I’m a pretty bad over pronator. I generally try to run with fairly supportive shoes that provide mid-sole support, eventually though, after 3-4 months of running consistently I end up developing knee pain. Awhile back I went into a running store to see what they had to offer as far as more supportive shoes. The guy ended up giving me a running analysis and advised one of two things. Either the Brooks Beast or go with a light totally unsupportive shoe and allow your ankles and knees to build more strength. The latter option kind of baffles me though. Thoughts?
He also said I was a heel striker, and said I needed to make more of an effort landing on my forefoot/midsole. I have continued to perfect this technique, but I notice whenever I consciously do it, I end up striking my “ball” and never really letting my heel fully land - not sure if this is bad?
The Beast is a tank of a shoe, but I’ve known a couple of guys who wore them and raved about them solving all their running related injuries. As for running on less shoe, I wouldn’t recommend that up front. Learn to run with a good support shoe, then when you have all the kinks worked out, slowly work in less supportive shoes into your rotation. That’s what I did, now I race in flats and train in ligh weight neutral or support shoes.
I started over pronating a few years ago. I used to wear shoes with a bit of support on The recommendation of a pt after getting a running analyis. I ended up always having knee problems and after a coupme of seasons went back to neutral shoes. now i do all my runs in kswiss blade race without any issues.
The reason i pronate is because my arches collapse. using orthotics solves that problem but years of rock climbing gave me strong ankles which fight against The orthotics and end up killing my knees. Thays what The ortho explained to me. Other than that im a pretty neutral runner.
I spent 15 years running in highly supportive shoes with custom orthotics. After a 5 year layoff from running, when I started running again I went straight into a neutral shoe with no orthotics. Because I was making a comeback into running I started from a low mileage and worked my way up. After 9 months of that I ran an IM in a racing flat. I never had any knee problems as result of changing from supportive shoes to flats. It certainly can be done but I would make the following points about my approach:
I started from a low base and worked up
I started training in Asics DS Trainers which have mid support and worked into a Asics Spreedstar with less support, and then ultimately a racing flat.
I did change from a heel strike to mid foot strike
I had alot of running background so I already had good running form
I don’t know if it makes any difference, but I only weigh 140lb. which may reduce the need for a highly supportive shoe.
I’m also an over pronator, not the worst, but it’s definitely pronounced. Every running store had me in the most expensive, over built shoe on the market. Finally I started experimenting and I still wear a DS Trainer (which has some support, but it’s no Kayano) but for shorter stuff I run in neutral shoes. I’ve really found that as my stride gets better, I’m pretty shoe neutral. I can run in almost everything.
Not a really unique story, but I think running stores immediately recommend support shoes once they see any pronation because for most average runners, that gets them started with the least pain. For more experienced runners I recommend a place like Road Runner Sports that offer a returns policy that allows you to run in the shoe for a month or so. You can decide for yourself what kind of shoe you want and not a running store that looks at your gait for yourself.
I’m also an over pronator, not the worst, but it’s definitely pronounced. Every running store had me in the most expensive, over built shoe on the market. Finally I started experimenting and I still wear a DS Trainer (which has some support, but it’s no Kayano) but for shorter stuff I run in neutral shoes. I’ve really found that as my stride gets better, I’m pretty shoe neutral. I can run in almost everything.
Not a really unique story, but I think running stores immediately recommend support shoes once they see any pronation because for most average runners, that gets them started with the least pain. For more experienced runners I recommend a place like Road Runner Sports that offer a returns policy that allows you to run in the shoe for a month or so. You can decide for yourself what kind of shoe you want and not a running store that looks at your gait for yourself.
Similar here, but had a more intense analysis at the UVA clinic.
Came out ditching $250 custom orthotics and running in Mizuno Inspires. What worked best was doing the hard work of strengthening the glutes and stabilizers. Once I did that (and still do) I stopped getting the nagging injuries. That and I am not running 50+ mpw anymore thanks to multi-sport.
I was in the same situation a few years ago, I used to run in NB 1220 (I think the model was); it was a shoe equivalent to the beasts. After some reading and more running I decided to try something light and I loved it; I used the Adidas Adizero Manas for a while (they’ve changed them now). After a while, everything with support and motion control and stuff, feels like a pair of bricks.
As far as landing on your forefoot, do not focus on that, just focus on having shorter steps at a faster cadence.
yes- attempt to make a move to lighter, less supportive shoes, but do it step by step. Just go with a regular stability shoe rather than a full-on motion control. Work your way into it slowly, alternating pairs.
yes- work on your stride, but just do it by upping your cadence to ~180. Get a good 180bpm playlist (try jog.fm) and just run to the music.
going from the Beast to a neutral minimal shoe is a big step. you’d basically need to start over from scratch- and there’s no reason to do that.
I’m overpronating a lot… if I ran barefout for the camera, you see the achilles tendon flexing about 40 degrees… solution was both supportive shoes and inlays. that was 8 years ago.
