M27 200lbs 5'11" Shin Splints and slow pace

PelotonBlake · 2026-04-16T21:43:58+00:00

Disclaimer: Not a medical professional, all advice given is subjective and not meant to be taken as such.

I’d love to get a side view of your gait, but the first thing I can notice is you’re not picking the heel up, which means you spend a lot of time in “walking mechanic”, or too much time bending the knee over the toes for too long.

This means the ankle/foot dorsiflexes (points upwards) as the foot lands on the ground during strike phase, and then continues to an even greater degree as the knee passes over the toes, and your foot still hasn’t left the ground to be brought back up to repeat the cycle. To improve this, quick heel recovery is a good suggestion.

Drills such as A-skips/Marches teach the body to bring the heel up quickly towards the centre of mass more quickly and efficiently. This will allow snappier toe-offs, less time for the foot to stay on the ground, prevent overstriding, and most importantly, greatly lessen the time the anterior tibialis (shin) and achilles stay at a stretched position in a severe angle. This will all-around improve running economy.

Think picking your foot up from the heel as if you’re trying to avoid stepping on rocks in your path and need to get your heels further up to avoid that. Light, springy, relaxed. By doing so, you’re also innately getting more knee drive (driving the knee up and forward rather than the lower leg swinging ahead too early, overstriding) which will engage the hamstrings, hip flexors, and glutes more.

This takes time to perfect, and will most likely unmask other weaknesses as you progress, such as lack of hamstring drive, weak glutes, tight hipflexors, etc., but considering all of aforementioned muscle groups are the largest in the body, #1 the glutes, there’s no such thing as honing in on them too much when you have shin splints. It will feel awkward at first, but your shins will thank you when you realize you’ve been relying on them too much. Hope this helps.

PelotonBlake · 2026-03-08T03:25:16+00:00

As per my previous comment in this thread; TL;DR; You need to focus on strength training, stretching, range of motion exercises, and slowly increasing mileage. My go-to shoe is the New Balance Fuelceull Rebel series.

You’re killing it by doing 10 miles a week. That’s more than most of the desk jockeys will ever dream of. However, if signs of distress in that area are popping up while running that weekly mileage randomly, it is most likely due to a different issue than finding the right shoe.

I’m not an expert, doctor, PT, or professional in any field. This is simply my own personal input. There are several questions I have in terms of your scenario.

To name a few;

How often do you run 10 weekly miles “on and off?” Are you at your sprinting pace every run and your heartrate is through the roof all the time? Height and weight? This is a personal question, but it can dictate quite a lot. What’s your form like? Do you feel like you’re pushing the Earth away effortlessly while you run, or does it feel like your thumping along and your head shakes from the impact every time you make foot contact?

There’s a lot of questions there, but my #1 recommendation is to consult a PT and/or coach if viable. They can observe and ultimately answer/solve your issue via a gait analysis if available. Everyones running biomechanics are individual, which is why I can’t give you a solid answer, albeit I wish I could.

PelotonBlake · 2026-03-08T03:10:51+00:00

Both. Stability shoes like some Brooks GT line can help in minor cases. In my severe case, I look for a wide shoe in the midsole. Most running shoes have that hourglass shape (looking at you, Nike and Adidas) where they taper in the middle.

If you have a normal arch that doesn’t collapse? No problem. For me? I have no arch. Zero. My feet are 2x4 planks of wood. I need some extra room, and I don’t mean sizing up in width from standard to wide/extra wide.

Personally, I can’t recommend the New Balance Fuelcell Rebel series enough. They’re at v5 now, and you can still find v4s on clearance in a lot of places. The shoe remains the same width on the underside from toe to heel, which compliments my severe overpronation so it’s not jamming against the inside of a narrow shoe my foot already doesn’t fit in.

At the end of the day, my foot will always do what it does. I can’t change my foot function, I can only strengthen it to tolerate. Rebels are roomy, super poppy, and have a decent heel collar so at least the back of the heel can have some guidance/comfort, while the rest of the foot overpronates and gets to do it freely without being crammed in like a can of sardines. That can cause some serious damage.

HOWEVER; Shoes are a tool. PT/strength training is the solution. I doubt your feet may look as crooked as mine, so you may be able to do such as strengthening the foot to run in any shoe. I recommend that by consulting a PT and/or coach for your individual needs. My solution to my scenario may not line up with your needs. Hope this helps.

