BLUF: I’ve been getting some run coaching from my exercise physiologist and now my Cloudflows are causing me pain on my forefoot.
Going back six months I was running in Nike Zoom Fly 3s leading up to and including running a marathon. Never really felt comfortable in them and they rubbed my achilles so I offloaded them and gave the On Running Cloudflows a go. I loved them. They were comfy and felt fast. I had no issues in a 70.3 back in December or an Olympic Distance in January. But about four weeks ago my exercise physiologist I’m seeing for my shoulder offered to critique my run. He specialises in run technique for professional AFL and soccer players and routinely works with distance runners. He has me focusing on mid-foot landing, landing under my hips and increasing my cadence. After working on this for a few weeks my efficiency has without a doubt improved but i’m starting to get sore forefoot (ball of the foot). Today he got me to alternate running in my Cloudflows and barefoot. No pain barefoot and pain in shoes. His conclusion is the pain is linked to my calves straining to generate drive, hypothesising that the sole of my shoes are too soft. This was not an issue when I was heel striking like a boss. No pain barefoot due to no squishy sole.
Has anyone experienced similar when addressing run technique? And how much trade off is acceptable between cushion for a half marathon and firmness for maximum drive (probably a better way to word this)?
Awesome timing as I’m racing a 70.3 on Sunday and committed to running in shoes that are now causing me discomfort when running with efficiency.
Ah the world of running and running shoes. When I help runners, we always fix the form first then change the shoes if needed. I actually take them shopping when it’s time for new shoes. It’s Thursday, you have time to find a new pair of shoes. Iâ€m not a fan of new shoes for race day but in this case I don’t see how you can not look for a new shoe. You must have a shoe in your history that you really liked. Go back that that shoe only the newer model. You won’t feel worse on race day and there’s a good chance your feet won’t hurt at all.
Ah the world of running and running shoes. When I help runners, we always fix the form first then change the shoes if needed. I actually take them shopping when it’s time for new shoes. It’s Thursday, you have time to find a new pair of shoes. Iâ€m not a fan of new shoes for race day but in this case I don’t see how you can not look for a new shoe. You must have a shoe in your history that you really liked. Go back that that shoe only the newer model. You won’t feel worse on race day and there’s a good chance your feet won’t hurt at all.
Lets say I go buy a new shoe this morning, do a 30min run with a few accelerations this afternoon, then a 20min easy trot Saturday would that be sufficient to “wear in” a new show? I’m mighty tempted to give the NB 1500v6 a go as a much earlier version was probably the nicest shoe I ran in. Definitely be on the firmer side but maybe a bit harsh for a 70.3…
Ah the world of running and running shoes. When I help runners, we always fix the form first then change the shoes if needed. I actually take them shopping when it’s time for new shoes. It’s Thursday, you have time to find a new pair of shoes. Iâ€m not a fan of new shoes for race day but in this case I don’t see how you can not look for a new shoe. You must have a shoe in your history that you really liked. Go back that that shoe only the newer model. You won’t feel worse on race day and there’s a good chance your feet won’t hurt at all.
Lets say I go buy a new shoe this morning, do a 30min run with a few accelerations this afternoon, then a 20min easy trot Saturday would that be sufficient to “wear in” a new show? I’m mighty tempted to give the NB 1500v6 a go as a much earlier version was probably the nicest shoe I ran in. Definitely be on the firmer side but maybe a bit harsh for a 70.3…
slightly offtopic, but I really want a pair of the 1500v6 NYC marathon. They look super awesome, but from what I read they are a stability shoe for pronation and that is the opposite of my gait problems
My first run in my Altra Instincts (first generation) was my long run. Though not a race, it was the first time ever I’d not phased in a new shoe with shorter runs. If it fits right, doesn’t have seam to rub the wrong places, then it shouldn’t be an issue.
Aren’t there two different things here being conflated. 1 - adapting to new shoes and the differences that they make to the way the foot lands and then angles the lower leg / knee. And 2 - wearing/breaking in a new pair of shoes to stretch the material / get lace tension right.
In the case of replacing a pair of shoes with an identical pair then only#2 is needed, and as you say a 30 min run and perhaps wandering around house in them will work.
But in the case of swapping makes / drop / support then #1 is the dominant issue. And for a 70.3 then that’s a long way if the new shoes are pulling your knee in a way that is different and you’ve not built up the strength.
I accept that going to a good run shop, getting shoes that work well for you, should minimise this, but there’s a risk. So then it comes down to just how much pain the old shoes cause you - is it bad enough to stop you / slow you in the race this weekend. Or is it something you can suck up. On other thought, running technique sessions, especially on the track you may be doing great at landing mid foot. I would just question if you still will be doing that in the last 5 miles of a 70.3 or if you’ll be drifting back to a degree of heel as fatigue hits. I ask this as I went through a similar change last year, but come the latter part of an ironman run then I was glad that I’d got the added support. Turns out that running midfoot 1:3X half marathons (yeah, nothing amazing but swift enough to be midfoot) is not the same as you’ll be doing when keeping pace for a 3:30-3:40 marathon.
I went to The Running Company down the road and just about ran in every pair of shoes they had. At first the person helping me was trying to bring me shoes with more cushion, despite what I was trying to explain. Then another person came over after overhearing my problem. I bit of discussion and a bit of prodding of my sore spot and he agreed that while it sounds counterintuitive, he could see how a firm flat would perhaps be a better race shoe for me.
So, I am now the owner of a pair of hot pink Nike Zoom Strike 7s. Fit like a glove. Feel firm and responsive in the mid-foot but also have a little bit of cushion on the heel just in case my form does fail at the back end of the race. I did a 30min run on the race course this afternoon. It was supposed to be an easy trot but ended up being a tempo run as the shoes just felt so damn good at my goal race pace and I really struggled to force my heel down to test worst case.
30min is not 1:3X but the pain I was feeling was no where to be seen and the confidence is back because of that, and because they feel fast, and they’re PINK. I’ll report back on Sunday night post race.
Ah the world of running and running shoes. When I help runners, we always fix the form first then change the shoes if needed. I actually take them shopping when it’s time for new shoes. It’s Thursday, you have time to find a new pair of shoes. Iâ€m not a fan of new shoes for race day but in this case I don’t see how you can not look for a new shoe. You must have a shoe in your history that you really liked. Go back that that shoe only the newer model. You won’t feel worse on race day and there’s a good chance your feet won’t hurt at all.
Lets say I go buy a new shoe this morning, do a 30min run with a few accelerations this afternoon, then a 20min easy trot Saturday would that be sufficient to “wear in” a new show? I’m mighty tempted to give the NB 1500v6 a go as a much earlier version was probably the nicest shoe I ran in. Definitely be on the firmer side but maybe a bit harsh for a 70.3…
N of 1 but I ran a full and a half in a pair of shoes (the inevitable Next%) that all I had done was run round the block in before racing with no problems. So it can be done.
(n.b. my usual training shoe wasn’t a similar Nike)