Shin splints

Shin splints (medial tibial stress syndrome) are a diffuse pain along the inner shinbone, usually from doing too much too soon.

• Signs: an ache along 5 cm or more of the inner shin, tender to the touch, often worse at the start of a run and afterwards.
• Common causes: a jump in volume or speed, a return after a break, hard surfaces, lots of downhill.
• What usually helps: halve your running or pause it for 1 to 2 weeks, cycle or swim if pain-free, strengthen your calves, then build back over 3 to 6 weeks.
• See a doctor or physiotherapist if the pain sits in one precise spot, hurts when walking, at rest or at night, swells, or lasts beyond 2 weeks: it may be a stress fracture.