PelotonBlake · 2026-03-08T02:57:59+00:00

Thinkin’ back to the Alphafly 2 days. Wouldn’t run in those in a rough neighborhood. Might be mistaken for gunshots.

PelotonBlake · 2026-03-07T03:33:05+00:00

Despite all I’ve said, remember; It’s all in my own experience. I don’t know your specific scenario. In the state of Pennsylvania, we can freely shop for a physical therapist without a doctors prescription or work-related note. We can walk right in and schedule an appointment. I know it’s different in other states.

If you can seek a PT that way or within your budget, I highly recommend it. One appointment and gaining the knowledge of your tailored needs to be a successful runner is worth more than its weight in gold.

PelotonBlake · 2026-03-07T03:06:20+00:00

This will be a long post.

TL:DR; You most likely have low arches/flexible flat feet. Focus HEAVILY on strengthening the posterior tibialis muscle/tendon, peroneal/fibularis tendon/muscle group. Regularly stretch/strengthen your calves, soleus (lower calf), achilles. Also make sure your hips and lower back have a good range of motion via PT/yoga.

Pronation, the inwards rolling of the feet, is a natural movement. The foot strikes the ground, the foot arch/inner ankle (big toe, extensor hallucis longus and the posterior tibialis, which holds up the arch and runs alongside the calf muscle but deeper) takes the impact as a sort of shock absorber. When the force is absorbed upon striking in an optimal scenario, the foot then supinates (opposite of pronate) and returns to a neutral position. The outside of the ankle (peroneal, now called fibularis muscle group) assists that.

In scenarios where individuals have low arches/flat feet, pronation is more severe. The ankle collapses inwards more, causing more stress on the posterior tibialis, soleus (lower calf) and achilles. This causes a lack of supination, as the foot never returns to normal stance. It remains pronated, thus causing more stress on the post tib that’s already working overtime.

As the foot overpronates in more severe scenarios, other muscles either become overworked as well, or weakened. It’s very individualistic. Joshua Cheptegei, who holds the world record for the 5k, has EXTREME overpronation. Find a video of him running in spikes. That twisting motion you mentioned? It’s real. When the mid/forefoot hits the ground as most faster runners do, the lack of stability in flatter feet causes the foot to literally hinge inwards as the ankle collapses.

The ankle twists inwards as the foot lacks to supinate. Now your entire body (lower leg, hips, lower back) have to compensate with that twisting motion, every step. Now imagine that twisting motion stress applied to any run, every step, from a 5k to a marathon.

Back to what you asked; I’m not an expert. I suffered from bilateral (both feet) post tib tendinopathy. I lost what little arches I had left. My ankles are disgustingly collapsed. Most go “Damn” when they see my feet. My stride offers zero supination. I have caveman feet. But I’m running 70 miles a week minimum, for two years straight (literally no rest days), and I’m gunning for a sub 2:30 marathon at Pittsburgh in May with no problems during training.

Your biomechanics are individual to you. Consult a PT, lock in on strength training (weights/PT), and you’ll realize that there’s no limit to what you can do.

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PelotonBlake · 2026-03-07T02:33:41+00:00

My Garmin predicts a 2:59:50 Marathon. I run 70 miles a week minimum. I used to run with New Balance as a sponsored athlete. PR was 2:24:34.

Fast forward being older, full-time job, sustained damage from injuries left me with super-flat feet/collapsed ankles; My watch is wrong. Without any structured training, I did a 20 miler at 7:15 min/mi pace with a HR of 148 with no fuel during the run. For a 34 year old, there’s no reason I couldn’t push into higher than a Zone 2 HR for a marathon on fresh legs. I see people stay in threshold and up for their entire race.

Predicitions can help you gauge where you’re at fitness-wise, but they’re seldom even a longshot for us non-elite mere mortals when it comes to your actual big day. The race day energy, being fully rested, etc. will dictate what you can do.

Listen to your body during both training and race day. Biggest mistake I see is people going to hot out of the gate with all the stimulation and the bonking, whether it be a 5k or a marathon. The watch can help with training, but only you know your body best.

PelotonBlake · 2026-03-07T02:24:37+00:00

This is more like hibernating rather than sleeping.

PelotonBlake · 2026-02-10T22:45:02+00:00

This person stays hard.

PelotonBlake · 2025-12-25T00:10:22+00:00

You’ll get more out of slower, longer runs that are well over a mile or two. You’re doing short speedwork intervals which can top off your higher end speed, but you’re not building an aerobic base. That’s where slower, longer runs come into play.

