Coach Jay,

Your 1/8/10 article on Matt ("Too Heavy to Run") has been a topic that has plagued me for some time. I've lost about 50 pounds (from 280 down to 230), and I too have developed a love for running. It took me approximately one year to obtain the weight loss.

Over the past two years I've completed two 10k runs and although I'm proud of this accomplishment, my ultimate goal is to train for a marathon.

My issue is that when I run the muscles in my shin become so tight that I can barely move my leg. This forces me to have to stop and walk for .2 miles or so before resuming. Although I can continue after a brief walk, my stride and rhythm is completely thrown off.

I've tried several styles of Nike running shoes however the problem continues. Any advice on how to either strengthen my calf/shins to overcome this problem?

Thanks in advance for your assistance.

AJ

AJ-

Shin splints are by far the most common reason that athletes write in via the Q&A and to be totally honest, I rarely answer those emails because shin splints are the best example of an issue/injury that needs the attention of a medical professional. That said, I would love to be of help to not only you but the other readers who have this problem. With this in mind, we'll go over the three biggest reasons shin splints occur.

First, the body isn't ready to run, especially if the person is carrying extra weight, yet the body can run for a minute or two if the running is following by brisk walking for a minute or two. As my good friend Mike Smith likes to say, "Metabolic changes occur faster than structural changes," and if you've read this blog you've heard that before. That's honestly the biggest reason we have the general strength videos on this site. Those routines challenge your muscles, tendons and ligaments to improve as fast as possible, giving you a better chance to run injury free.

The second issue to be mindful of the surface your running on. If you can run on grass or dirt, that's preferable while you're struggling with shin splints. Obviously this is unrealistic for some people, yet many of us can find those surfaces if we're willing to either run loops (i.e. loops around a park or soccer complex) or travel a bit to a dirt road or nature preserve with trails. Once you're over the shin splints then you should run some workouts on the track and on the roads, but in the interim be mindful of the surface you're running on.

Finally, you can and should walk around the house barefoot and when the weather warms, spend some time walking barefoot on the grass. While this may cause some discomfort and while you need to be careful not to walk a mile or two barefoot on grass, the reality is that all of us "detrain" our feet to a certain extent when wearing shoes. And obviously the Nike Free series is great for this. Personally, I make a point to wear them every day, ideally all day (other than my runs, I only run in them once or twice a week). I'm such a freak/geek about it that when I have to speak at a clinic or attend a social function where dressier shoes are required I get a little worried that my feet will be "detrained." I have no scientific or objective reason to feel that way, but again, I've personally overcome some serious foot issues in the last three years and I'm convinced that footwear and wearing the Nike Free line has helped. I'm certainly not trying to be a salesman and to be honest, before you wear the Free simply spending 5-10 more minutes a day barefoot in the house as you do chores will make a difference.

Good luck AJ and please find a medical professional (PT, chiropractor, orthopedic, etc.) in your area to help you diagnose the problem further.

Coach Jay,

I want to know how often I need to change my running shoes. I've been looking around on the internet and I found that most sites state that the running shoes should be changed every 6 months or 300 to 500 miles (which is a big gap), whatever happens first, I was looking to change my shoes every 350 miles because I don't want to force my knees, but the shoes look almost as good as new.

So, I was hoping you could help me. Here is some data about myself that I think should matter to determine how often I should change my running shoes: I'm a man, 26 years old, and weight 149 lbs. I run on the street (road), 2-3 times a week with an average of 9 miles per run at 7:40 min/mile I really hope you can help me.

Best regards,
Juan

Juan-

I really appreciate the question, yet I'll be honest that my expertise is much more about workouts than shoes. That said, I think there are some general guidelines I can help you with that most of the shoe gurus at Nike would agree with.

First, any time you have uneven or asymmetrical "wear pattern" on the outsole (i.e. the rubber on the bottom of the shoe) then you need to consider changing the shoe out. We all have a slightly different wear pattern and if you go to your local running store they will be able to look at your worn shoes and suggest other models that will work for you. An extreme example of wear pattern is wearing through the outsole and into the foam, which will happen on different places for different runners, but again, just like a car tire, once you've worn them that low then you need to switch them out.

Second, most foams in most shoes will tell you when you need to change out the shoes. How? Look for little wrinkles, just like you would in human skin, in the foam or "EVA." Now, to be honest, I don't know how the Lunar Foam compresses and if that's different than the traditional EVA, but even on my last pair of Vomeros you can see little wrinkles in the foam. You can still wear these shoes to kick around in or mow the lawn, but this the point where you might want to switch them out. Also, this is where a lighter runner can get away with more miles on a pair of shoes, but a heavier runner cannot. And at 150 lbs, you're probably going to be able to push the end of this continuum.

Finally, in my opinion, the key to running shoes and wear is to simply have 2-3 pairs of DIFFERENT shoes. I know this sounds like overkill and you're probably thinking I'm paid on commission (I'm not), but from experience I can say that not only do my injuries/issue decrease when I have two pairs of training shoes and one pair of "fast workout" shoes, but I swear my leg feel better. Shoes are built on different lasts and even in the Lunar series the new Lunar Elite will fit different than the new Lunar Swift. I currently wear the LunarTrainer+ and the LunarGlide+ and then the Lunaracer+ for workouts. While I have a favorite among the three, the bottom line is the subtle difference in each shoe forces your lower leg to interact with the ground a bit differently and that's simply a safer way to train.

I hope that helps and when in doubt go to a running specialty store and have someone look at your wear pattern.

Best,
Jay

Coach Jay coaches athletes at RunnersCoach.com and blogs at CoachJayJohnson.com. And don't forget, if you have training question for Coach Jay, email him here: coachjay@nike.com.

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