In another post I was trying to glean which shoes might be best for a heavy suponator that has to use a rigid orthotic to keep his feet from falling apart. Didn’t get any replies because i think it was too buried in a running post.
So any thoughts?
Also, is it possible that my orthotics are the cause of my soleus pain?
The best advice I received from the pedorthotist who made my rigid orthotics was to always buy a shoe with a “straight last”. He felt that orthotics don’t work well with curved last shoes, at least in my case that is. I have never had a problem since. The “best” shoe for you? Personal preference. Every company out there makes a great shoe and what fits my foot great might not be the same for you. Please don’t be swayed by people saying “this is the best shoe for you”. Btw, I also have orthotics in my cycling shoes.
My daughter got two pairs of orthotics for flat feet a couple years ago, one pair for soccer cleats and the other for running shoes. We bought shoes that had removable insoles, Mizuno for the running shoes and Nike for the soccer cleats. The orthotics replaced the stock insole. She is doing much better with them than without.
I have orthotics that I use daily to walk in and to run. After talking with my pediatrist, he made a lot of sense when I asked him about what shoes to buy. The orthotics are correcting something wrong with your feet (for me its flat feet). The orthotics bring your feet back to “neutral.” If you buy a shoe that has some form of correction in them, then you are creating a problem b/c if the orthotics corrected the problem with your feet, then using a shoe that also has a form of correction then you will be “over-correcting.” I’ve been running in neutral shoes ever since and have not had a problem.
I wear asics nimbus with mine…they are what I have worn for years and just happened to be what was recommended to me as well. I do business with 3 different offices that offer custom orthotics and all three of them have a heavy stock of asics on their walls-maybe just a coincidence.
x2 to what Lanceuppercut said, I go with neutral shoes to avoid a correction upon a correction.
I tried several different brands/models and my main complaint was the fabric in the inside heel would wear out after a few hundred kilometres. This is probably due to the shape/size of the orthotic. I eventually found the new balance 1061 (now evolved to the 1080) were comfortable and accepted the orthotic well without wearing out. I buy extra wide (2E) as these are more comfortable with the orthotic. 1080’s are pretty heavy, but I race in lighter shoes with no orthotics which by comparison feel like slippers.
My podiatrist recommended neutral shoes for me. The orthotics are designed to correct your problem so you probably don’t want a shoe that does additional correction. I was running in the Asics Nimbus but they aren’t wide enough. I’ve switched to the Brooks Glycerine and I’m very happy with them.
For racing my podiatrist recommended that I keep the orthotics in and suggested I try the Brooks Launch. They feel good so far.