8years ago: Asics GT2080 and inlays, I received stronger inlays but the troubled my bad knee en hips, so I keep the old softer inlays
5 years ago, After the GT2080, GT 2090 and GT2100: The GT2110 came…I hated it…to heavy, unable to go fast… so I switched to the less supportive Gel 1110
3 years ago, started racing on DS racer VIII: short and mid distance.
1 year ago: the Gell 1110/1120/1130/1140 were ok for me, (the 1140 not more then that), the 1150, again ,I hated it…felt heavy, runs heavy, and so on…
So, what the hell, let’s try something different: DS Sky Speed (Long distance racing shoe, neutral) . A neutral lichtweight shoe, shifting back my runvolume en traininglength, and giving me time to get used to it (But stil using inlays), now, after 6 months…I don;t want enything else, also was able, due to the light shoe, to switch to midfootstrike instead of heelstrike.
In my experience, overpronating shoes are to heavy and are feeling even more heavy to run well
i was a life long overpronater who slowly switched from motion control shoes to less and less structured shoes. Now I run the most minimalist thing I can find. But it took me 12 months or so. I was also a heel striker (and as a result had many injuries). As I switched to less structured shoes I really worked on not heel striking. I’ve been injury free for 3 years now. if you go minimalist you need to work on not heel striking. There’s not a lot in those shoes to protect your heel (and as a result your achilles and everything else) from the impact.
Mate this sounds like me all over! I was always in Kayanos plus a rigid orthotic, always getting knee pain then shin pain etc, I went to Newtons 12mths ago and have never looked back, they took some getting used to but is well worth it, I am now a mid/forefoot striker, injury free, have just run my first marathon and looking at an ultra.
My feet have strengthened so much that my arches are visibly higher and I can now walk in jandals/barefoot without aggravating my knees which I could never do.
I’ve now just bought some five fingers as I’m confident enough in this that I want to try and have a go.
In my opinion, the human foot was never designed to heel strike, footwear made us do that and created that beast, there is a place for it I’m sure but I’ll never go back to it!
Running shoe “technology” might be the biggest marketing scam ever created.
Asics has the AHAR Cushioning Technlology and the DuoMax Support System.
But if you buy some Brooks Adrenaline you get all of this…Rearfoot HydroFlow® ST, forefoot HydroFlow®. Full-length BioMoGo, Progressive Diagonal Rollbar (PDRB®). Dual-density DRB™ Accel, combination S-257™ Cushsole. HPR Plus™, engineered Stable-Pod construction, blown rubber forefoot.
Of course all of this is old technology. The new technology is minimalist or no technology.
If you over pronate badly, work on technique and fix it.
Sounds like we all have the same experience. I used to run in the Beast and it literally is a beast of a shoe. I see it on the shelves now and wonder who would want such a shoe. About 3 years ago I got a pair of Vibrams and over the course of a year I slowly began to run in them. No injuries yet and my feet have never felt better. Today I run almost exclusively in Newtons Gravity or Distance with som Altra Instincts mixed in. The other day I went to a running store with my 13 year old to get her some shoes and I am wearing flip flops and the guy there tells me how he feels my pain because he noticed I pronate. Tries to sell me the Beast and tells me how it will solve all my problems. I did not tell him what I run in and when I asked about Newtons he said they would be the worst for me and I would end up with all kinds of injuries.
Has anyone here ever worked at a running specialty store? I would be interested to know what percentage of people are diagnosed as an “over pronator.” Again, I guess they take this route to be safe with new runners, but the cynical side of me also wonders if it doesn’t have something to do with the fact that a support shoe tends to cost about $20-30 more than a neutral shoe, and with orthotics you’ve sold $50 worth of extra merchandise.
Has anyone here ever worked at a running specialty store? I would be interested to know what percentage of people are diagnosed as an “over pronator.” Again, I guess they take this route to be safe with new runners, but the cynical side of me also wonders if it doesn’t have something to do with the fact that a support shoe tends to cost about $20-30 more than a neutral shoe, and with orthotics you’ve sold $50 worth of extra merchandise.
My orthotics were from a PT, but having been to the running stores, I will say that we have one that doesn’t push people into motion control (they actually were the first ones to suggest it was too much shoe to have a ‘performance stability’ shoe) and then there is the other that wants to put everyone and their mom into Brooks Adrenalines.
I am slowwwwwly moving towards using a purely neutral shoe for track workouts, but I know that my injury prone hip will not allow it for a longer run right now.
my take on your knee problem is your heel striking. You will eventually need to get away from doing that or you will keep having issues and getting injuries. Shoes with a lots of support tend to put more support for the heel which makes you even heel strike more.
Also, I wouldn’t go with totally unsupportive shoes or barefoot route. You need some support.
I am a forefoot/midfoot runner and over pronate. Some shoes just don’t seem to work for me and feel like they are forcing me to heel strike. Try to find shoes that are light with some support and encourage forefoot/midfoot strike and see if they workout for you.
Thanks everyone, for the great feedback! Now, I just have to find a neutral shoe. I don’t know if I mentioned, but I’ve been using the Asics 2160. I agree they make it really hard to do a forefoot strike because of the heavy heel.
There were the two I was going between for a more neutral shoe, but I’m open to more suggestions.
