Hi,

I am hoping someone can help me. I am trying to get active again, just running around an indoor track and every time I do it, even for a very short distance, I get these muscle pains on both sides of my lower legs. Not like shin splints. My wife tells me it's because I don't stretch enough or that those muscles haven't been used for a long time. I am 42 years old and have no history of heart problems, etc.
I am about 20 lbs over my desirable weight. I am 5 11 1/2" tall and weight about 208 lbs. I am wondering if what I am experiencing is just plain old being out of shape. I have not noticed any form of swelling around my ankles but If I wear normal socks, they tend to put a dent on my calfs and the dents don't go away for several hours. My wife says it could be water retention or circulation... So I am puzzled. I want to continue getting in shape but it's hard to do it because when I am running, it hurts and I have to stop. It's hard to lose weight if I can't run. The pain is only on the sides, not in front or back of my calfs.
Any advice would be appreciated. Oh, the pain only happens when I try to run. My upper/lower legs don't hurt with normal walking or during the course of the day or night. Thanks!!!

If you do a calf stretch do you feel the muscles that were in pain involved?

I've experienced something similar when trying to get back into running after a long time away. I'd suggest checking the following:
* are your feet are hitting the ground in proper form? Not flat footed.
* are your shoes providing enough padding? Try on a variety of shoes and jog around the shoe store.
* is your running surface too hard? (A rubberized track could help)

Otherwise it's probably just something that will go away as your legs get used to running again. Just run as much as you can till the pain gets ya, and give it another shot the next day or whenever you feel its possible.

-saladami