Shin splints are one of the most common injuries faced by runners. They often flame up in new runners or in runners that change the surface or shoes that they do the majority of running on. They result from a tight shin muscles and inflamed tendons in the area and can often be treated effectively with targetted massage to the area. Be wary of ignoring shin splints as they can often be mistaken and even lead to stress fractures, which are much more serious. A simple rule of thumb that helps differentiate the two is that stress fractures tend to be concentrated on a single point and hurt more in the evening, while shin splints are tender over a wider area and are most tender in the morning.