Change how i run? (thoughts on mid-foot strike/forefoot running)

[celerystalksme]

hello,

i’m short…i’m light…i’m fit. my 5k run split is around 18 minutes. i overpronate…my arches squish down pretty flat when bearing weight. so i have motion control shoes…and super stiff arch support insoles. my heels and arches are a bit sore…my shins become slightly sore. last summer i suffered from plantar fasciitis for a spell. i THINK i’m a heel striker. and my running is damn loud.

for the first time, i looked into newton shoes and non-heel strike running. what is the tri community thoughts on forefoot running, ball/heel/ball, pose…

is it worth the time and effort to convert?

[jhart]

They are great shoes but a word of caution: a radical change in your foot strike can lead to lower leg problems that can be very difficult to alleviate. I know this from experience. Having said that there is no question that for most individuals a mid or forefoot stike will result in more speed.

[Mighty_Mouse]

sound kinda like me: light, pronator, heel striker. Try leaning a little forward when you run, and try to have your foot strike under your knee/hip. Doing these 2 things helped me land on my forefoot more, reduce the length of my stride, and increase my cadence.

[celerystalksme]

sound kinda like me: light, pronator, heel striker. Try leaning a little forward when you run, and try to have your foot strike under your knee/hip. Doing these 2 things helped me land on my forefoot more, reduce the length of my stride, and increase my cadence.
did you changes shoes to something with a less built up heel? or newtons? or did you just keep using what you had? was there a long period of adjustment? calf pain?

[xtrpickels]

They are great shoes but a word of caution: a radical change in your foot strike can lead to lower leg problems that can be very difficult to alleviate. I know this from experience. Having said that there is no question that for most individuals a mid or forefoot stike will result in more speed.
This is good advice.

You can become more of a forefoot striker without going all the way to a Newton. Which motion control shoes are you currently wearing? Perhaps taking steps to reduce the amount of support can help you get to a goal instead of jumping in “feet first”.

[celerystalksme]

They are great shoes but a word of caution: a radical change in your foot strike can lead to lower leg problems that can be very difficult to alleviate. I know this from experience. Having said that there is no question that for most individuals a mid or forefoot stike will result in more speed.
This is good advice.

You can become more of a forefoot striker without going all the way to a Newton. Which motion control shoes are you currently wearing? Perhaps taking steps to reduce the amount of support can help you get to a goal instead of jumping in “feet first”.
i’m wearing Saucony Stabil 6…should i switch to a shoe with less support? would going to the newton’s be a bad idea?

[desert_dude]

odds are if you just ran and didn’t think you would be ok.

So you get sore and achy from running? If so what is your frequency and consistency over the past few months (be honest)? Look for the obvious training mistakes first before trying to tinker with running form.

If you are thinking your doing one thing, I’m thinking your thinking wrong. Before you go wasting er investing your money in newtons or other shoes, figure out how you are actually running.

Video tape yourself at several velocities, using dartfish would be good, then slow it down until you know what you are doing. When you no longer have to think you are doing something and you know what you are actually doing then, and only then think about which shoes are right for you and what if any form changes need to be made.

Thinking w/out knowing is likely to get you in as much trouble as it will get you out of.

[celerystalksme]

odds are if you just ran and didn’t think you would be ok.

So you get sore and achy from running? If so what is your frequency and consistency over the past few months (be honest)? Look for the obvious training mistakes first before trying to tinker with running form.

If you are thinking your doing one thing, I’m thinking your thinking wrong. Before you go wasting er investing your money in newtons or other shoes, figure out how you are actually running.

Video tape yourself at several velocities, using dartfish would be good, then slow it down until you know what you are doing. When you no longer have to think you are doing something and you know what you are actually doing then, and only then think about which shoes are right for you and what if any form changes need to be made.

