Running Shoes Cause Increased Torque on Joints
Intersting article out yesterday on ScienceDaily.com. As we have known the traditional running shoe may be doing more harm than it is good. We are looking at more and more information that is coming to light. We are putting up an articles page on our blog here to post much of those.
As we look at the history of running we learn about native tribes that have not much more than sandals strapped on their feet. The writers of RunNatural.org run barefoot, use fivefingers, or have gone to the point of tweaking our old running shoes by cutting out the elevated portion of the heel, expanding the forefoot, completely redoing the sole, and more. We look forward to the day when there is a true “running shoe” for us, that is unlike all other running shoes. We have seen a few ideas and potential companies pop up that look to be doing this soon 
.
As we have learned and many of us have experienced there is increased pain and tension on our joints that is very much unnecessary with the current make up of the running shoe. Due to the torque on the foot from increased heel and toe spring there is a wedge action that takes place to create some serious foot pain. Also the heel often causes us to heel strike without focused attention on a natural stride. These problems then translate into a series of joint pain within our ankles, knees, hips and more. Not to mention the “strengthen” stability shoes are actually making us weaker! I hope you see the value of running in an appropriate shoe (if there were one yet) or none at all.
I had a pleasant conversation with an individual yesterday who was a competitive cyclist. When he left the sport of biking he got into running, however, he was always getting hurt. After a few good friends inspiring him to run barefoot he literally ran away from his shoes and has been going as natural as possible ever since without injury. He thoroughly enjoys running now. I personally have experienced this, though I do often run in shoes more – they are altered and made to be more natural.
From the research. You can read the article in its entirety here.
“Sixty-eight healthy young adult runners (37 women), who run in typical, currently available running shoes, were selected from the general population. None had any history of musculoskeletal injury and each ran at least 15 miles per week. A running shoe, selected for its neutral classification and design characteristics typical of most running footwear, was provided to all runners. Using a treadmill and a motion analysis system, each subject was observed running barefoot and with shoes. Data were collected at each runner’s comfortable running pace after a warm-up period.
The researchers observed increased joint torques at the hip, knee and ankle with running shoes compared with running barefoot. Disproportionately large increases were observed in the hip internal rotation torque and in the knee flexion and knee varus torques. An average 54% increase in the hip internal rotation torque, a 36% increase in knee flexion torque, and a 38% increase in knee varus torque were measured when running in running shoes compared with barefoot.
These findings confirm that while the typical construction of modern-day running shoes provides good support and protection of the foot itself, one negative effect is the increased stress on each of the 3 lower extremity joints. These increases are likely caused in large part by an elevated heel and increased material under the medial arch, both characteristic of today’s running shoes.”
Happy running, and make 2010 a great year!
January 7th, 2010 at 4:26 pm
You are making a fool of yourself by blindly accpting the research. Perhaps you should read this for a more balanced view on how bad the research was:
http://www.podiatry-arena.com/podiatry-forum/showthread.php?t=42471
January 28th, 2010 at 10:24 pm
[...] Most barefoot running websites and running forums had the fanatics touted the research and making all sorts of nonsensical claims coming from it, but two of them even left out the ‘may’ in the title of the press release to claim that Running shoes cause damage to knees, hips and ankles – does that not show you how intellectually dishonest these people are. Why did they do that for, when the research dod not come remotely close to showing that. Talk about being sucked in by what they want to believe. Here are these two websites: Barefoot Running Shoes & Barefoot Running. [...]
January 30th, 2010 at 5:04 pm
Peter, I don’t think anybody here is blindly accepting the research. Running shoes cause increased joint torques—what does this mean? We’re not sure, but there is increased torque and it’s doubtful that that is a good thing. We’ve read that entire podiatry-arena.com link you posted. There’s some valid arguments and some not so much. Even though the research isn’t perfect, it’s logical to see the conclusions that were arrived at. Thank you for providing some balance even if you call us fools.
