More on the Altra Zero Drop shoe

In one of my first entries on this blog, I noted how a shoe commercial played a big role in my decision to change the way I run, to turn back to Eastern philosophy as a source for both inspiration and from. That commercial was for Altra Zero Drop shoes: I talked a little about the shoes, but it's a subject worth revisiting in depth.

As big a deal as changing my running form has been, making the change to the Altra shoes, has been--and still is--even bigger in some ways. Because the change in from really has to come first. I can't just switch over to the Altras as if they were just another pair of running shoes, because they most certainly are not. Let's take a closer look at them and see why that is. My particular choice in the Altra famile is the Altra Instinct 1.5, mostly because it provides a small amount of support and I was not prepared to "go ll the way" to shoes with almost no support. Here it is:

Let the force be with you, Part II

In my previous piece, I talked about one of the two forces we--as runners--must contend with: gravity. And rather than fighting against gravity, it makes sense to use it to our advantage, which we can do by running with a slight forward lean (though still maintaining a proper posture). The second force to contend with is that of the ground, the constant impact of our feet against it.

Landing is a critical issue for runners. Indeed, poor technique in this regard is one of the major sources of injury, from shin splints, to blisters, to joint damage. Prior to my exposure to a new way of running, I tended to land on my heel first, laying down the rest of my foot, then pushing off the ground with my toes. There's something to be said for such a technique, in terms of power, but I now think the costs far outweigh the benefits. at least for me. In keeping with the Altra/Chi Running approach, I'm in the process of shifting to a midfoot (or forefoot) strike, as a opposed to a heel strike.