Are you afraid to run or begin running because every time that you do you get painful shin splints? Maybe you can change that. Try a few of these tips if you haven't yet. You may be able to enjoy running and not have to suffer with shin splints!

Shin splint tips:

• If you are a beginner runner, don't go to hard or too fast. You have to work your way up so you don't overdo it. If you are over training you are risking injury.
• Make sure you invest in good high quality running shoes.
• Run on softer surfaces... Concrete is the hardest surface and provides little shock absorption.
• Stretch both before and after you workout.
• Do strength training exercises. If you build up the muscle around your shin, the extra muscle will be able to support the shin better.
• Practice proper running form.

I see so many people run and everyone seems to run a little different... I thought proper running form was not falling over... Is there something else to that?

Yes! There is a lot to proper running. Running incorrectly can cause many injuries to your body and you don't want to do that.

When you run you don't want to be leaning too far forward. You want to make sure your head and neck are properly aligned. You also want to keep your eyes pointing forward, not to the left or right.

You do not want to slouch when running. Try and keep as tall as possible with good posture.

You should keep your your shoulders relaxed while you run.

Make sure your arms are not swinging across your chest when running. They should move in a front to back direction (the same direction as your legs).

One last thing you want to pay attention to when running is your feet. You want to make sure that the balls of your feet hit the ground first, not your toes or heels.

If you take all of these running techniques into consideration they can help prevent shin splints (and other problems).

Getting the right type of running shoe is also important. There are different types of shoe for different types of foot plant.

Here's an explanation- a link saves me the trouble of awkwardly trying to describe it!

http://www.therunningadvisor.com/running_shoes.html

Yes, the right shoes are also very important. Thanks for posting this link!