I have custom orthodics for really flat feet. They have elimated my knee pain completely and allowed me to finish IMLP.
I’ve been trying to improve my run form by increasing cadence and as a result seem to have a more mid to forefoot strike with the increase in cadence. Do I need to wear a stability shoe if I have orthodics and mid-foot strike?
I run with orthotics and am a mid foot striker for sure. I run in a neutral shoe, the orthotic does the correcting for me so I don’t need more from a shoe.
dave
At the risk of getting slammed by the "experts’: If you have a well/properly made orthotic, it should correct such that a neutral or very mild stability trainer would be best for you. Too stable a shoe could actually overcorrect your foot and cause other issues. Your local run shop should be able to help you find something appropriate as they probably deal with this all day long.
Depends upon many factors, but in general the other replies are correct. Most people with orthotics can get away with using them in a good “neutral” or light stability shoe.
If your “flatfoot” compensation was mostly rearfoot/subtalar joint and you don’t heel strike at all (i.e. when sprinting), then your orthotic will likely be less effective and you need to rely on the shoe more then.
Use a lightweight, neutral shoe. Orthotics should provide all the correction you need as well as more stiffness than you should need (but you might need it). Stability shoes are way too stiff to use with well-made orthotics.
Your arch is your shock absorber, and orthotics take away most of the ability of the arch to do that part of its job. A stability shoe will eliminate whatever is left. You’ll run faster and healthier if you find a more flexible, neutral shoe, which should also be lightweight, but flexibility is more important than weight.
Depends on a lot of factors. For some people, the orthotic does all the correcting they need – they should run in a neutral shoe. For other people, the shoe does some of the work and the orthotic does some of the work – they should run in a neutral shoe. For an unfortunately large number of people, stability shoes do everything they need and they didn’t really need the orthotics. For many people, what you need depends on intensity – for short runs or low intensity, you can tolerate more than you can in longer, harder runs.
For the cost of two office co-pays (where your doctor probably won’t be able to give you a definitive answer anyway) I’d suggest just getting a pair of lighter, neutral shoes and trying them out. Start out by alternating them with your stability shoes, using the neutrals for your easier workouts. If you don’t develop any problems, try using the neutrals for your harder workouts and stability shoes for your easier ones. If you still don’t have any problems, then you can run in a neutral shoe. If you develop immediate problems, then you need a stabilty shoe. If you’re somewhere in the middle, you can keep alternating and pick different shoes for different workout goals.
Word of caution: if you try to alternate a brand new pair of neutral shoes with an old beat up pair of stability shoes, you’re going to favor the neutrals because the cushioning is much better. Best to try this experiment with two brand new sets of shoes.
Lee Silverman
JackRabbit Sports
New York City
i would disagree on having two different sets of shoes. changing your biomechanics for positive results happens over thousands and thousands of cycles - a lot is shifting around, and your body needs to adapt everything.
i went from wearing brooks “the beast” max cushion, max stability, max motion control until i got my orthodics. that was WAY too much stability and control in a shoe in conjunction with an orthodic (mine at least).
after sessions with my PT, and needing to try something new, i tried the max cushion, neutral shoe - which for brooks is the glycerin. i am absolutely in LOVE with that shoe in combination with my orthodics.
You should really get a proper analysis done.
I was having lots of shin issues and went to see someone. He video taped my running and we determined taht I was pronating. I got some other shoes to try out and after more video analysis we decided taht I needed some moderate motion control.
Fast forward a number of months and I was still having shin issues. We decided that I needed to get some orthotics for my unusually high arches. We thought that the orthotics would eliminate my need for motion control shoes. However, after more video analysis with a number of different shoes it was obvious that I still needed motion control with my orthotics.
Orthotics will deal with what your foot is doing inside the shoe, but that doesn’t necessary correct what it happening with the shoe itself in relation to your foot and body.