<human>: Can you summarize the given text in a few sentences?

I've been doing research online but I haven't really gotten the exact answers I'm looking for, so I'm hoping some of you experts can help me out and maybe give me some advice!

I'm female, 23, never been a runner, I'm slightly overweight, and on top of that I have flat feet. I'm currently training for a 5k in April, and it's proving to be harder than expected. It seems I can't go even half a mile without shin splints. I've tried 3 different pairs of running shoes but I'm not quite sure what the best kind would be.

At the end of my runs when I'm cooling down and stretching, my shins feel like they're popping? Or snapping maybe? It feels really weird and makes me wonder if that's normal or if I'm hurting myself.

I do my runs in my neighborhood which is quite hilly so I'm usually running up or down hill, hardly ever on a even surface. I've noticed when I run down hill, especially if my shins are really starting to hurt, my feet seems to just slap the ground instead of rolling heel to toe and I really just need some advice. I don't know if I'm doing something wrong, I have no experience and don't know who to ask. It's really frustrating because I'm trying so hard to get healthier and lose weight and accomplish my goal of finishing this 5k!

Thank you guys for reading and for your input :)
<bot>: I have flat feet and my feet slap the ground when I run and my shins feel like they are snapping/popping.