Good news for treadmill runners with stubborn and painful shin splints: New research suggests adding outdoor gait training to their routine may help. A study found that four weeks of outdoor gait training and home exercises usually recommended for shin splints improved running mechanics even on treadmills.
This included reducing the time their feet were in contact with the ground or treadmill, which can contribute to shin splints. Researchers, including UVA Health’s David J. Hryvniak, DO, suggest clinicians incorporate outdoor gait training into rehab programs for patients with chronic shin splints.
About 40% of runners face shin splints, starting with lower leg tenderness that fades after exercise but can worsen with regular running, sometimes leading to stress fractures. Previous studies showed that outdoor gait training helps outdoor runners, but it was unclear if it helped treadmill runners.
Researchers from UVA and other universities studied 17 treadmill runners aged 18-45 who ran at least three times weekly and suffered leg pain for over a month. Half received four weeks of outdoor gait training alongside home exercises, while the others did only home exercises.
During gait training, participants felt slight vibrations when sensors in their shoes detected prolonged ground contact. This helped them adjust their stride and reduce factors that contribute to shin splints. Both groups improved leg strength by the study’s end, but those who did gait training also improved their running technique.
These improvements were observed in outdoor and treadmill running, suggesting outdoor gait training could help treadmill users avoid shin splints. According to researchers, these cues are practical tools runners can use to prevent shin splints, a common injury among new runners.
Hryvniak, a running medicine specialist at UVA Health’s Runner’s Clinic, said, “This is an important finding for clinicians, as it gives us a tool to use to help these runners. These gait-training cues can be easy to add to a rehab program to help patients improve running mechanics that can underlie many common running injuries.”
The study concludes that outdoor gait training could effectively alleviate shin splints caused by extensive treadmill use.
Journal reference:
- Alexandra F. DeJong Lempke , Stephanie L. Stephens et al. Transference of outdoor gait-training to treadmill running biomechanics and strength measures: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Biomechanics. DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2024.112095.