Sunday, April 29, 2012

The Agony of Da Feet



After the Austin 70.3 last October I felt like I had the wrong running shoes. 

I went to a local running store, and discussed my running, goals, and what I was in.

At the time, I was wearing Nike Voomero 5’s.  I had a Good Feet orthotic I wore with them.  One of my goals was to eliminate the orthotic if possible since it shifted and was kind of a pain. 

We settled on Brooks Adrenaline 11s.  The felt pretty good at the start.  A short time later, though, I had a calf strain on a run.  Not sure if it was the fault of the shoe, but it set my running back.  After healing and returning to running, I haven’t felt like I got back to where I was pre-Austin.  I picked up a pair of Adidas Super-Novas which were our second choice.  I haven’t really cared for those at all.   

My feet and ankles tend to be sore after longer runs.  Based on this, I thought maybe going away from the orthotic was a mistake. 

I decided to go back to Road Runner Sports, go through the “Shoe Dog” process and see where we came out. 

The fitter suggested custom insoles based on my right and left foot being vastly different.  Since I would really like to be more comfortable on long runs, I agreed to give them a try. 

He also recommended four possible shoes.  The Brooks Adrenaline, now 12s was one of the choices, along with the Brooks Trance.  We also looked at a pair of Asics Kayanos and Saucony Guides. 

All four pair felt really good.  This made me realize it wasn’t the shoe as much as the insole.  The custom insoles are feeling GREAT.  We’ll see how they do over time, but I am really excited for my run Tuesday. 

Here’s the deal on how I say the insoles felt so good.  My feet and ankles were killing me after the run, when they tested my gait in my socks at RRS, I could barely do 1/8 of a mile at 5.2 MPH.  With the insoles, I dialed it up to 5.5 and felt like I could go for a few miles.  I took it up to 6, then 6.5 MPH; and felt good!  This is after a 10 mile run earlier that I could barely finish.  Over the 4 pair of shoes, and trying them I ran over a mile, and felt like I could have run more.  I actually feel better after running more with the insoles than I did earlier. 

I settled on the Brooks Trance.  The Trance is a bit more stable than the Adrenaline.  Since I have a pair of Adrenalines, I think I can now do a good comparison with live running, using the custom insoles.   

We’ll see how this all works out.  If you start seeing more Daily Mile happy faces after my runs, you’ll know the shoes/insoles are working!

3 comments:

  1. I can't run, or even walk, without my orthotics. I use PowerStep, which is good for me. I'd love customs, as my arches are impossibly high and I have plantar fasciitis, but can't afford them. Hope these help you!

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  2. These aren't orthotics, just custom insoles. But because my feet are so different, I think I'm on to something!

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  3. I'm just now entering the world of orthotics, but trying to go to a more minimal shoe at the same time. The Adrenaline left my felt/ankles feeling just like you described. After my 1/2 marathon in the fall, I SWORE I had a stress fracture. I could hardly get out of bed they ached so much!! I have the Trance, but its too big/heavy...the Keyano has always been my "go too" shoe, but I want to loose the heal. I've got the Saucony Hurricane with the 8mm drop now, the Saucony Cortana with the 4mm drop and have purchased my 1st pair of stability Newtons. BUT....I must find an orthotic that works b/c they will not provide enough control. The PT gave me some some yellow SuperFeet for my bike shoes and I really like them, but they won't work for my running ones b/c they are not flexible enough. Soooo, which orthotics do you LOVE????? or rather insoles....because I'm thinking I overpronate with my right which is the leg I always injure AND my donimate leg, but not with my left...curious...

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