January 30th, 2010 at 5:26 pm
Hook, line and sinker!:
Of course barefoot proponents are going to jump to conclusions when there is research backing what they do. Any group is quick to adopt something that supports their beliefs. Please forgive what may have slipped by. We at Run Natural use shoes (albeit modified) on a regular basis as well as 5 fingers and true barefoot and see the value of all. We seek to have runners run better, faster, and more injury free by incorporating the elements of running the way nature intends us to run. We have no anti-shoe agenda but want runners everywhere to be able to run their best!
February 1st, 2010 at 3:36 pm
I note that ‘Hook Line and sinker’ is the owner of the site ‘Running Barefoot is Bad’ which claims to be presenting barefoot runner for the nutters that they are’. A quote from the site “Enough is enough. After being around the running community for many years, you soon get to notice that in general, members of the barefoot running community are not particularly bright people. They try to promote barefoot running as an alternative to the use of running shoes. To do this they grasp at straws, use nonsense arguments, misunderstand research and are not very rational in their approach. They believe everything they read unless its something positive about running shoes. They are fanatical. They are as bad as the loony left of politics and the radical religious fanatics (they are probably vegetarians too!). Because of that they cannot take part in reasoned discussions or debates about barefoot running and use tactics worse than politicians to avoid answering the questions asked of them.” I am a barefoot runner and no I am not a vegetarian and as to not being particularly bright I have an Honours degree in Law so I take offense to the unsubstantiated claims about barefoot runners espoused by Hook,line and sinker’. Further, I am yet to see the peer reviewed research that supports the claims made by running shoe companies that Hook, line and sinker says barefoot runners are ignoring. Like the owners of this site most barefoot runners merely seek to run better, faster and injury free if possible and if barefoot running achieves this then the ‘fringe’ will continue to grow.
February 12th, 2010 at 1:39 pm
The problem I have with the modern running shoe is not their existence but that they are so contrary to Occam’s razor for so many people. Here’s what we accepted hook, line, and sinker – that the fat-heeled, arch-supporting shoe is good for all people, all the time. If you have an injury or orthopedic problem, you should look for tools that will help you to keep running healthy. I do not dispute that for some people, running shoes with thick heels and arch supports are good. I had a time myself when I needed orthotics to run more than a couple miles. However, it makes no sense to assume that we all need lots of support and cushioning all the time. By introducing additional structure under the foot that could be a benefit in some ways, we also introduce additional risks/costs. And most of us accepted those benefits and costs all together without questioning them, before we were even old enough to choose what shoes we would wear. Certainly there are plenty of dogmatic proselyters on both the barefoot and the shod sides of the issue. But calling the talk about barefoot running hype and saying that it is funded by big money interests is completely missing the point.
“It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.” Upton Sinclair’s quote applies both to people who make minimal shoes and to people who make, umm, maximal shoes. But we all know where the most money is, and it’s not so much with the ones identifying with the barefoot hippies.
Barefooting is a reminder to return to simplicity, and, when circumstances necessitate braces, orthotics, casts, crutches, massage, ice, a change in training regimen, or supportive shoes, accept those measures and let them help you for what they’re worth. Until then, enjoy running with less. Enter the process of re-learning barefoot running. And if and when you feel like you want a little protection for your feet, get a little protection for your feet. Use it when you need it, but when you don’t need it, don’t use it. If you need additional protection beyond that, go right ahead, but don’t try to convince people that those who use a different amount of foot protection are all wrong. Just because we’ve stuffed our feet into shoes that are thicker than necessary most of our lives doesn’t mean that we can never resurrect feeling and strength into our atrophied feet.
June 8th, 2010 at 12:19 am
I have to agree with jarviscera about: “The problem I have with the modern running shoe is not their existence but that they are so contrary to Occam’s razor for so many people. Here’s what we accepted hook, line, and sinker – that the fat-heeled, arch-supporting shoe is good for all people, all the time.” How many people can stand next to each other, pull their shoes and socks off have their feet match? How about people with the same sizes? I wear somewhere between an 11 and a 12 in running shoes, that’s a pretty big difference.