Nike Frees

Prior to doing distance running for triathlon training I had never had what one would call a typical runners injury. For the better part of my life I had trained in minimal sprinters shoes; as most of the training I was doing was targeted towards getting my 40 time as low as it could go. However, once I transitioned into endurance training, got a beefier, more “technologically” advanced sneaker I started to get pains in my lower back, knees and flare ups in the joins of my toes. Maybe I was just too heavy to run for distance I thought. As my weight dropped the pain remained and I thought there was something more to it.

While reading “Born To Run,” in August I was shocked to find out that as shoe companies have advanced corrective technology in their sneakers the incidents of runners injuries (plantar fasciitis, IT Band syndrome, etc) has increased. Even more shockingly, when Nike visited Stanford University in 2001, they noticed that the Stanford track team was running in Nike’s cheapest shoe, not the one with uber technology. Vin Lananna, the legendary coach, told the Nike Reps that his athletes preferred the cheaper shoe, were faster and got injured less in them.

The research Nike performed led them to develop the Nike Frees, the shoe I am currently running in, healthier and faster than ever before. The crux of the argument is, in our physiological evolution our feet were our initial sensors for protection. Our feet have an unbelievable amount of nerve endings in them (as certain pursuits will let you know) which are made deaf through the advances in shoe technology. In other words, corrective shoe technology may have been correcting a problem that was never a problem – your feet tell your body how it should run, your body doesn’t tell your feet how they should strike.

Nike developed a shoe that provides shock absorption but lets the foot move naturally or “freeing the foot”. The sole is constructed through individual compartments that act as receptacles for the nerve endings but provide protection since we now run on pavement not dirt. Since I have been running in the Frees I have felt no knee pain, hardly any back pain and the tightness in my hamstrings and hips has all but disappeared. Additionally I am back to the form and speed I had when all I did was speed work but can maintain that stride style, cadence and pace for much longer distances than ever before (the pace thing is all about training though).  This is the shoe I also ran in for the South Carolina Half Iron.

So why am I writing all this? I’m not a doctor so I can’t say that the Frees are the solution to runner’s problems around the world. I however do know from my experience that I have run more comfortably for longer periods and at a faster pace than ever before. Sometimes getting back to the natural way of doing things is just what the doctor ordered. I can’t promise they will work for you but if you’ve tried everything else they just might be worth a try. If you do give them a try it is suggested you use them for just a half hour at a time on grass as you build the strength in your foot muscles if you haven’t done barefoot work or high intensity speed work in the past

The Search For A Perfect Shoe

I'm the type of person who will research until they are blue in the face before they buy something. My manical desire to find the product that best fits me has created some arguments in relationships in the past and well has driven me close to insanity. While this method works great for finding the perfect TV, car or other normal consumer good it does not work for running shoes. Reading reviews of running shoes is like reading a parents review of 5th grade play. The details will be there but in the end the reviewer won't tell you what is really good or really bad about the shoe, the only way to know what works best is to try them.

Since I was bitten by the triathlon bug I have tried no less than 4 pairs of sneakers. I've fallen victim to technology, I've believed in the latest fad and betrayed better judgement by listening to some salesman in a running store; below are the shoes I tried and the stories behind them:

BROOKS GLYCERIN

My first attempt at finding a shoe that worked with my body mechanics was the Brooks Glycerin. A Manhattan sneaker store determined that I was a mild pronator with a medium arch and had me give the Glycerin a go on their treadmill. This shoe was really comfortable and kept my knees and back feeling fresh but the honeymoon was short lived. About three weeks into wearing these sneakers my big toe on my left foot swelled up and would wake me up at night as it throbbed. Turned out that since Brooks promotes more of a mid-foot than a forefoot strike the sneakers had a tendency to put too much pressure on my big toe causing the joint to become inflamed.

End Result: Sold on slowtwtich for $50

NEWTON GRAVITY TRAINER

Newton Running has produced the most controversial running shoes in the past few decades. The sneakers are unlike anything I had ever run in. To promote forefoot running the shoes utilize "lugs" underneath the balls of your feet making the heel higher than the toe area. This is supposed to mimic barefoot or natural running. I found the Newtons to be incredible. Without question they were the fastest shoes I have tried and my easy pace was an 8 minute 30 second mile, with tempo runs breaking the 7 minute mark. However, the shoes had a fatal flaw for me. A big reason why I was unable to run in the Shamrock Marathon was becasue of the Newtons. For each run I did over an hour I'd start to get cramps in my calves, after 10 miles these cramps would become dehabilitating and at one point I fell down in Central Park to crawl over to a bench. Originally I had believed that this was due to nutrition and hydration until I realized that the Newtons were forcing my ankle to flex too much during my stride, never allowing my calf to relax (the muscle was contracted the entire time). Since ditching the Newton my calf cramps have gone away.

End Result: Pain > Results, sitting in the bottom of my closet

SAUCONY HURRICANE 10

A new Road Runner Sports opened up in Paramus, NJ recently. The opening was pretty well aligned with my ephinay about the Newtons so I hopped in my car, headed across the GW and met with them for a shoe fitting. Road Runner Sports has all sorts of fancy gadgets to figure out arch type, stride type and all that - they even have you run barefoot on a treadmill to see your natural running style. Similar to Jack Rabbit the RRS guys recommended a slight stability shoe but one with some beef for longer training runs. The Hurricane 10s have been great, I feel like I can run forever in the shoes and have no calf, knee or back pain. The shoe is a bit heavy for a race shoe but for training they are tremendous. My long distance mile splits at an easy pace are around 8 minutes 40 seconds and in tempo runs I can easily hold a 7 and 1/2 minute pace - a bit slower than the Newtons but without the pain I can run longer and more often.

End Result: Great training shoe but I wouldn't wear it for racing

SAUCONY FASTWITCH 3

I may be jumping the gun on declaring my run for this shoe but my god is it AWESOME. Last night I did my first long training brick of the season and these shoes felt simply incredible. The outer mesh provides just enough stability to keep your foot from sliding around but is so light that the shoe feels like a feather. The sole is firm and very responsive. These shoes are fast - very fast. Coach Eggers had me run 25 minutes at an easy pace last night then I was to "lay it down" for the last 5 minutes. For the first 25 minutes of the run I maintained an 8:30 pace and in the last 5 minutes I upped the speed to a 6:30 pace, no calf problems, no knee issues - I think I've found my racer. Plus who can argue with the orange color - they simply have to be fast, right?

End Result: This seasons racer and thus far my favorite shoe