Thinking w/out knowing is likely to get you in as much trouble as it will get you out of.

maybe i’ll have to videotape myself to be sure…but i had a friend watch me and she said, “yep, the first thing that hits with every stride is your heel when you run. it’s also the first thing that hits when you walk.”

i used to never get sore…and i’ve never had to miss a day of physical activity due to injury. but now i’m 31, almost 32…and last summer, for the first time ever, my soreness caused me to stop physical activity. i got plantar fasciitis in my left foot…quadricep tendonitis in my left leg. after my summer of injury, i stopped running…and just stuck with cycling.

well…i just started running again after my shoe store said a motion control shoe should fix things! it didn’t. my arches began aching bad immediately, after the first run. i rested it like crazy…kept it elevated…iced it…massaged it…took anti-inflammatories. then i did some googling and decided to get some serious arch support insoles.

that has helped! for sure! but it still gets slightly sore…something i wasn’t used to all the up to the age of 31. and now my left shn is getting a bit sore and painful.

i don’t train a lot at all! i’ve only done sprint tri’s…and i’m OK for the moment with 5k in 18 minutes. to get back into the swing of things, i’ve taken it really easy cuz i’m so scared of injury. right now i’m running three times a week…2-5 miles tops. and that’s pretty much all i can handle. my arches NEED the day break from such a short run to recover.

so something is wrong…i don’t know what…but something…

i’ve been in a couple different stability shoes…i tried a few motion control shoes and that’s what i currently use…i got arch support insoles. and i’ve never had any problems until about 7 months ago. what could have changed? could i have changed my stride over the years to the point where it’s now awful? is it just age? until 7 months ago…i could wear whatever i wanted on my feet…i could run for as long as i wanted…and i’d be fine.

now…all of a sudden…i’m in pain and nothing is working to make me feel the way i used to…

[xtrpickels]

I do think that more of a midfoot strike will reduce stress on arches.

The Stabil is certainly a “block of wood” of a shoe. It may be difficult to achieve a midfoot / forefoot stride because of its stiffness. I would recommend going to a running store and having them record / do a gait analysis with you in something like the Saucony Omni or other “stability” class shoes. If that looks decent, try it out for a while and see how it goes. That will help your foot adapt to less support and for it to grow stronger. After a period you may be able to step down the support again.

On the topic of growing stronger; is it possible that your loud footsteps are from an uncontrolled slapping of the foot to the ground instead of a smoother deceleration? The stiff shoe might be creating more torque, forcing your foot down quicker. It, along with your orthotics may be leading to a weakening of the muscles about your ankles. Potentially strengthening exercises for the lower leg, foot and ankle could reduce stress on your arches and the symptom of loudness.

Jumping right into a newton (or similar shoe) increases the likelihood of you becoming injured. I will never say that you “will get injured” because there is no way of knowing. If you want to get to a shoe like the newton, taking it in steps will increase the likelihood of success.

I liken this to “Well, people from other nations run barefoot and they don’t complain of back and foot issues… Therefore we must all run barefoot”. While this may certainly be true, it doesn’t mean that its true for you.

Two more thoughts.

1. How old / many miles are on your current shoes?
2. What are your height and weight?

[celerystalksme]

I do think that more of a midfoot strike will reduce stress on arches.

The Stabil is certainly a “block of wood” of a shoe. It may be difficult to achieve a midfoot / forefoot stride because of its stiffness. I would recommend going to a running store and having them record / do a gait analysis with you in something like the Saucony Omni or other “stability” class shoes. If that looks decent, try it out for a while and see how it goes. That will help your foot adapt to less support and for it to grow stronger. After a period you may be able to step down the support again.

On the topic of growing stronger; is it possible that your loud footsteps are from an uncontrolled slapping of the foot to the ground instead of a smoother deceleration? The stiff shoe might be creating more torque, forcing your foot down quicker. It, along with your orthotics may be leading to a weakening of the muscles about your ankles. Potentially strengthening exercises for the lower leg, foot and ankle could reduce stress on your arches and the symptom of loudness.

