Deciding on a running shoe

I am not really a shoe expert, but I do have some advice for you. Because
you are new to running and a big guy with big feet (potentially hard to find
a selection of shoes in your size in stock), I think it is really important
for you to go to a good quality running shoe specialty store for help with
getting the right fit and proper type of shoe for you. You don't want a
store to stick you in just any pair of shoes just because they had that one
in a size 14 (happens to my son, a 13.5, all the time). You need to go to a
place where you can run in the shoe in the store and where a knowledgeable
person can watch how you are striking to be sure the shoe is doing what it
needs to do in terms of pronation, support, etc. The right shoe can make
all the difference between starting out with constant aches, pains, and
potential injury and starting in relative comfort. Even if you have to drive
a little ways to get what you need, it will be worth it in the long run.
Once you have some experience, you may be able to know what shoes will work
for you without needing the extra help, but at the beginning working with
someone who knows what he/she is doing is the best thing, IMO.

My second piece of advice, FWIW, would be to try to run on something beside
the sidewalk if possible. That is about the most jarring and damaging
surface you can run on. Trails, grass or even asphalt are easier on the
body.

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hi guys, I'm very new to running and I'm looking to start this week.

First,

Quoted message said:

I'd like to get a good shoe. I'll list some details about myself,

hopefully

Quoted message said:

some will be useful in helping me determine the best shoe for me. Some
attributes may be totally unnecessary, so bare with me.

I'm 6'4", 245lb. I'm 21 years old and have size 14 feet with a fairly

high

Quoted message said:

instep.
I'm going to begin to run for a few reasons, the two main ones are too

lose

Quoted message said:

weight and get in shape.
I'll be running mainly on pavement (sidewalk for the most part).

Anybody have any recomendations?

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<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I'm 6'4", 245lb. I'm 21 years old and have size 14 feet with a fairly
high
instep.
I'm going to begin to run for a few reasons, the two main ones are too
lose
weight and get in shape.
I'll be running mainly on pavement (sidewalk for the most part).

Anybody have any recomendations?

Follow Lori's advice on shoes. Fit, fit, and fit. Ignore brand and
price (more money does not equal 'better' shoe). Good running shoe stores
will have a place to do a quick test jaunt, and the clerks won't hesitate to
bring out pair after pair to try. (Although as a 13.5-14 size, it may be
tougher). If your arches are higher than average you may be fortunate in
that regard.

Some serious advice is to learn proper form. Most beginning runners
start with jogging, and instead of making a jog a much smaller version of a
run like it should be, they make it into a more vertical, bouncy motion.
This wreaks havoc on your body - even a few inches of visible bounce can
double or more the impact with each stride. On sidewalks this is a
tremendous difference. If it turns out that you're a bouncer (most runners
are) you'll see it clearly when running alongside a brick wall, wearing a
music player, your hair flopping, or wearing a belt pack.
The correct motion keeps your torso at the exact same elevation from
step to step, and when jogging this means a shorter, more shuffling step
(keep your feet low). Now is the time to learn - it will probably feel a
little unnatural because it requires more muscle work from your legs, but
overall it should feel very smooth.

Dave

Thanks for all the helpful advice. Are there chains of any stores that you
can recommend that might be able to offer me what I need in terms of picking
out the right type of shoe? I live in Salem, MA, in the greater Boston
area, so I'm sure there's probably something nearby I can check out.

How do you feel about sand? The place I would like to run on is by a beach.
Would that be a better or worse idea?

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Thanks for all the helpful info.
I potentially have a physical fitness test coming up at the beginning of
next year for a job and the last thing I need is an injury keeping me from
doing well.
I'm going to check out my local doctor's office, I'm pretty sure they have a
sports medicine doctor there.

Thanks so much.

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From the very very small amount of running I have done, I can definitely
tell you it is more like a bouncy type of jog. I don't have great knees to
begin with, and the last thing I need is an injury to them to make matters
worse. The trick is finding somebody who can shoe me the proper technique.

Thanks a lot.

