Which Shoe is Best for you?

That is a great question.  I am not sure, but I have found the perfect shoes for me.  It was quite a process, and took a few years to accomplish, however it was worth the journey.  I am able to run more often, run faster, and most importantly run without injury.  And no, I am not going to tell you the brand name, because that wouldn’t help you, as your feet are different than mine.  Not to mention, when you find that perfect shoe, the manufacturer usually modifies it for its next release and it no longer feels the same, anyway.   I would much rather tell you how I went abou t finding my shoe, so the next time you go to find the perfect shoe for you, you have a little more information to make the right choice.

When I started triathlon, running was my least favorite discipline.   No matter how long or how slow I ran, it seemed that something on my body (knees, feet, hips, ankles, etc.) was sore after every run.  I dealt with it, but I never looked forward to running like I did swimming and cycling.  I was advised to go to a running store with knowledgeable people and have them find a pair of running shoes that fit me.  I took this advice and found out that I over pronated with both feet, but moreso with the left.  I went home with a brand new pair of stability shoes and the confidence that I now was going to be able to run faster and longer. 

What I found was that the shoes gave me blisters at first, and although I seemed to have less aches and pains, my joints still didn’t feel great.  I was stretching afterwards and warming up properly, but not getting the results I thought.  I figured that running would always be painful. 

Then while swimming in Silver Lake, I met a chiropractor, who performed ART (for another blog ,but I am a big fan of Active Release Technique).   He said that he wore orthotics and also told me that they could help me.  After some thought, I was fitted for orthotics the next week, and started running with these in my shoes.  And although they took some getting used to, they did seem to make me feel better.  And I started going longer with less pain.  I even put the orthotics in some neutral shoes, and that seemed to work, too.  However, after a period of time, I started to have ITB issues and also my feet seemed to go numb (on the bike and after about 10 miles on the run).   I had no idea why this was happening.

This is about the time I hired a coach.  One of the first things we did was a gait analysis.  He was also, able to spot my overpronation (among other things like: low stride rate, hip sagging, no forward lean, heal strike, etc.).  But instead of prescribing a certain shoe or orthotics, he showed me strengthening exercises.  We re-built my run gait with short 400m sessions and lots of drills.  The exercises were short and easy, but extremely effective.  Exercises on the wobble board, exercises with a sissel plate, and other excercies to make my feet and ankles much more stable.  We got rid of the orthotics ,and we went to a neutral shoe.  We even did barefoot running intervals (short, of course…see Brett’s previous blog).  I was doing short runs in running flats with no stability without pain.  Today, I run any race 13.1 and shorter in flats.  If I don’t stay up with the exercises, I notice some of the nagging issues coming back.  So, I still do them 2-3 times a week.  I work on my running form constantly.  I do other foot exercises at my desk (like the towel pull in drill by scrunching toes).  I walk barefoot when I can. 

I will mention that I did have to go with a wider shoe.  I ended up getting a Morton’s neuroma while I was wearing the orthotics.  It seems the orthotics scrunched my toes together (I have very flat feet) and it irritated the nerve in there.  All along, I thought it was cleat position on the bike.  The wider toe box (I will mention New Balance, here b/c they do come in all widths), really has alleviated this issue.   

So, now I am pretty happy with my shoes.  I still try different brands, but for me I find that a neutral shoe, with a wide toe box,  good cushioning in the forefoot, and a low heel profile (to further promote midfoot striking) helps me to run further and faster.  And isn’t that the reason we do this anyway?

And now to the point of my long story.  Instead of trying so many different kinds of shoes, or settling for a heavier and sometimes non effective stability shoe, you may want to skip that and start strengthening your feet and ankles (and hips).  There are many exercises on the web and they are extremely effective.  I would also suggest getting a run gait analysis by a qualifed person.  By modifying your gait, you will have the ability to run with less injury, which will give your body the ability to run more often, which will result in running faster.   Finally, I have found that rotating two pair of shoes really makes them last longer.  Keep track of your miles on each pair (via your training log that I am sure you are keeping up to date).  When they get to about 300-350 miles and you start to get some aches, it’s most likely time to replace them.  And when its time to replace them, bring them into your running store, they more than likely will be able to donate them to a charity or even give you a discount on your new pair.  Until then, keep running faster, longer, and injury free!

Posted by Coach Scott  – USAT and USAC Certified Coach for PPL