After starting running last year with 0 issues, I’ve spent this entire year back and forth with shin splints. Weeks off, feel better, slow ramp up, feeling fine, hit more than 15 miles in a week or do speed work … shin splints.
I’m so sick of this. My right shin has progressed to a more pin pointed pain and it’s enough that I’m awake writing this, so I think I may be in stress fracture territory. I’m at my end.

Those who’ve banished shin splints, how? I know healing them is really just resting with a gradual return. But what worked to KEEP them away when you return to running?

I refuse to let this be the thing that keeps me down.

I’m in week 2/12 of a half marathon training block and I’m sick (shoutout to my son’s daycare germs, I think they must be radioactive at this point). I’ve managed 1 run so far out of the 4 I have scheduled for the week, no strength training at all. I’m not sure how to handle missed workouts - do I just skip them? Start from where I left off when I’m feeling better even though it’ll mean missing workouts later in the block?

This is the first training block I’ve done for a distance I’m not sure I can just go out and run if I have to. I’ve done 5ks and 10ks in the past, and if I’ve had something come up during training I’ve never worried too much about it because I’ve known that if nothing else I’ll be able to finish the race. A half feels like a whole different beast since it’s a distance that’s considerably longer than I’ve attempted before. I’ve been nervous about it already and I’m trying not to get too discouraged now. Would love to know how you guys handle this.

I used to be a very consistent, avid trail runner. I could even run at night without fear. I was reasonably wary of men, but never terrified. Well, about a month ago I was hiking with my friend who is also a woman. Suddenly, a man approached us and said: "Hello, may I ask you a question?" I just assumed he wanted directions or something, you know, like a sane person would. Instead, he followed with, "What the fuck are you girl scout jews doing on my fucking property?" Not only was he a deranged tweaker, he also showed us that he was recording with his phone. He used the front camera so we could actually see ourselves in the recording. I'm not sure why, but this detail makes the whole situation even more terrifying. I quickly responded, "Oh, we were just leaving." He yelled, "YEAH, YOU BETTER FUCKING LEAVE!" I truly didn't know what to do. We were just quickly walking away. I thought about running, but what if that provoked him somehow? What if he's armed? What are his intentions? I started having a panic attack for the first time in my life. It was like I was suffocating. My friend whispered to me that we should run, so we ran. She kept on reassuring me the entire time, sticking by my side no matter what. The way back to the car was insanely uphill, and as a beginner, I physically had to stop for breaks no matter how hard I tried not to (I also have asthma). We could still hear him yelling after us and I cannot explain how terrifying it was being unable to keep on running. In the end, we made it to the car safely. It was the best case scenario, and yet I still cannot get over this incident.

I feel uncomfortable using the term, but I think I may be traumatized. I no longer enjoy the outdoors like I used to. For example, a few weeks ago I was alone on what used to be my favorite trail. Mid way through, I saw a man coming down the mountain. Any normal person, Including past-me, would have thought nothing of it. But I was terrified. I wasn't thinking about anything but this man the entire time: his intentions, where he was going, will we encounter each other? Well, we did. He said "Hello" and moved on about his day. Every time I have gone back on trail, I've had some stupid experience like this. I've upgraded my gear: I have a personal alarm and the best pepper spray on the market, but it doesn't bring any peace of mind. I don't run like I used to now. I'm lucky if I even manage a single 5k a week. This truly used to be my passion, but it's over now.

Realistically, I know the only way to get over a fear is to face it. You know, exposure therapy. I'm not really looking for a "solution" here, but people who have experienced similar. Have you had a terrifying experience like this, but gotten over it? I want to hear that it's possible for me to love running again.

What it says on the tin.

Realizing I have completely undervalued nutrition in the grand scheme of physical fitness, hoping to get a sense of what's been working for y'all.

What are you prepping for your pre and post run nutrition? What are you bringing with you on your long runs? Anything you swear by?

I have recently gotten into running, I’m doing a couch to 5k program. I have an uppa baby vista the newest model. My LO (11 months) doesn’t seem to mind me jogging with him in it. My question is do I need to get an additional jogging specific stroller? Will it make that big of a difference? I’m mostly just running around the neighborhood and on paved trails

Hi ladies, I’m 5’11” and roughly 134 lbs. I am having an ablative laser treatment done in the next couple of weeks (but I'm also spending some time outdoors). I need some recs for long sleeve breathable SPF shirts—I’m struggling to find tops with arms that reach my wrist. Im in Texas, so it is blistering hot. To cover my neck and chest I’m using gators and bandanas, but any mock neck cuts would be great too. The only decent piece I’ve found is Athleta’s Interval Jacket in Small/Tall, but again, it’s a little too warm for that right now (arms and shoulders are perfect). I bought and kept the Coolibar Women's Funnel Neck Long Sleeve Top - UPF 50+ Sun Protection - Catona, but it’s slightly short in the arm (I’ll deal). Thank you!