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Quoted message said:

The trick is finding somebody who can shoe me the proper technique.

Surely getting that kind of guidance in person, one-on-one, is your
best bet.

But I'd wager David would also want you to read the rec.running
folklore of Ozzie Gontang: google for

quietly author:"Ozzie Gontang" group:rec.running

Here's one such post that search dredged up, entitled "and tips
specifically for bigger runners?"

http://tinyurl.com/8boh8

Good luck.

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Thanks for all the helpful advice. Are there chains of any stores that
you
can recommend that might be able to offer me what I need in terms of
picking
out the right type of shoe? I live in Salem, MA, in the greater Boston
area, so I'm sure there's probably something nearby I can check out.

I think Frank Shorter has a bunch of stores in that area. Either way,
Boston is a runner's haven of sorts (in spite of the harsh winter) so you
should have little trouble if you start with the Yellow Pages.

Quoted message said:

How do you feel about sand? The place I would like to run on is by a
beach.
Would that be a better or worse idea?

It depends. The soft, dry sand is very hard work to move in, abrasive
in shoes or not (blister city for me), and will make your legs very strong.
You won't need to run fast nor long to really be huffing and puffing. The
hard, moist sand near the water is nice to run on, but usually sloped
significantly. For me, that slope is very uncomfortable even though an
out-and-back course gives me equal mileage with the left leg high vs. the
right leg high. Some beaches are nearly flat at the water during low tide -
that window of time might be nearly ideal since the sand is firm, absorbs
shock wonderfully, and flat.

Dave

Quoted message said:

How do you feel about sand? The place I would like to run on is by a beach.
Would that be a better or worse idea?

Sand is terrible. Get yourself some decent shoes and stick to the pavement.

Cheers,
--
Donovan Rebbechi
http://pegasus.rutgers.edu/~elflord/

Lori Fisher said:

My second piece of advice, FWIW, would be to try to run on something beside
the sidewalk if possible. That is about the most jarring and damaging
surface you can run on.

Many people believe that, yet there is no sound empirical basis for this belief.
The difference in surface can be dealt with by adding half a mm or so to the
midsole (e.g. slightly thicker or stiffer shoe). But this has been studied and
training surface is not a substantial factor in injury.

Cheers,
--
Donovan Rebbechi
http://pegasus.rutgers.edu/~elflord/

"Charlie Pendejo" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

The trick is finding somebody who can shoe me the proper technique.

Surely getting that kind of guidance in person, one-on-one, is your
best bet.

But I'd wager David would also want you to read the rec.running
folklore of Ozzie Gontang: google for

quietly author:"Ozzie Gontang" group:rec.running

Here's one such post that search dredged up, entitled "and tips
specifically for bigger runners?"

http://tinyurl.com/8boh8

Wow, that's a lot of writing just to recommend the basics of running
technique:
1) don't bounce up and down as you run; don't overstride
2) relax your body - looking down in front of you tends to create a tensing
effect
3) a good gait is quiet and doesn't involve your foot audibly or visibly
impacting the ground

With a bunch of unnecessary references to mousetraps, martial arts, etc.
And something about falling down rarely due to a computer-like brain (???).
It's good information that reads like an article that was artificially
stretched into a book. Me, I'll stick to the cliffs notes explanations it
was expanded from.

Dave

Quoted message said:

Hi guys, I'm very new to running and I'm looking to start this week. First,
I'd like to get a good shoe. I'll list some details about myself, hopefully
some will be useful in helping me determine the best shoe for me. Some
attributes may be totally unnecessary, so bare with me.

I'm 6'4", 245lb. I'm 21 years old and have size 14 feet with a fairly high
instep.
I'm going to begin to run for a few reasons, the two main ones are too lose
weight and get in shape.
I'll be running mainly on pavement (sidewalk for the most part).

Anybody have any recomendations?

