Pins and Needles While Running

I am experiencing pins and needles to both lower legs and feet during my regular jogging routes. I go for about 4-5 miles each times.

Although not painful I do find it very uncomfortable. My calves are always very tight.



Answer by Dominique:


Hi there,
Thanks for your question about pins and needles.
Pins and needles are usually caused due to reduced blood circulation.

Make sure your shoes are not too tight on your feet. Make the shoe laces a bit looser.

You say your calves are tight. That makes me think that the reason may not be so much your shoe laces, but your natural blood circulation.
This could be a bit slow, causing pins and needles in places like your feet and toes.

The way to enhance blood circulation is some good stretches. Now, my normal routine is to not do stretches during my warm-up. I warm-up by doing about 10 minutes of easy running and do my stretches when I have finished my run.

For you, however, it may be beneficial to do those ten minutes of easy running followed by some gentle stretching. See some good running stretches here. Especially heel raises and calf drops would be good to do.

When stretching, always, always first do that period of easy running. You want to warm up those muscles before you stretch or you risk tearing them.

If stretching before and after the run does not help, as with any running injury, I would recommend going to the specialist, i.e. a podiatrist. These pins and needles can also be nerve-related in which case you'd need some professional help.

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Hope this helps.
Best of luck with your running.

Cheers,
Dominique