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I need to new running shoes. People keep telling me I need gait analysis, google suggests the jury is, at best, out.
For instance: <span style="font-size: 0.8rem; line-height: 1.3;"> https://runnersconnect.net/running-gait-analysis-footwear/</span>
Discuss.
It can be useful if your gait is out of the norm, or you're running with pain, or compensating for pain. Perhaps more importantly the person analysing the results knows what they're looking at and has no vested interest in suggesting shoes that he/she/they want to sell you.
I've just started running and had a gait analysis done at a local running shop. It was very interesting and they really analysed how my foot was landing. Didn't cost me a penny other than 30 mins of my time (and the new running shoes of course!).
I'd recomend it but then again, I don't really know any better.
I'm sold on it being snake oil.
Seeing as its free when you buy shoes/insoles its not such a bad thing.
I've got high arches and over pronate which is the unusual combination (generally over pronation is a flat arched trait). So off the shelf shoes never worked for me.
It ended up costing me £150 for new shoes (£100) and insoles (£50) I think, but the insoles can be swapped into new shoes so now I just buy the same brand/size/type of shoe online for about £70.
So yes you pay for it by having to buy shoes at RRP in sweatshop rather than online or at sports direct. But for an hour of someone's time and getting shoes that actually work at the end of it I'd say its good value, cheaper than buying one wrong pair anyway.
I find they are interesting to use as a guide, don’t take recommendations if they don’t feel right though.
The best shoes for me are always the ones that feel best instantly and don’t aggressively overcompensate, despite what the shoe selling science says.
Did your old pair of shoes feel okay? Any injuries?
In my mid-twenties I bought the comfiest running shoes I could. Built up gradually up to train for the GNR but had to withdraw due to shin splints. I started running again some time later, different shoes, same issue.
Did the gait analysis thing, was told I over pronate. I've run in Asics stability shoes ever since without any sign of shin splints. I'm sold. YMMV.
My personal opinion is it's best to just run off-road whenever you can (but that's not always possible). It's harder but more interesting and infinitely more enjoyable imho
Running gait/technique is not like a fingerprint, you can change it with a little bit of effort. Whilst special shoes/insoles may be a quick (and expensive!) way of masking the problem it's not a solution.
FWIW I had a few sessions with a running coach who videoed me running, I found this very useful in correcting my technique. If you've never watched yourself run it could be very interesting - I had such a weird run but obviously was never aware!
In my youth all the shoe shops had X-Ray machines for your feet to work out the best fit.
zilog6128 +1
I would be more interested in spending 2 or 3 hundred quid getting my gait analysed by a coach and help correcting the flaws, than getting it done for free at a running shop and buying the shoes they recommend.
Running gait/technique is not like a fingerprint, you can change it with a little bit of effort.
Yes I changed mine from overpronating to more neutral by getting the strike point further forward. Now that's where I think gait analysis could be useful - in identifying how you currently run and how it could be improved, rather than pointing you towards a particular shoe. Not that I ever had it done!
People at running clubs have had mixed success. More in favour of it screwing them up and changing back to some other shoes prob 70/30 ratio.
I don’t know any decent runners that bother with it.
If a shoe is comfy in tends to be comfy.
At a running shop, on a treadmill, no. I had it does at a place called run3d (i think). They looked at the results to see what the whole kinetic chain was doing. I then spent time with their physio who checked out a lot of stuff based on those results and gave me some very specific exercises to do. That allowed me to get back into the training I was struggling with due to niggles and complete the event.
They looked at the results to see what the whole kinetic chain was doing
Wow that is top draw marketing b@llocks if ever I've heard it 🙂
So gait analysis should only consider how the foot touches the ground? The knees and hips don't play a part. Wow, they must have seen me coming before taking my pants down. 😏
Sadly not for me.
Had just bought trainers in the past that turned out to be neutral, did gait thing and recommended stabiliry shoes.
