Doctors of Running Podcast · Doctors of Running

#264 Answering the Most Common Questions about Shin Splits with Dr. Doug Adams

·1 hr 5 min·4 clips

Doug says every runner should get a running form analysis at least four times a year.

1. Doctors of Running Podcast #264 focuses on shin splints and medial tibial stress syndrome with Nathan Brown and Doug Adams. 2. Nathan Brown hosts solo and Doug Adams joins as a physical therapist, gait-analysis educator, and former Tin Man Elite trainer. 3. The episode asks how runners should think about shin pain, whether they can keep running, and how to prevent recurrence. 4. Doug says “shin splints” is a catch-all phrase and narrows the discussion to pain on the inside of the shin, or medial tibial stress syndrome. 5. Nathan compares shin splints to saying someone has knee pain without naming the exact diagnosis. 6. The running question gets a practical answer: early symptoms may allow continued running if pain stays mild and resolves with warmup. 7. Doug uses soreness rules from the University of Delaware and says pain lasting a day is different from pain lasting 48 hours. 8. The episode also distinguishes pain that improves by the end of the run from pain that worsens throughout the run. 9. Doug says one major cause is training-load error, especially running too fast, too far, or too frequently. 10. He says shin splints are highly recurrent when the root cause is not addressed. 11. Prevention turns to childhood sport history, and Doug argues that jumping and cutting sports before age 16 build stronger bone than running alone. 12. Nathan adds a conference statistic that non-specializers had about a 67% decrease in bone-stress injury risk. 13. For adults, Doug highlights calf strengthening as a major low-hanging fruit. 14. He also recommends barefoot hip strengthening, including stork work and hip abduction isometrics. 15. Doug says a stronger calf may reduce the tibial load whether the injury is driven by bone loading or by muscle pull on the periosteum. 16. The conversation stresses consistency over perfection, with Nathan noting a study where runners needed months of regular strength work to see benefit. 17. The style is conversational and clinical, with Nathan asking recurring patient-style questions and Doug answering in direct rehab terms. 18. The tone stays practical, and several answers include specific thresholds, tests, and training adjustments. 19. Runners, coaches, and physical therapists dealing with shin pain will get the most from this episode. 20. Listeners wanting entertainment without injury-prevention detail may skip it.

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