I have had the pleasure of several recent across-the-world exchanges with Brian Martin of Australia, whose website, Running Technique Tips should be bookmarked by runners interested in improving their form. Brian is a fitness coach who has been extensively home-schooled by the experts and his own body, and in the end has come out with some amazing teaching and learning principles. He truly understands the critical muscles and motions of the gait cycle. We connected after The Principles of Natural Running video went up on NRC, and everything he writes is near exact to what the principles are shown in the video. I think it was reassuring to both of us who have devoted the better part of the last five years to learning and teaching that our conclusions are the same. His ebook, Running Technique, is a smart and thorough read. It can be purchased here.
Last week, Brian attended a running shoe debate in Melbourne. He blogged about his expectations before the debate, raising many of the same concerns that has been percolating throughout the running world today: “It is with some trepidation that I will attend a great running shoe debate to be held in Melbourne on Friday evening this week. On one level I’m happy to go along and hear what people have to say, these events can often deliver a thought provoker or drop useful knowledge into your lap. It’s also a good chance to meet the experts in the field who will be taking the stage to slug it out with a bit of intellectual kick-boxing. But debating by its nature is combative and rarely conducive to imparting knowledge, especially in this context where the debaters are experts/scientists with reputations to protect or enhance. To a running public that isn’t familiar with the scientific literature, how studies are designed and what makes a good and bad piece of research, it can be confusing. I’d go so far to say the actual narrative of debates like this can be meaningless to runners and coaches who are craving good information; however entertaining they are for running nerds and scientists. Public exchanges of professional vitriol are of questionable benefit to the education of the running community at large. I’m thinking here of runners and running coaches. However, I concede there is value in raising the awareness and knowledge of developing issues amongst the professionals that might attend this debate.”
Well, Brian was in for a pleasant surprise. The debate was civil, thought-provoking, useful, and relevant. Here’s his recap of the Down Under Gait Debate that originally appeared on his website. — Dr. Mark
***
The Great Running Shoe Debate/Agreement
by Brian Martin
The great running shoe debate came and went without the anticipated fireworks and feisty exchanges of previous outings. The most surprising aspect of the debate was that there was little actual debate; it could have been the great running shoe agreement. While I was happy enough not to witness pointless argument, I did leave the venue unsatisfied with where things are at in relation to discussions about running injuries, running technique and the issues facing the running shoe industry in general. As I wrote in my previous article that previewed this debate, it does seem we remain narrowly focused on a discussion about shoes, foot-strike and barefoot running
But onto the debate at hand, the format went something like this: the panel posed each other questions and also answered some from those close to the shoe discussion that couldn’t be in attendance. I originally planned to write a complete summary, but there was too much ground covered, so I’ll stick to a small number of discussion points in this recap. I’m sure a video of the complete proceedings will appear at some stage if you’re interested in the entire 2+ hour discussion.
Why have injury rates among runners remained consistently high for several decades despite technological innovation in running shoe design? Associate Professor Peter Larson (Saint Anselm College/Runblogger)
I’m in furious agreement that highly cushioned; motion controlling running shoes do little, if anything to protect runners from injury and if anything can contribute to the development of poor running technique and then knock-on injuries. We’ve seen a number of runners in the coaching context that look like their shoes are getting in the way, but this has not always needed a radical minimalist transition to help start the improvement process. Often a move to a light-weight trainer makes a big difference to someone who has been running in a heavier, more structured running shoe for a long period of time.
So in my opinion, not every traditional running shoe should be thrown into the big bulky shoe category. A stripped back and flexible light-weight trainer may well be the best place for a runner adapted to heavier, more intractable shoes to start (and in some cases end) a minimalist transition. Combining this with an aspirational shoe build on a slightly lower heel-toe drop profile (used for a small volume of jogging) is a good mix. This allows the process of lengthening and strengthening the calves, Achilles tendons and deep compartment muscles (of the lower leg) to begin.
The fact that no one can agree (in a scientific debate) that there is evidence that wearing or removing shoes reduces injury risk supports the assertion that it’s not all about the shoes contributing to the running injury equation? I remain convinced that running shoes are only part of the picture, with western society being habitual sitters and wearers of raised heel shoes in everyday life. Looking at big bulky running shoes as the primary driver of injury seems an incomplete analysis of the situation.