More important to know how high your arches are. Whatever shoe you get, you'll
want something with some durable cushioning. Take a look at roadrunnersports.com,
and they show a number of shoes that are suitable for heavier runners. These
tend to have higher durometer rubber, which means it's stiffer to compensate for
your relatively high bodyweight. Whether you should be in cushion or stability
motion control shoes depends on a number of things, try starting from here
http://www.runnersworld.ltd.uk/pronation.htm
and see how you go

BTW, I'd recommend going to a good running specialty store. They'll be able to
watch your gait and help you choose and appropriate running shoe, and also get
you fitted for the right size (not necessarily the same as your street shoe
size!).

Cheers,
--
Donovan Rebbechi
http://pegasus.rutgers.edu/~elflord/

On Fri, 10 Jun 2005 13:50:53 +0000 (UTC), Donovan Rebbechi <[email hidden]>
wrote a response to [email hidden], which included in part:

Quoted message said:

. . . Whatever shoe you get, you'll
want something with some durable cushioning. Take a look at roadrunnersports.com,
and they show a number of shoes that are suitable for heavier runners. These
tend to have higher durometer rubber, which means it's stiffer to compensate . . .

Please pardon me jumping in with some science trivia. From the Parker
Hannifin Corporation's Parker Seal Group, O-Ring Division "O-Ring Handbook"
c.1991, page A3-7:

"Hardness. Throughout the seal industry, the Type A durometer,
manufactured by the Shore Instrument Company, is the standard instrument
used to measure the harness of most rubber compounds. (The Type D
durometer is recommended where the Type A reading is over 90.)

"The durometer has a calibrated spring which forces an indentor point into
the test specimen against the resistance of the rubber. There is an
indicating scale on which the hardness is read directly. It is calibrated
to read 100 if there is no penetration, as on a flat glass or steel
surface.

" . . . [S]ofter materials, those with lower hardness readings, will flow
more easily . . . Conversely, the harder materials offer greater
resistance to flow."

(end of quote)

Having personally tested rubber samples with a Shore durometer unit I will
also note as being of interest to runners that the hardness of most
compounds changes significantly with temperature. A 70(A-scale) "neoprene"
type rubber at 75°F can measure 90A at 35°F, and 60A at 120°F
(subjectively, using the dent-it-with-your-thumbnail technique, it moves
from normal/room-temp to hard/cold to soft/hot.

There is usually high durometer thermosetting (vulcanized rubber) material
only at the bottom of a shoe for wear resistance (some ad copy calls this
"carbon rubber"😉. The high durometer material does not flow well, and
hence does not cushion. Softer elastomer or polymer material in the sole
may "flow" (pillow out to the side under load) for cushioning. Aerated
elastomer or polymer (foam) contains compressible air pockets that provide
cushioning. Plus, there seem to be as many ways to (a.) add
air/cushioning, and (b.) reintroduce rigidity to a floppy shoe sole, as
there have been enterprising/imaginative designer/engineers in the shoe
industry ( "gel", "shox", "grid" etc. ).

--
Daniel
[email hidden]

[email hidden] wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

Hi guys, I'm very new to running and I'm looking to start this week.
First, I'd like to get a good shoe. I'll list some details about
myself, hopefully some will be useful in helping me determine the best
shoe for me. Some attributes may be totally unnecessary, so bare with
me.

I'm 6'4", 245lb. I'm 21 years old and have size 14 feet with a fairly
high instep.
I'm going to begin to run for a few reasons, the two main ones are too
lose weight and get in shape.
I'll be running mainly on pavement (sidewalk for the most part).

First, you will need a shoe a bit longer than your street shoe size. I
have a size 14 street shoe, and lost a couple of toenails because I was
not properly fitted for a running shoe.

Second, when it comes to looking for size 15 shoes, your choices are
limited. In my case (with a 14AA street shoe) there was only one shoe
available. No need to ask whether I overly pronate, or need stability
more than control, want gel or air, flat arch (as I have) or high,
stylish or dull; just one shoe is made in a 14AA or 15AA -- the New
Balance 991. If your foot is a more normal width, there may be a few
other choices, but be prepared to face a very limited selection.

--
Rik