Went to the podiatrist yesterday - have been having some recurring soreness in my right shin that becomes problematic about 10mins after running, eases as soon as i stop and can often make me run as if I have a flipper on my right foot…
To cut along story short, it was clear that 1) I am a supinator (i.e. strike on the outside of my foot and do not roll in) and 2) my use of motion control shoes (i.e. Brooks Beast, Nike Air Structures) is completely wrong for me. The recommended options were Asics Nimbus and if I wanted to stick with Brooks, then the Glycerine would be my best bet.
As it so happened, I had a pair of Glycerines in the cupboard at home. I went for a run and you guessed it - no change whatsoever. The same discomfort. I was expecting some form of discomfort, given the 180 degree change in shoe type, but was a little dispaoointed to have the SAME pain…a new pain would have made me happy, but not the same pain…
My footstrike is still on the outside. I have to make a very big conscious effort to have the ball of the right foot make contact with the ground. Given this, how might orthotics assist given that I land on the outside, am slightly pigen toed (in that my right toe points a little to the left, rather than straight ahead), which means that my momentum simply does not permit my foot to roll in? I just don’t see how orthotics will help me…
My theory at the moment is that I need to get myself ‘aligned’ thru either physio or chiropractic treatment…I get a sore shin as a result of a bad footstrike which is as a result of problems in my hip…if I get my hip/ alignment right, then perhaps everything else will be fixed (or at least improved) as a consequence?
Forget all these shoes that correct problems they created in the first place. Go for simple basic flexible shoes and work on your technique. Motion control shoes cause me shin issues in the past. Let your musles and motor-neurons make the decisions and control motions.
Me too… I am a supinator. A bad shoe store put me in the wrong shoes (motion control). I ended up with severe shin and ankle tendonitis that hurt so bad I was hobbling around even when I wasn’t running. Running was unbearable.
A good shoe store put me in Asics Gel Nimbus. I was still in pain while the tendonitis was going away, but it eventually did and hasn’t come back yet. I don’t think that switching shoes is going to make an immediate difference for you. You have put a strain on your muscles and tendons. The only way to make that tendonitis go away is to let it heal. But, being in the right shoe should help prevent this from happening again.
What I was told by my shoe store is that the way you strike is the way you strike. You strike the way you do b/c the way your body is built dictates this, and there’s nothing you can do to fix it. I would like to believe this isn’t true. It seems that pronators have their inserts and motion control shoes…what about us??
BWT, Asics has discontinued my size in the gel nimbus. I ordered a bunch of them off the internet, but I will eventually need a new shoe… anyone have thoughts? I need a small size 5…
“I was told by my shoe store is that the way you strike is the way you strike. You strike the way you do b/c the way your body is built dictates this, and there’s nothing you can do to fix it. I would like to believe this isn’t true.”
That’s nonsense. I went from being a heavy heel striker to a mid-foot striker. I also am a supinator and I use the Nike Pegasus because it’s a neutral shoe with a very durable sole. When I was a heel striker I would wear out shoes in about 100 miles. Now they last closer to 400-500 miles. However, the soles of most shoes are not made for supinators and when I’ve tried something different I found they wore out around 200 miles.
If you had a good running coach analyze your form and give you information on what you could do to change your foot strike, it might be very helpful. I was told to never use a shoe with stability or motion control. When I was changing my foot strike I literally had to think about every step for a month or so until the feeling became more natural. The process was also somewhat painful until my muscles/tendons adapted. It’s very likely the improper shoes you used caused inflamation and even changing to the proper shoes won’t alleviate that. Let yourself heal for a couple of weeks, then try the correct shoes again.
Yup - give it some time. Stay in a neutral and lightly cushioned shoe. Also, try to find one built on a straight (hard) or California last and not a semi-curved last as most are. This will help your met adductus (pigeon toed part). Definitely don’t run in a “staibility” or motion control shoe.
I recommend a Mizuno Wave Precision. Very light, neutral and California slip lasted I think. Not terribly durable though. I do not recommend adjusting to midfoot landing if you are a slow runner (say 8 min/mile or over). Just run.
First i would be sure that the shoes is what is causing the shin problem. you didn’t give much info about your training background or if the shin was muscular pain or bone. What type of pain and from where can give a reasonable indication to possible causes. Orthotics dont cure the underlying cause. Poor bike fit can cause pain in the front shin muscles and refer pain to running. Doing too many hills or fast work or volume can cause shin splints or anterior compartment syndrome. I know I have had these problems. None of this was orthotic related. Not being aligned due to flexibility or strength imbalances is probably the main cause of all overuse pain.
I used to wear orthotics;last year I read an article about the 70’s running. Lots of injuries but not (so the premise went) due to shoes, mainly training errors. The flat low profile shoes were much better than the built up “support” type shoe we get nowdays, especially if you have an orthtic flatbed in there as well. Well I am not heavy but always thought I needed orthotics. I ditched them, got the lightest flatest racing flat I could and started running 10km every day…short story…no pain or anything and now running up to 100k every week in racing flats. But here is the rub…you need good bike fit and plenty of flexibility work.
Interesting. I just started this season (Tri) and almost had an early end due to SEVERE pain in my feet (mostly left). I have had this pain when I was a high school and college Lacrosse player, but never paid attention to it due to mostly short bursts of running, and the thought that it was just ill fitting shoes. (the pain feel like i need to crack every joint in my foot). I aldo had shin splints due to running long distances on concrete in indoor soccer shoes. I did not cycle then, but wonder if my current problems - slight shin soreness, and foot pain, might be a result of bike fit?
how do your tell this? I am a slow runner @ 8-10 min miles depending on the distance, but ride a pretty good 20-21 mph on a road bike with aero bars on flat training rides (out and back so wind is a pretty constant factor).
I am especially interested because, as you can see, I suck at running and need to improve, but my mileage suffers as my pain increases.
I have been using orthotics for 10 years now and changes that I made this year have made the most difference. With all previous shoes I noticed that a bulge would start developing on the front-outside part of the shoe after 2 months. Pain would start slowly just like you describe. This year I changed to neutral shoes but the main difference is that they are much wider. This lets the orthotic sit flat on the shoe and because it’s wider, no amount of striking force to the outside makes my foot get out of a full, flat inside shoe surface. Now … they are heavy … they are the NB766 and I wished there would be something ligher out there. Any other shoe gets totally deformed after a couple of weeks. This is the first year that I haven’t had running/knee/shin problems cutting my season short.
Wider shoes might be the ticket for you and your orthotics.
How do you tell bike fit … indeed that is the question. This leads me to one of the problems with riding a bike. Excuse the longwindedness.
There are many formulae, fitters and experts out there. Most of them fit by structural measurements rather than by considering the function of a persons anatomy in the dynamic motion of cycling. For example your seat height should be 0.88x inseam etc etc. Function is determined by an individuals flexibility, muscle imbalances, leg length discrepencies and prefered riding style (toe up/down)etc etc.
My best advice would be to make sure the fitter you seek just doesn’t use formulae.