Jumping right into a newton (or similar shoe) increases the likelihood of you becoming injured. I will never say that you “will get injured” because there is no way of knowing. If you want to get to a shoe like the newton, taking it in steps will increase the likelihood of success.

I liken this to “Well, people from other nations run barefoot and they don’t complain of back and foot issues… Therefore we must all run barefoot”. While this may certainly be true, it doesn’t mean that its true for you.

Two more thoughts.

1. How old / many miles are on your current shoes?
2. What are your height and weight?

i don’t think any of my local running stores are hi tech enough to have gait analysis…they’ve never mentioned and i’ve never seen video or computer equipment…or even a treadmill.

as for my loud running…i’ve been a lound running as long as i can remember…with neutral shoes, stability shoes and now with my motion control shoes…

1. my current shoes are brand new! i JUST started running again…i got these shoes like 2 weeks ago…they have less than 30 miles on them. the reason i got them was because my stability shoe that i was using this summer probably had around 300 miles on them…and i started to get injured…so i figured maybe i was using the wrong shoe. but…so far…this shoe has been not much better. i suppose they might need some break-in time. and the inserts have certainly helped. but…i’ve never needed break-in time in the past to start feeling comfortable in a shoe. strange…maybe i’m just getting old…?

2. i’m 5’5" and 133 lbs

[Mighty_Mouse]

i started training more in Saucony tangent 3’s. Brooks ST racer, and doing more workouts in my spikes to build up my calf muscles, so i could run on my forefoot more without as much fatigue.

[Mighty_Mouse]

also, i started running barefoot, doing barefoot strides and doing foot drills. I would run like a mile on the grass, then do some foot drills which build up the muscles in your feet, like walking on your toes, your heels, the outside of your foot, and then do about 8-10 strides on the track, just focusing on form.

[lamneth]

Hi there. 1st post here… this thread de-lurked me after ~4+years. Disclaimer I am not a runner, but I am in the process of changing my run form. I had similar story… heel striker but with flat arches. I was wearing motion control shoes + orthotics. I dealt with achilles and patellar tendonitis issues for years. I decided about 2 weeks ago to change my form in hopes that I can run without injury.
I alternate between an old pair of Nike Free and my Brooks T4 flats. My 1st run was only 7minutes - my lower legs were very tight (especially inner lower leg). It felt like a lot of “pressure”. I then did 2x15minute runs per day. By the end of the week I was able to run 30minutes. I switched all my runs to trails. I am almost 2 weeks in and the legs are adjusting. I have been doing some yoga (3xweek) to help stretch as well. As others said, concentrate on cadence. Don’t worry about pace or distance. Just give it time and don’t build up mileage too fast. Listen to your body. Hope this helps.

[celerystalksme]

Hi there. 1st post here… this thread de-lurked me after ~4+years. Disclaimer I am not a runner, but I am in the process of changing my run form. I had similar story… heel striker but with flat arches. I was wearing motion control shoes + orthotics. I dealt with achilles and patellar tendonitis issues for years. I decided about 2 weeks ago to change my form in hopes that I can run without injury.
I alternate between an old pair of Nike Free and my Brooks T4 flats. My 1st run was only 7minutes - my lower legs were very tight (especially inner lower leg). It felt like a lot of “pressure”. I then did 2x15minute runs per day. By the end of the week I was able to run 30minutes. I switched all my runs to trails. I am almost 2 weeks in and the legs are adjusting. I have been doing some yoga (3xweek) to help stretch as well. As others said, concentrate on cadence. Don’t worry about pace or distance. Just give it time and don’t build up mileage too fast. Listen to your body. Hope this helps.
what cadence should i shoot for? i though i read somewhere that fast distance runners keep a cadence of something like 84-92 or something. as a long striding heel striker, i’m more like 77-83 or something like that.

[no_good]

…devil’s advocate…
You are running in Saucony Stabil’s, which is their ultimate stability shoe. In fact, they don’t have another option at that level of stability.
Do you really pronate that much? IMO, your high arches require extra cushinging, not necessarily motion control.
If you like the fit of Saucony Stabil, try hurricane or omni (see stability or light stability below).