When people take up running they are probably in worse shape than those in more active de-cluttered societies, you can observe many people walking about with poor hip strength and control.
Which brings me to Pete’s second question: Which “form flaws” are most likely to increase injury risk for a runner?
There is much more going on than just the usual suspects of heel-striking, over-striding and low stride rate.I agree a passive heel strike that sees the foot landing well ahead of the knee with none of the buttocks, hamstrings and lower leg muscles active as the foot contacts the ground is likely to cause injury. However, heel striking in itself isn’t necessarily the devil we are perhaps led to believe.
Someone adapted to running in shoes that lightly touches down with the heel and has the previously mentioned muscles active during ground contact is likely to be able to run comfortably and injury free. Getting those bigger running muscles strong and firing is a higher priority in our coaching approach than rapidly transitioning people into minimalist shoes or altering their foot-strike posture.
Foot type and shoe fit – a retailer’s perspective
Another item discussed was the sales model used by most big running shoe companies and retailers: choosing shoes by foot type and shape. There was agreement around the point that there is no scientific evidence to support this simplistic model, although there were valid questions about the veracity of a couple of the studies in this area.
As an aside, I’ve played around with a couple of decision support systems on shoe company websites and noticed that you can produce scenarios that confuse the system. For example telling the computer that you have high arches, but also pronate excessively will result in zero shoes being recommended to you – why? It does not fit the model, nor does the trend towards minimalism.
This is something Mark Gorksi (as a retailer in Melbourne Australia ) has been very close to, having taken the approach of fitting shoes based on what works best for the individual when observed running, rather than looking at their feet. Mark has hit the nail on the head with these comments in the last couple of days:
One of the biggest challenges facing shoe companies is the re-education of retail staff in regards to emergence of the minimalist running trend. This isn’t just limited to what it means technically and where certain shoes sit on the shelf, but how they relate to safely servicing runners of differing abilities, ages and backgrounds.
With increasing numbers of customers wanting to try the new minimalist shoes there’s a real risk for the industry because knowledge amongst retail staff about minimalist transition pathways is sketchy at best. Further, getting the message right about where the benefit of minimalism can most effectively be sort by runners is no easy task.
The wrong sell can easily lead to an injured runner who with a more patient approach to transition may well have got good benefits. The downside is that this runner may well be lost to minimalism forever as they lose confidence and receive conflicting advice as they recover from their injury – you may never get them back and you’ve added to the long list of cautionary tale fodder.
This in an environment where the continued use of foot-type fit needs rapid adjustment to keep up with what many runners now know from following the science and better running blogs i.e. that foot-type fit is not based on any science. These are huge challenges and a major back-pedal for many of the major shoe manufacturers, how they handle it will be interesting to say the least.
At what age should children start wearing cushioned running shoes? –Blaise Dubois
Blaise’s pillow analogy was one of the highlights of the night, when children move from the cot to the bed they receive a pillow – but why? Same thought process applies to shoes, why do children need cushioned running shoes? Just as important is the question about regular shoes. I grew up, along with millions of others, wearing stiff leather school shoes with a heel.
I can distinctly recall shin-splints in the playground. Children run about, play, climb, sprint, run etc, why put them in something that is not conducive to doing these things? If you need to wear black shoes for school, look for flat flexible models with room for toe spread that are more or less minimalist running shoes in disguise.
If your child has already started adapting to traditional shoes, you’ll need to help them adapt out of it gradually, but this should be an easier path than for older runners. Keep your children out of shoes with raised heels for a long as humanly possible.
Can overweight individuals run safely barefoot or in minimal shoes? –Peter Larson
Great question and I think the discussion was pretty helpful; there is no reason why an overweight runner couldn’t wear less shoe. In fact, the thinking behind being able to feel the ground and activate the correct muscles being more important for those runners that are a bit heavier makes a lot of sense.
After full adaptation has occurred, which of the following optimizes distance running performance?– Dr. Craig Richards
Running barefoot, Flat cushioned shoe, 5mm heel-toe cushioned shoe, 10mm heel-toe cushioned shoe.This is a general but interesting question that depends on the race. On the track, a zero drop spike seems the right choice given all current world records belong to spike-shod runners. Could we see a return to the days of athletes like Zola Budd breaking records running barefoot?