I thought I had it all figured out. Buy a good pair of running shoes, break them in, and stick with them. Simple, right?

Turns out... I was completely missing something huge.

For a long time, I struggled with shin splints. Every time I ran, my shins would ache like crazy. I honestly thought it was just part of running—something you had to “push through” until it went away. And weirdly... it did go away after a while. I didn’t think much of it.

Fast forward a bit: I bought a new pair of running shoes. Suddenly? No more shin pain. My runs felt smoother, lighter—even effortless sometimes. But here’s the thing: I didn’t connect the dots right away. It took two more months and a conversation with a friend—who was complaining about their shin splints—for it to finally click.

It wasn’t magic. It was the shoes.
A simple switch had solved my biggest running struggle.

Recently, I dove deeper and found Doctors of Running, and wow—it all made sense:
👉 Every pair of shoes teaches your body a specific pattern.
Different shoes change:

Vertical support: cushioning + stack height affect how much shock your body absorbs.
Side-to-side stability: subtle design changes force your muscles to work in new ways.

And when you only run in one pair, your body adapts too well. It becomes locked into that one pattern—sometimes creating imbalances or injuries over time.

The fix?
👉 Rotate your shoes.
Even just switching between 2 pairs can keep your body adaptable, build stronger muscles, and seriously cut injury risk.

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