Shoes for Underpronators

[groman]

Hi,

I am currently looking for a set of good (but affordable) running/walking shoes. It seems that most shoes out there are designed for overpronators or neutral gait. In the past I’ve had luck with some line of Nike Shox that had a more rigid outer edge I suppose. The new lines of Nike Shox don’t seem to do this anymore. In fact, even running shoe review sites bunch “underpronators” together with “neutral” and even those shoes often feature devices that “restrict pronation” - something I don’t want.

My primary problem is not even comfort or pain. My primary problem is that shoes designed for overpronators or neutral gait have the outer sole wear out in under a month to the point where they’re so slanted I can’t wear them anymore. I need something with an outer wedge or a very rigid outer sole with a curved insole? I don’t really know that much about shoes so I might be screwing up my terminology.

How do I go about finding shoes for moderate to severe underpronators without getting prescription shoes from a podiatrist? I don’t know of any good running stores and “mall store” employees just give me a blank stare when I mention “underpronation” or “supination” and generally point me towards the shoes for overpronators.

I know this is bordering on IMHO territory, but this indeed is a general question - I can’t find a single pair of running shoes online that is designed for severe underpronation. Do these exist? How do I find them?

Thank you very much

[ZipperJJ]

Are you SURE you can’t find any good running stores? That would be my first suggestion. I was referred to a local running store by a friend who is a track coach at a local school. Maybe your local school’s or college’s athletic director can point you in the right direction?

[Ogre]

I don’t know where you live, but in most reasonable-sized cities, you can find sporting goods stores which have a system to measure your pronation. They’ll put you on a treadmill and literally film your feet hitting the deck (from behind.) They then measure the angle of strike, and compensate your shoes accordingly with inserts. Great system.

[AskNott]

By “underpronators,” I assume you mean folks in danger of turning the ankle toward coming down on the outside of the foot. My ankles work that way, and all my ankle sprains have been in that direction.

Some models of New Balance shoes are made for the underpronator. NB also makes shoes in various widths.
www.roadrunnersports.com gives loads of info about every shoe. For example, the pair I just bought was recommended for average-to-heavy runners with average-to-high arches. If the catalog info is not enough, you can call them with a description of your running style and which way your feet flex.

[Duck_Duck_Goose]

Allow me to recommend that you consider consulting a sports medicine doctor for custome orthotic inserts if you just can’t find what you want OTC. I have custom orthotics in my shoes for pronation problems, and they’ve made a world of difference.

[MsMitey]

I’ll second the new balance recommendation. I have the opposite problem of you, but I know they make shoes for underpronators. If you go to a new balance store, the employees will know what you’re talking about, and there’s even a treadmill in the store to try 'em out.

They make pretty good arch supports to put into regular shoes for different foot problems, too. And they’re about as close as you can get to sweatshop-free shoes!

[astro]

Pronation, Supination (with pics)

If You Underpronate…

Your… feet and ankles don’t roll inwards enough when you run – a rare condition. This movement would normally help to absorb shock every time your feet strike the ground.

You need shoes that… encourage the inward movement of the foot (pronation). Look for a soft midsole, and a curved last (the shape around which the shoe is built). Avoid shoes with added stability features, such as medial posts (these are firm sections on the arch side of the midsole, designed to limit pronation).

In a particular runner, the best way to discover what occurs at midstance is to look at pushoff. Over-pronators push off to the inside of the big toe; underpronators push off to the outside of it; people without gait problems push off through the big toe. Under- pronation is sometimes referred to as “supination,” but this term can add confusion because “pronation” and “supination” are naturally- occurring foot positions during running, and different from the qualities of excessive weight-bearing on one or the other edge of the foot at midstance. Vague vocabulary can make it seem like pronation and supination are always problematic. In fact, only when these processes are extreme do they cause problems. When we speak of pronation, we usually mean over-pronation in the context of gait problems.