Ok so bought them and started running, result was lots of pain on the insides of my calves.
Went back to neutral shoes then as I was clearly used to it.
Didn't seem to have any issues since, sadly got a really good pair of brooks ravenna 9 now sat unused
Nothing wrong with snake oil. Helps the world go round.
I went to Runners Need (over 10 years ago) and they analysed my gait and on the basis of it sold me some Brooks trainers that looked like wedges and gave me a bad back when running. I expect it was a junior sales person who was told to sell Brooks trainers to every schmuck that came through the door.
Did your old pair of shoes feel okay? Any injuries?
Always had a crappy right knee and my foot/feet would swell up more than most. Haven't had those problems with the recommended shoes and new insoles.
I went from a neutral Nike shoe (lunar?) to a stability one (pegasus?) although don't quote me on that I've not bought new shoes in a while.
But as I said I'm an outlier in terms of being an over pronator and high arched. For 90% (made up stat) of people if they have a shoe that's comfy its probably the right one as they're made for either high arch and neutral or low arches and stability. Which is probably why if you don't have any problems at the moment then it had the potential to f*** that up.
The insoles are the same as a lot of other orthopaedic places sell for quite a bit more than sweatshop so I don't really think they can be rakieing it in beyond being able to sell you trainers at ~20% more than maybe you could get last years versions online.
No reflection on the shop staff but if you think an untrained person on close to minimum wage is likely to have the qualifications and knowledge to interpret such a complex movement, then translate that into a shoe, then fine, go for it.
I call snake oil. Of the people that have gone through this process did the shop staff ever recommend a shoe that they didnt happen to have in stock?
I think it depends a bit if you can get away with normal shoes or not. If the answer is yes and you don't get injuries then its snake oil. If you have flat feet, high arch etc then it helps to get your gait checked and they can offer some shoes with additional support/cushioning to reduce injury. For these people, it is not snake oil.
As a practice - I'm sure the science is sound and it can help you address your gait - especially if backed up with a coach with the appropriate training experience to translate the insight into actionable exercises.
As a tool to pick a shoe - I'm unconvinced that the infinite possibilities of a humans exact running gait can be translated perfectly into off the shelf shoes sold in half sizes and a D width.
However, that said - if you're unaware of a particular larger scale problem (eg, weak ankles, arch issues, whatever) it can be handy to be made aware of those issues if you didn't know of them before, then pick a shoe that has support for that area.
I had a gait analysis done a year ago having suffered from tight calves and shin splints.
Tried a selection of shoes on the treadmill and advice was to go for the ones which felt least intrusive.
Have a fairly neutral gait but weak ankles so was suggested to go with a mild stability shoe.
Now on my fourth pair of Saucony Guide 10s having run 25 miles a week in them over the last year.
Been injury free ever since.
As with most things I think it very much depends on the individual’s experience that assesses you.
Maybe I got lucky.
Turns out I'm a pronator, nothing unusual in that, I could see it quite clearly on the video. The only shoes I've ever not got on with are the pronation shoes the convincing man with the video showed me.
I always buy neutral, lightly built shoes and let my feet do what they've always done for however many thousands of miles. I don't tend to get injured (he says looking down at the sprained ankle) but don't do much tarmac these days.
I had one done right at the start of my running journey, was told I was a neutral forefoot striker and so a cushioned neutral shoe was needed. 2 years running in said shoe (Asics Cumulus) have been good, albeit with the odd niggle that all new runners pick up. Recently went to the physio to deal with a recurring Achilles problem, he did some analysis on my running technique and whilst he didn't entirely disagree with the gait analysis, he did identify another couple of thinks in my technique that were quite important and said I would likely have had less injuries in a mild stability shoe. I asked if that is what I should go and buy next and he was adamant not too as I was now used to how a neutral shoe worked and changing would cause more problems.