Light Stability
ProGrid™ Paramount
Grid Tangent 3
ProGrid™ Guide
ProGrid™ Guide TR Stability
ProGrid™ Hurricane 10
ProGrid™ Omni 7 Ultimate
ProGrid™ Omni 7 Moderate
Ultimate Stability (Only shoe in this category…Stabil)

I’ve run in Saucony’s for more years than I want to mention. Have you talked to a Saucony rep to figure the best shoe for you?
There are other shoes, for the neutral runner, which have more cushining, such as the triumph or even grid shadow (trainer).

[gamebofh]

You’ve chosen a solution when you can’t describe the problem.

Newton’s are tri-specific, but for everything you describe there are a LOT
of shoes with a LOT more people running in them for a LOT less solving
those problems.

So, yep, Newton’s are what you should buy.

-Jot “note to self: buy newton stock”

[ECE]

Over the course of the last few years I changed the way my foot was striking the ground to the point at the end of last season going into the beginning of the 2008 season, my heel was never really hitting the ground while I was running. I got a nice case of Achilles tendonitis in April and after slow motion video analysis, it was determined that my foot strike along with a few other muscle imbalances was the cause of the tendonitis. Forefoot striking in my case cased issues with my Achilles because of the deceleration that the heel/midfoot is natuarlly designed to do wasn’t part of the equation and my calf and AT was doing double duty of deceleration and acceleration.

One of the things that I have now been working on is changing my foot strike back to my more natural midfoot or maybe a better description is more flatfooted. I have pretty high arches but have a neutral gait and use a neutral cushioning shoe.

[Daremo]

For the umpteen millionth time, there is nothing wrong with landing on your heel.

It matters not which PART of your foot you land on. It matters WHERE your foot lands in relation to the rest of your body.

Spend less time worrying about which part of your foot hits first (and all the people who think they are mid-foot or fore-foot runners are still probably heel strikers, they just think they aren’t and have mentally convinced themselves otherwise) and more time thinking about where your foot lands in relation to your bodyline.

[celerystalksme]

…devil’s advocate…
You are running in Saucony Stabil’s, which is their ultimate stability shoe. In fact, they don’t have another option at that level of stability.
Do you really pronate that much? IMO, your high arches require extra cushinging, not necessarily motion control.
If you like the fit of Saucony Stabil, try hurricane or omni (see stability or light stability below).

my running store recommended motion control based on my recent injury history…and by watching me walk and job. two different sales associates said i’m an excessive overpronator…one guy said i have flat feet…the other guy said i have normal to high arches but when i start putting weight on them, they squish down pretty flat. they both thought motion control.

when that didn’t help my arch pain, i used google and learned that other overpronators with flat feet found some success by getting insoles with greate arch support. so i got some nifty insoles…and they definitely seem to help! but it’s still not perfect.

[celerystalksme]

You’ve chosen a solution when you can’t describe the problem.

Newton’s are tri-specific, but for everything you describe there are a LOT
of shoes with a LOT more people running in them for a LOT less solving
those problems.

So, yep, Newton’s are what you should buy.

-Jot “note to self: buy newton stock”

i described the problem. but let me recap and elaborate for you.

never used to have pain. now i have arch pain, heel pain…this past summer i got plantar fasciitis and quadricep tedonitis. went to shoe shop…described what was going on…they ditched the stability shoes they’ve always put me in the past and put me in a motion control shoe.

slightly improved the pain…but i still experience pain and tenderness. so i got arch support insoles based on stuff i read on google. it helped too. but still not painless like i’ve been running all my life until 6-7 months ago.

looked up more stuff on interweb. learned about heel striking and the pain/injury risk associated with it. had a friend watch my gait and stride while running and walking. she says i heel strike at all speeds.

that brings me to now. i’m asking you guys what your thoughts are on my situation…whether i should try to change my running style…and whether i should get newtons or not.