i started running this month and have been able to reach 3k non stop 🎉 (yay) but i got food poisoning and haven’t been able to run at all for 2 days.
should i start running from tomorrow?
why does it feel sp bad to take a break
thanks in advance:)

I have been sticking to my plan and not skipping runs but every run lately feels harder that it should. Pace is down, heart rate feels higher and its messing with my head a little. Once the weather cools off, does it usually come back pretty quickly or do you have rebuild?

Hi ladies! What are your favorite running socks?

I got some Saturday Strides ruffle compression socks which I really like but want to explore other options.

Bombas, Balega, Feetures? Which one is your favorite and what style?

Right now I'm looking into Balega ultra light no show sock (it's really hot and humid here in TX) and they have some fun colors!

Hi all, I'm planning to start training for my fourth half marathon with hals intermediate 2 plan in mid August. My mileage over the summer has varied from a week off to 18 mi. Mostly base runs​.

I took a week off due to an injury and ran 9.2 miles last week with a 5K race. This was 3 runs that week no mass volume on a single day. Likely a bone bruise i didnt let heal was the injury. ​All's good now. I'm working towards 15 miles before the plan starts with low mileage spread out over the days and no speed work. Haven't been following 10 percent and upping about 2 miles a week with baby mileage and zero issues. Next week I'll do 13, then another week of 13, then 15. No long runs max 4 miles.

The plan starts around 17ish miles, so I'm thinking of cutting to 16.5 for the first week to follow the 10 percent rule. Or should I do 16? This will also be a week with 5K intervals. Alternatively, also thinking of cutting the long runs short by a mile. Longest would go from 12 to 11 which isn't a big deal. ​If my body feels off, I would of course cut back more.

What would you do?

edit: this week I'm running 11 with a day added of 2 miles.

I’m about 10–11 weeks into recovery from a **nondisplaced right femoral neck stress fracture** and a **nondisplaced right pubic ramus stress fracture**. I only started walking again last week after being on crutches, and while I’m definitely improving, I still get pretty sore once I get close to 5,000 steps. I see my sports medicine doctor again on July 31st to discuss the next phase.
I’ve been thinking a lot about my long-term goals. Originally I wanted to run Chicago or NYC in fall 2027, but now I’m wondering if it’s smarter to forget about chasing a PR and spend the rest of this year and all of next year rebuilding. That would give me time to heal properly, strength train, cross-train, enjoy running again, and hopefully avoid another injury. I’m even considering waiting until fall 2028 to seriously train for another PR.
For anyone who’s recovered from a femoral neck or pelvic stress fracture—or coaches who’ve worked with runners coming back from one—what did your return look like? How long did it take before you felt like yourself again, and if you were in my position, would you race in 2027 or take the extra year and aim for 2028?

I started running again this year and usually run twice a week. One day, I was too tired, so I waited until the evening. It was already getting dark, but I still went out. At a corner, a guy on a bike rode past me and whistled at me. Then about a minute later, he came back and did it again. I was scared. It was dark and there was no one around. I just ran faster and tried to get away from him. Luckily, he didn’t follow me.

When I was in college, I used to run around campus with my friend. Never thought something like this would happen. After that, I got a walkingad and run at home. Just staring at the wall, without any nice views. The good thing is I don’t have to deal with those things anymore.

I don’t know. I just feel a little sad.

I love writing down monthly plans and then sticking smiley faces on them whenever I finish a workout. I am 38 btw :) I would love to see yours!

As the title says… help ya girl out! I have been looking at the LSKD, Muscle Nation, and Adidas running crops but afraid to take the plunge because of my DDD boobs. I’m not plus size but at 5’5” and 165lbs I have a pretty soft belly so also feeling like something that cuts off at the belly button is going to look and feel horrible on me.

I am in Australia if that helps but happy to order from overseas. I just really want the option to keep my gels and phone in my top vs my pants. Whenever I put my phone in my shorts they sag like crazy which is very annoying

A few days ago I started experiencing a dull pain in the ball of my right foot (around the top of my arch, closest to the bottom of my toes), I haven't ran since but can feel the pain whenever I walk, both while barefoot and wearing shoes. I have a 10k in 1.5 weeks and was supposed to be ramping up my training this week with a 5.5 mile long run this Saturday (I'm following Hal Higdon's novice 10k plan and it's week 7 of 8).