Interestingly, on the subject of shoes, he said that rarely will you go wrong with a Nike Pegasus (neutral) or Nike Structure (stability), he's adamant this is a subject that gets vastly over complicated and that those two cover the majority of runners needs.
I also had an assessment in a shop, when I started running. They told me I was an overpronator, and gave me shoes with what felt like a huge heel and a massive wedge on the inside.
What they should have told me, IMO, is not to heel strike so much, instead of selling me shoes to accomodate that. Cos when I realised what I was doing wrong it made a massive improvement to my running - from it being complete purgatory to being a reasonable way to exercise. Then I realised the shoes were totally wrong and got some much flatter ones.
Oil funded Snakes IMO.
But then I run like a mix between Quasimodo and Marcel Marceau carrying a rucksack containing frogs.
Gait analysis in a shop: pointless.
Gait analysis by a professional coach or physiotherapist: absolutely worth it. Same as a bike fit really, but you don't need to buy new parts, just work on technique.
Obviously if your running technique is particularly wild you might benefit from advice from anyone...
But then I run like a mix between Quasimodo and Marcel Marceau carrying a rucksack containing frogs.
We have a shoe specifically designed for your running style sir. Of course the RanaRucksackRunner is a specialised shoe with a price to match, but what price your health eh?
What they should have told me, IMO, is not to heel strike so much, instead of selling me shoes to accomodate that.
This is the conclusion I reached and trained to become a forefoot striker and moved over to Asics Gel Racers with about as much of a heel lift and cushioning as my Walsh PBs that I used on the fells.
I was "diagnosed" as a pronator, and have very flat feet... so started off using motion control etc. etc., and used to get injured a lot. What's sorted me out was learning to run with a higher cadence and losing a bit of weight. And using neutral shoes.
Aye, similarly, my running has changed since I came back to it, I'm a bit lighter than I was, and purposefully shortened my stride, which has resulted on me becoming a mid foot striker. I was always a heel striker previously.
As some have said above, it may well be very good for some folks and their unique styles, but I never really got much from gait analysis.
This thread is timely and useful, thanks.
Going to have a look at Pegasus
Mrs Danny had it done when buying some running shoes as she was getting really sore shins and knees. Got the insoles and everything and they were crap.
Went to a different shop where she explained her problem and whilst they didn’t do a proper analysis as such they did get her on a treadmill and watched her the outside - spent a good 45 mins with her - and recommended some shoes just with the normal inserts and they’ve been perfect. She’s running faster and further than ever
I got them to sort me a pair (I have a load more running experience) and again they picked a really good pair. Could tell the difference between my old pair.
it’s one of those things - a little knowledge is a dangerous thing but a useful sales tool.
Getting the right pair of shoes is important. How you find the right pair isn’t.
Snake oil.
TL:DR
Ran a bit. Kept getting calf pain. Got gait analysis. Ended up in Salomons with insoles. Felt like high heels. Rolled ankle and snapped hamstring. Didn’t run for two years.
Read a lot. Started again with minimal shoes. Have now progressed through zero drop trail shoes to now running in 5Fingers and loving it with no leg pain.
Only trail run FWIW where pronation is largely irrelevant due to uneven surface IMO
Many many years ago I actually studied this sort of stuff, (see https://shapeamerica.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02640419408732180?journalCode=rjsp20#.W4er_MInZlc for one of my papers) and for what it is worth I think that it is worth having it done, provided that the person doing the analysis knows what they are doing..................
I'm sure I heard something along the lines of the recommendations being the wrong way around - i.e. you don't want to try to correct/normalise the gait in most cases. Natrix probably knows more than I do though, and I think his final caveat is pretty important.
When you think about it it's obvious that different people will get on better with different shoes, but actually understanding who will get on with what shoes is more complex.
FWIW I think most running shoe stuff is a bit snake oily, and I wouldn't take a gait analysis in a shop (though I'd consider using it with a coach) even if I ran considerably more than I do.