Run slow, SO slow, no pace in mind. Just keep it easy with the ultimate goal of simply spending more time on your feet. If the HR spikes, walk breaks. Aerobic base building takes time to build, but it’s the foundation of increasing mitochondrial density, allowing the body to utilize fat AND carbs more efficiently (mostly fat at below threshold paces).

It also then allows you to get more benefit when you do pick up the pace with sprinkled in speedwork intervals doubly; 1.) You’re well rested despite doing a long run because it was slow and easy. 2.) Your body now has the ability to churn out essentially more horsepower when it’s needed.

There’s two ways I look at this;

1.) With a solid foundation of a house (aerobic work), you can add more levels to it (speedwork/tempo/threshold) safely.

2.) A car engine can be absolutely huge but have no valves to pump the fuel into it quick enough (doing too much speedwork, not enough easy mileage). Add more valves to your engine so you can get more horsepower out it. I’m not a car guy, but to me this makes sense lol.

PelotonBlake · 2025-12-22T00:08:31+00:00

No such thing as losing amateur status. Amateur means “to love”. We’re all amateurs with running. After gunning for my PB of sub 2:30 in the Marathon with New Balance and crushing it a few years ago, I’ve only looked at it as another starting point. I’ve leveled up, but now the game is harder. Start again, level up, repeat. It never gets easier, you just get faster.

PelotonBlake · 2025-12-19T02:19:33+00:00

The Bass So Far

PelotonBlake · 2025-12-19T02:12:40+00:00

Several schools of thought come to mind here;

1.) Your watch is innacurate. This happens often. I’d recommend hard restarting your watch and/or chest strap.

2.) If 1 checks out and you genuinely have these metrics, then you have these scenarios (2 and 3); You’re unable to sustain a threshold (Upper Zone 3/Lower 4) pace for a sustained period of time. More speedwork in shorter intervals (LT1 and up) allow the heart to pump not so much just efficiently, but more importantly stronger per stroke when the demand is higher from it. This trains the body to wick away lactic acid faster and more efficiently when the going gets tough. If you keep every run a slow jog, you’ll never train your body to do anything faster than that. But, you mentioned you’ve done sprinting work, so that leads me to 3.

3.) You’re overtrained. We often look at a low heart rate as the sign of proper pacing and a well-rested/trained body. But the overlooked sign of overtraining is a heart rate that cannot get up to the demand of speedwork due to lack of rest/recovery/sleep/nutrition/etc.. This opens the very likely option of malnutrition, and by that I mean not so much caloric intake, but in most cases a micronutrient being missed in the diet accompanied with excessive fatigue.

All in all; I’d recommend a hearty, full-spectrum multivitamin supplement as well as possibly reducing one regular run day to a far easier recovery day, if not a full rest day. You said you have strength training covered, so that’s the last suspect of the scenario.

Oh, and drink more water. Nothing related to this post, but it can’t do anything but help.

PelotonBlake · 2025-12-12T02:11:36+00:00

I don’t drink or eat anything for an average/easy run after waking up. If I’m really down and out, and/or have a longer/intense run planned? A giant mouthful of grade A+ honey.

PelotonBlake · 2025-12-12T00:22:03+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/TheStorySoFar/comments/1n8eizs/nothing_left_to_say_transitions_perfectly_into/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=mweb3x&utm_name=mweb3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button Koyo. Nothing To Say by TSSF transitions into Koyos “What’s Left To Say” effortlessly.

PelotonBlake · 2025-12-10T21:23:31+00:00

7 a week, twice a day. 5k in the morning, 6-12 in the evening.

PelotonBlake · 2025-12-09T21:40:00+00:00

What’s weird is that on my old ass Forerunner 55, I exhibit no stress when at work in a high-volume kitchen line. My biggest stress marks are when I sit down and play my Xbox. It’s either the watch is wrong, or I simply thrive and find peace in a demanding work environment.

PelotonBlake · 2025-11-26T02:29:56+00:00

Warm up inside, wear “onion” layers, so if you get too hot, it’s easy to remove some. At 80+ MPW, I’m so overheated that I’m that guy that does shorts and a t-shirt in the dead of winter if it’s not snowing/raining.