I've been trying to stretch my calves and hamstrings but the pain hasn't gone away for the past 2 days and I'm worried. Is it advisable to stop all running until the pain goes away, and am I still able to run the upcoming 10k? I'm worried about this potentially resulting in long term foot pain, and I think it was caused by not stretching enough beforehand or something with my running form.

I know breath work is important but I want to know if people are actually getting good results from this breath work app?

Other than Bandit, what brands are we buying/wearing for race crop style tops (not a longline sports croptop)?
I’m looking for some other options that are high neck, built in shelf, form fitting and cropped (eg like Bandit Stamina Race Crop). I have one of those and I love it - just feels like a gentle hug all over haha. Any others that you like?

Hi gang,

TLDR: got binned off running for 6 weeks for ankle rehab even though I'm running without pain/issue. Feeling lost.

I went to a podiatrist yesterday about some foot pain I was getting over long distances. Got given some exercises to manage it and hopefully avoid it developing into Morton's neuroma.

We also talked about my history of ankle sprains. I've had 3 on the same ankle in an 18 month period and apparently this is bad, even if you run on trails/do ultras and have kind of come to expect it as an occupational hazard. The most recent of which was about 4 weeks ago, it did bruise but it's been pretty much pain free for about the last 2 weeks. I've only just started running on it again.

The upshot of this conversation was that she wants me to not run at all for the next six weeks, with a phased return to follow. I'd already chucked in the towel on a 50 mile trail race this weekend, but it's looking like I'll also lose my half marathon in September.

It all feels really excessive for something where I don't have any pain. I get the intention is preventative but I've worked so hard over the last couple of years to build consistency which I really struggle with (ADHD) and I get so much out of the community element of my running club that I'm really feeling lost.

Can anyone share their experiences of anything similar? What did you do?

I’m at the beginning of my first marathon training block and wondering how runners who run an easy pace of a 12min mile approach their training to balance getting enough mileage in without overdoing time on feet. I’m hoping to finish the marathon in 5 hours or under. Old goal was as close to 4:30 as possible but…

For some more context, I am really comfortable running 25 mile weeks, which takes me roughly 5 hours over the week. Right now I’m coming off of some ankle / tendon issues that I’m working through with a PT and she’s prescribing me to run based on time rather than distance (for now at least) which makes sense to me but has me feeling nervous that I can’t get enough mileage in.

Before this injury, I was looking at training plans that have weekly mileage averages around 30 miles; with a peak week of 40 miles. However, I’ve also seen a lot about not overdoing time on feet (for example, not letting long runs go over 3 hours). But for now, I’m only supposed to be running approximately 4 hours a week or less, which is getting me to a max of 20 miles / week, long runs 7-8 miles.

Wondering how runners doing a similar pace approached training, and not overdoing it while still feeling prepared

So after not getting into London Marathon again, I decided to pivot and registered for Race to the Stones 100k. So my approach to training is training, but what worries me most is nutrition. I’ve been pretty good with it with marathons and managed to never bonk. But being perimenopausal, I’m noticing some changes. I’m having more GI issues and energy fluctuation. So I’m looking to get my nutrition in check. I’m looking for books, podcast, etc to help get started. Would love a good resource with good recipes too. I might eventually see a nutritionist, but I want to give it a go on my own. Have had luck previously when I was more focused on strength training and dropping body fat, so I know I can be disciplined with food. It’s more having good recipes and planning ahead.

Any recommendations will be much appreciated! Thanks.

I get very painful periods and also migraines around my period so for a solid week every month running is out of the question. I've been running 3-4 times a week the rest of the time, but when I start again I feel like I've lost all the progress I've made and it just feels hard and miserable. And then when I feel like it's getting easier again, I get my period again and so on and so forth. If any of you guys also can't run while menstruating, how do you keep up your fitness?

I am adding health info just for the full picture.

I (25F, 112 lb, 5'4) have been running in and off for about 3 years. Within this time the most mileage I have done is about 20 MPW. Every time I make it to 20 mpw, I end up getting injured and have to rest for a couple of weeks and start back up again.

During this time running, I also haven't seen much of a difference in my heart rate. My heart rate on my so called "easy" runs has been at 170 bpm usually. I won't get into speed because it's not my main concern.

I have started adding indoor cycling and strength training to help out injury wise and heart rate, but this week I once again got hit with shin pain.

I'm not sure how to improve at this point. I feel like I should completely start over with a super beginner running plan such as nike run club.

Any tips?