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Making to transition to a minimlist shoe
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At the moment I'm running in some Saucony Phoenix 4's. I've been looking at either Nike Free Run 3's or Nike Free 3.00 V3. Am i right in thnking The Free Run's will have a bit more support and therefore might be a better shoe to make the transition with?
Many Thanks
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I'm looking into the whole barefoot thing myself. I would advise boning up on barefoot running before attempting it as just changing shoes seems to be regarded as a mistake. If you still need support/ cushioning, it means you are not running using the barefoot method.
As a more direct answer to your question though, you don't need support if you run barefoot. Less shoe = better.
If your happy with Saucony, then the Kinvara seems to get rave reviews. I haven't taken the plunge yet, but am very tempted!
Rather than transition using progressively less cushioned shoes (which in my opinion just confuses things) you are better off getting some truly barefoot shoes (i.e zero drop) and transitioning using progressively longer runs in them, using your normal shoes inbetween. Merrell do a a barefoot training guide (it might seem a bit simple to start with but the foot strengthening exercises are not a bad idea) over about 40 days, starting from scratch and finishing with runs of 15 mins.
http://www.merrell.com/~Uploaded/Assets/MERR/Files/Merrell_BarefootTrainingPlan.pdf
even if you don't follow it exactly it may give you some idea of how slowly to make the change.
max's mum, thanks for posting that link
im going to get merrells soon , i currently wear nike and i have saucony peregrines for trail which are 4mm.
I have the merrell pace glove, i think they are great! i wear them off road mainly as i prefer running off road, but they work just as well on road.
I made the change about 9 months ago. Have had a few niggly injuries along the way but think I'm about there now! Used to run in 2150's, now wear Brooks Green Silence which are 1) awesome 2) light 3) colourful! 4) heavily discounted and comfy! I have now just got some NB MT110 for trails which are good too. Good luck
Runboy- so how does minimal running compare?
really glad I have done it, legs feel much less beaten up afterwards. I have tried heelstriking again and it just feels horrid! My heel still lightly touches the ground after the midfoot but no load goes through it and it feels much more natural
At the moment, are you heel-striking or landing midfoot or forefoot? If it is the former, you will benefit from learning some natural running techniques, and possibly the use of a transitional shoe such as the Newton Sir Issac. If you already run midfoot, you should be able to transition to a minimalist shoe without too much trouble, but you will need to ensure that you stretch your calves and achilles before and after running, as the lower heel on the shoes will increase the maximum extension of these muscles as you load your rearfoot.