I am in training for a 8.5 mile run in November, and until recently everything was goign well. I have built up to 5 miles 3 times a week and a longer run of 7 miles on a weekend. Then I decided to treat myself to some proper running shoes.
I went to a shop where they film you on a treadmill in a pair of “neutral” trainers to check your form. Apparently I was over pronating, so I bought a pair of running shoes to compensate. I have been out in these shoes 3 times and all I can say is OW!. About two miles into the run I start getting shooting pains in my right leg centred about an inch below my kneecap halfway between the front of my leg and the side. This means i have to run/walk the rest of the way (walking to let the pain ease off then running till it builds up again).
After the run, if i sit down for an hour or so the leg siezes up and it hurts to walk. going up and downstairs is particularly bad, I think it is bending the leg which hurts. Should I go back to my old trainers and pronation be damned?
Yes, go back to the old ones. If it’s hurting you that bad there is no use using those shoes. Perhaps your body has gotten used to your overpronation and compensated somehow? Maybe you should get a second opinion on your stride as well.
The one piece of advice I can give is do not use shoes that result in pain. You must either identify and fix the problem with these new shoes, or give them up.
Sounds like shin splints. I get them from time to time. If they don’t go away, try this stretching exercise before you run: Hold yourself up against a wall (about 2 ft away) with your hands (raised above your head). Slowly lift yourself up on your toes, hold for a few seconds, then lower. Do this 20 or 30 times.
And if it’s shin splints, ice and ibuprofin and run less until they improve. Might be that the new shoes is having the muscles work in a new way that they’re not quite ready for that milage with.
It sounds like your shoes. When I was in Chicago, I went to these shoe nazis, Fleet Feet, and they insisted that I wear a pair of new balance. I was training for a marathon, and prior to these shoes, I never had a blister. In the NBs, I had a blister in the first 3 miles. My vote is that it’s most likely the shoes. If you feel pain that quickly, you should look into another pair.
Not an immediate fix but what type of surfaces are you running on? I find that cement is just too jarring (I’m going to be changing my routine so that I can run on a dirt track after work during the week, and all my long runs on the weekend are trail runs anyhow), a dirt fire trail or even the hard-packed dirt at the local school track and so much easier on my body.
That aside, I agree with others - if you’re doing 5-7 mile runs in your old shoes and the new shoes seem to result in immediate agony, stop - it’s not worth injuring yourself. Check back with the store, talk to your doctor and get something comfy. It could be that an injury was building up and just happened to make itself known when you bought your new shoes but that’s a funny coincidence.
My running store doesn’t film you, but they do have people who know what to look for watch you run around in your old shoes and in several pairs of new, recommended shoes (inside and outside, up and down the block).
Some shoes (though they solve my gait problems) don’t feel good during these trial runs. I don’t buy those. There are other shoes which also are good for my problems that do.
The store also has a good return policy, so if I’d bought something and it was causing problems, they’d take it back. Your store should, too.
There are other shoes out there that will help the over pronation and not hurt like hell.
It is good to have your gait examined by being filmed on the treadmill. However, a word of caution, shoe stores are not staffed by podiatrists, they have no qualifications other than having a minimum wage job selling shoes. Usually there is at least one person there who has a clue, but you may have to get 2 or 3 opinions. Go back to the store, say “these hurt really bad”, and ask for someone different to do your gait analysis.
I always to go to a running store to purchase shoes with professionals to help me find the right fit. I pick the most comfortable at the time and always seem to have problems for the first week or two. But nothing like what you’re describing. I would definitely stop running in them and take it easy the next few runs so that you do not injure yourself more. I would also go back to the store with the shoes and tell them what is happening. They should be able to help. Good luck!
Thanks for the input. I will go back to my old trainers for tomorrow’s run and see how that works. I’ll try the stretching thing too.