfully).

So needless to say, thanks to shin splints I’m not running for the time being. This is particularly annoying as I’m due to run the Great North 10k on the 22nd July. The physio knows this and is quite hopeful that I might still be able to run it as long as I stick to regular stretching.

I’ve also got an ace up my sleeve – two weeks ago, in an effort to add to my running strength and quicken up the flab-shedding, I joined the local council gym network. A student membership for a mere £20 a month on a month-by-month rolling contract gives me access to about a dozen gyms and half a dozen pools so even though I can’t run I can still work on strength and fitness.

I’m nervously counting down the days to the GN10k and keeping everything crossed that I’ll be able to run it. But if physio says no I’m not going to argue with his expertise – no medal is worth the risk of permanent damage to my leg.

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