What are shin splints?

Shin splints is a term used to describe pain along the shin, usually with running, jumping, or impact activities. The more technical term is medial tibial stress syndrome. It is not something you are stuck with forever — it means your body is signaling that your current load is exceeding what your body is prepared to handle.

Should I rest if I have shin splints?

Complete rest is not the answer. While rest reduces pain temporarily, it does not solve the underlying problem. The better approach is relative rest — modifying your training load while starting to build capacity so you can return to running without the same issues recurring.

Does stretching help shin splints?

Stretching may help you feel better temporarily, but it does not address the root cause. Calf tightness is a symptom of the problem, not the problem itself. The real goal is to understand why the load on your shins is exceeding your current capacity and to build that capacity back up.

What should I do instead of pushing through shin splints?

The three-step approach is: calm it down by modifying your running and removing high-irritation activities, build back up with strength exercises like calf raises and tib raises, and then progressively return to running — not all at once.

Shin Splints: What's Actually Causing Them: Part 1

Made 2 Move Team
8 hours ago
4 min read

About the Author: Hannah Breal, PT, DPT is the co-owner of Made 2 Move Physical Therapy in Charleston and Charlotte. She helps athletes and active adults rebuild strength, mobility, and confidence so they can move pain-free for life.

Made 2 Move Physical Therapy – Charleston | Daniel Island | Mount Pleasant | Charlotte

What to Do About Shin Splints (And What’s Actually Causing Them)

This is for the person who asked me MID RUN last week “hey, you’re a PT, right? What do I do about my shin splints?”

Shin splints are one of the most common running injuries. Most people either push through (don’t do that) OR they rest, stretch, use ice, and pray it magically goes away (don’t do that either)

If that’s you, you’ve probably never been told what’s actually going on or what to do about it.

So let’s break it down -- all about treatment for shin splints!

Runner holding their shin in pain during a run — shin splints treatment tips from Made 2 Move Physical Therapy Daniel Island

First - What Even Are Shin Splints?

To put it simply, “shin splints” is a term people use to describe pain along their shin, usually with running, jumping, or impact (hello, double unders & box jumps!)

The more technical term is “medial tibial stress syndrome”

but let’s just keep it to shin splints for now.

It’s not something you’re stuck with forever. It doesn’t mean running is bad for you. It means your body is trying to tell you something.

Why Do Shin Splints Happen?

Every time we run or jump, our bodies/bones/muscles experience load and stress.

That stress is what builds us up: it makes our bones, tendons, and muscles stronger.

Stress isn’t bad for you. We can’t grow without it.

But it HAS to be in the right amount for us to get the adaptation we’re hoping for. Otherwise, things can start to break down and get irritated.

I like to think about it like a cup: you pour too much into a small cup - it overflows.

That’s because LOAD exceeded CAPACITY:

Load = what you’re doing (running, workouts, jumping, etc.)

Capacity = what your body is currently prepared to handle

When load > capacity… that’s when aches and pains show up.

This usually happens when we do too much too soon:

jumping back into running (pun intended)
increasing mileage quickly
adding in more intensity or volume all at once

The 3 Ways Most People Handle Shin Splints (And Why None of Them Work)

1. “I’ll just rest until it goes away.”

Pain decreases because you stopped doing the thing that irritates it - great!

But you didn’t solve the problem. So when you jump right back into where you left off, you’re stuck with the same issues that got you here.

Solution: RELATIVE rest + slow ramp up back into training. You got signals that your current load was too much - don’t repeat the same mistake twice.

2. “I’m just gonna push through it.”

Your body is telling you something for a reason. It’s going to keep getting louder until you listen. That’s where these minor injuries turn into much bigger problems.

Would you rather slow it down for 1-3 weeks NOW, or have to completely stop running for 8-12 weeks LATER?

I’ll let you answer that one.

3. The Classic: Stretch + Hope for the Best

“I have shin splints, guess that means my calves are tight. I’ll start stretching more!”

You are so close, but not quite.

That tightness is a symptom of a problem - it’s not the problem to solve. We need to figure out WHY your calves feel so tight. WHY are your shins hurting when you run?

Stretching might help you feel better temporarily - but it doesn’t have an impact on capacity.

I will say, ankle mobility is super important here - but it’s not the magic solution, and we’ll talk more about it next week.

So What Should You Do Instead?

You’re in pain and don’t want it to come back. Here’s what we gotta do:

Step 1: Calm it down

Step 2: Build it UP

Step 3: Progress back into running (NOT all at once)

Your “Calm It Down” Plan

1. Modify your running - don’t completely stop

reduce distance
slow your pace
decrease frequency

We want to stay within our current capacity to find a level of running/jumping/impact that doesn’t cause symptoms.

2. Temporarily remove the things that really upset it:

sprints
hills
high volume jumping

We’re not going to remove these forever. We just need to decrease the overall stress we’re putting on your shins so we have more room in the cup (bc right now, that thing is overflowing)

3. Start building

We’re not going all in on intense exercises yet (that’s what next week is for!) but we CAN replace SOME of the load we took away and start building strength with simple moves like calf raises, tib raises, and other lower body exercises.

The Cycle That Keeps You Stuck

If you’ve been stuck in the cycle of:

run → pain → rest → try again → pain again…

this is why.

In part 2, I’ll show you how to break that cycle, get out of pain, build up your capacity, and prevent this from happening again.

See you then!

If You’re in Charleston, Daniel Island, Charlotte, or Mount Pleasant…

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We have three convenient locations:

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Written by Hannah Breal, PT, DPT, Co-Owner of Made 2 Move Physical Therapy, helping Charleston and Charlotte move pain-free for life.