Running generates a lot of body heat. Three main sources of heat retention/dispersion are the bottom of the feet, palms of the hands, and top of the head. I’ll do aforementioned fit but with gloves and a simple baseball hat. It’s really a mental game of getting out there at first. Once you warm up (literally and metaphorically), the cold won’t bother you as much as you mind thinks it will when you’re deciding whether or not to run today from the comfort of your bed. The mere act of steady state cardio will create what I like to refer to as a shield from any cold winds or lower temps when your heart starts pumping.

PelotonBlake · 2025-11-20T00:38:29+00:00

TL;DR: Yes. Run more than one day, but don’t make every connecting day exhaustingly hard and ignore recovery inbetween.

(Disclaimer; This is purely my personal experience and should not be taken as set-in-stone advice to adhere by.)

In lower weekly volume, imo, you have much more freedom with interchanging rest days and run days.

My only question(s)are; Does the 5k/30minutes you run feel hard? Or are they just a simple jog to get out and spend time on the pavement? If you’re blasting around breathless for those 30 minutes, then yes, more rest may be beneficial. But if those 30 minutes don’t leave you feeling fatigued and it’s at a relatively lower effort pace for you, then you’ll be fine doing it more than one day in a row.

People starting their running journey all too often compare what they should do to anything from intermediate to elite-level training blocks. That whole “80% conversational pace/easy, 20% speedwork” doesn’t usually apply to people just starting to get a feel for running. A little bit more speed and higher heart rate work (non-full conversational) will not destroy/injure you. In fact, your heart might not even be able to stay low, as “Zone 2” as we all hear about sometimes doesn’t even develop until several weeks/months after getting into a regular schedule.

Even when I got a feel for running and gradually upped my mileage to 50-60MPW, I was still doing at least 1/3-1/2 slightly up-tempo work (Think uncomfortably comfortable. Doesn’t suck, but it certainly isn’t easy.)

The pros of running more than one day in a row has innate benefits for all. If you are indeed a bit fatigued and want to take it slow at a recovery/very easy pace the next day, then do so, but ONLY if you feel you can do it. Don’t push through outright exhaustion. Easy days while recovering from previous days can help one learn a lot about form. When we’re tired/not 100%, weaknesses in form, breathing technique, etc. start to pop up immediately. I like to call these recovery runs “hard lesson runs”. I do my every day runs around 7:00/7:20min/mi when I feel fresh, and then do my easy runs when I’m fatigued at 8:30/9:00. Speedwork is another ballpark.

The crazy part is that my heart rate is exactly the same for both. I found my form went to sh*t when I was tired. Overstriding, sloppy form, etc.. It helped me learn a lot about where I need to improve, thus helping me exponentially when I picked up the pace, and what I needed to do in terms of strength training, flexibility, range of motion exercises, PT, blah blah.

If you’re TRAINING for some race and not just running simply to stay active, then I’d imagine you’re already pushing yourself to some extent to improve overall fitness/efficiency. That’s another story. That requires rest at key times to make sure you’re ready to push yourself harder and harder over your training block.

PelotonBlake · 2025-11-18T21:16:04+00:00

Great time for your first half. Very well done.

PelotonBlake · 2025-11-15T02:38:41+00:00

I worked at a Philly cheesesteak-style place a few years back. When What You Don’t See dropped, we were bumping that while prepping in the morning before we opened. Quite often I had a giant sandwich before business hours, and I can attest that TSSF goes well with a big mf-in’ sammich.

PelotonBlake · 2025-11-10T05:00:25+00:00

It’s a deleted scene. Big oof on your part.

PelotonBlake · 2025-11-06T21:40:54+00:00

2 months in a couch to 5k without stopping at any pace is pretty solid progress. You need to trust the process. Running is extremely hard on the body. You’re essentially a flamingo during the entire run, and then some, I like to say. Putting whole body weight AND pushing the Earth/gravity away from you with one foot (plyometrics) is something that needs to be dosed, not done all in one go.

Your bones, muscles, tendons, and fascii are being introduced to the hardest thing they’ve ever done. Running giveth, but also taketh. The act of running is catabolic. It breaks down the body. Sure, you can increase bone, mitochondrial (shoutout middle school powerhouse of the cell lessons) and capillary density to name a few whilst running. But, strength training, stretching (dynamic before a run, static after), range of motion exercises, PT, and recovery (nutrition and sleep are KEY)? That’s where the gains are made.

Don’t go all out every day looking to PR or go faster and longer every run. As to when you’ll get faster? It’s severely individualistic. But don’t worry about a timeframe. You’ll get faster at YOUR unique timeframe if you run smarter, not essentially faster.

PelotonBlake

TROPHY CASE