As a new runner, choosing your first pair of running shoes is a bit of a shot in the dark. The ranges available are vast and the choice is utterly confusing to the uninitiated and I will admit, to some more experienced runners too. While it is possible to pick up a pair of running shoes very cheaply, or in fact pay a king’s ransom, how do you know they are going to be appropriate for you and more seriously, how do you know they are not going to actually cause you harm.
My answer is to recommend a gait analysis. This is what it says, an investigation of how you run, but its form can vary hugely. On a recent visit to Go Outdoors in Exeter, where they advertise gait analysis, I was surprised to find that they apparently had no equipment and the salesman told me that he does it by eye………...I did not have a gait analysis and I did not purchase any shoes, simply because I do not believe that even the most skilled viewer could glean the amount of information that was displayed by the video gait analysis that I have previously experienced.
The majority of stores offering gait analysis use a treadmill with a camera or cameras, to record you running. Initially they will ask you to run for about 20-30 seconds in either your own shoes or a pair of known neutral shoes. The footage can then be played back in slow motion to more clearly see what your foot motion is during each footfall, known as the gait cycle. Somewhat ironically, one of the best descriptions of the gait cycle that I have come across is in this page of advice from Go Outdoors m.gooutdoors.co.uk/expert-a...
When our feet contact the ground whether walking or running, they pronate, or roll slightly, to accommodate the impact and prepare for the push off. The degree to which this happens is classified as either overpronation, neutral, or underpronation (also known as supination). This, along with an explanation of the whole process, is very clearly laid out here runnersneed.com/expert-advi...
Once the observations have been made, we actually come to the controversial part, that divides the running and podiatry worlds. Depending on the analysis, your friendly shoe salesperson will recommend an appropriate stability shoe for the 70% of the population who overpronate, or a neutral, with appropriate cushioning, for the remainder. Next, another short session on the treadmill is videoed. In many stores they have the ability to run and synchronise the two video clips together, so that the difference between footfall can be compared directly, to see whether the overpronation or underpronation has been corrected…...and that is the contentious issue.
There is no doubt that if we did not wear shoes, our feet would naturally work in a different way than when cushioned wedged and cosseted from impact and puncture by modern footwear. Research in India has shown that children who do not wear shoes have a lower incidence of foot problems than those who have always worn shoes. Footwear, including running shoes, forces our feet into relatively unnatural positions, which are deemed by the manufacturers to be beneficial to either performance or injury minimisation. Unfortunately there is very little scientific evidence to prove that your expensive running shoes are in fact going to do as suggested and there is a body of opinion that suggests that padded and cushioned shoes may cause harm. They are the proponents of barefoot running.
For most of us running barefoot is only something we would consider doing on a sandy beach, in warm weather. Our cosseted feet are soft and vulnerable, having been protected all our lives and could not stand the rigours or risks of being uncovered on other surfaces. So while there are true barefoot running aficionados, the canny sports shoe manufacturers moved into this market too, producing “barefoot” running shoes, with minimal padding and support. More confusion…..
In respect of balance, and at risk of confusing you even further, this link is interesting in discussing the lack of science behind gait analysis runnersconnect.net/running-... I believe the use of the word “May” in the title reveals a lot about the uncertainty in this whole field.
So if there is no science to definitively tell us whether gait analysis works, we have to fall back on anecdote, so let me give you my experience of buying running shoes and gait analysis as an example.
Before I started running I did a bit of research, which suggested that running on grass is gentler on the joints and since the local route that I imagined I might run is footpaths, I opted to buy a pair of trail shoes. My first shot in the dark was a lucky one. Nearly all trail shoes are neutral, because the nature of the uneven surfaces means you do not get precisely the same impact stride after stride and therefore there is not the need for extra support, I presume. These shoes served me well for probably far too long, but as I began to run greater distance I needed to run on roads more, to link footpaths, so I decided I needed some decent road shoes, hoping to keep impact stresses minimal. Gait analysis was something that I was highly suspicious about, suspecting it to be no more than a sales gimmick, but after reading this post and responses healthunlocked.com/couchto5... I thought it was worth a try.
Runners Need in Exeter was my shop of choice and the sales assistant, a runner himself, seemed to know his stuff, with no discernible bullshit or pressure. First video on the treadmill showed my ankles and knees out of vertical alignment and my push off being from my outer toes, indicating, I would now believe, underpronation. With a pair of Brooks GTS15s on my feet, normally sold to correct overpronation, the second video clearly showed my ankles and knees in almost perfect vertical alignment, with my push off now from my inner and big toes. Mechanically, this was obviously a huge improvement. Also fascinating to see was how my feet landed almost immediately in front of each other, as if I was running along a six inch wide line.
None of that information about my running gait could have been gleaned by any other method. The GTS15s I bought were incredibly comfortable and have done far too many miles. I have had no running injuries since buying these shoes. I have recently bought a new pair of GTS17s, without gait analysis, assuming that the new version of the shoe will be appropriate for me. Runners Need suggest that you have it done before every purchase, as your gait can change. This does make sense, as obviously muscles strengthen and adapt over the years. I rarely wear the same shoes for consecutive runs, so don’t expect any serious problems.
The whole gait analysis process is only as good as the training and experience of the individual who carries it out……. so beware of the Saturday boy. For a result that you can hopefully have more confidence in, you might want to go to a podiatrist or sports physio, some of whom have far more sophisticated 3D hardware and software than the high street stores, checking your whole body response to each stride……...of course, at a price.
Some shops charge for the service, some knock the charge off if you subsequently purchase from them, while others, such as Runners Need, do not charge. You are not obliged to buy suggested shoes. There is also the innovation of online gait analysis sportsshoes.com/gait-analysis/ If you have access to a treadmill and a video camera, they can do the analysis remotely, which could well be the future, although it does not get round the issue of trying shoes on, for which there is no alternative.
As with so many aspects of running, there are many opinions but if you look at the responses in that HU post up above and also the more recent experiences of new runners on this forum, then there is plenty of anecdotal evidence in favour of having gait analysis. Many reporting total eradication of niggles after going through the process and buying new shoes. If you are new to running, then going to the specialist shop and talking to sales staff who are more than likely experienced runners themselves, having the gait analysis and recommendation, will teach you a lot about your style and show a way through the running shoe maze. From the selection offered to you, choose on comfort, not brand, colour or price. It is certainly a good place to start and it gets my vote.
Keep running, keep smiling.
There are more FAQ posts giving general information here healthunlocked.com/couchto5...
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