Got Calf, Achilles or Foot Pain? This May Be Why
When barefoot running and Vibram FiveFingers became popular 5 or so years ago, it became very clear to me that we were beginning to understand running injuries more clearly than we had in the past. We were so focused on controlling pronation and cushioning our foot that we stopped paying attention to how the foot was striking the ground and the influence that these thick heeled running shoes had in the rest of our body.
I was ridiculed and told by many of my colleagues that this was a fad and I was “hurting” my patients by advising against the motion controlling shoes and orthotics. Well, for those of you who have followed the running shoe industry, it’s pretty clear this was not a fad. We have seen a complete overhaul in running shoes and now realize the cushioned heels are not what we were needing.
As you will read in this brief article by Coach Jenny, many running shoes now provide the “drop” or heel height of the running shoe. Five years ago the typical drop was anywhere from 12-14mm in height. Now, shoes are customarily 4-6 mm in heel height.
Coach Jenny discusses some reasons why injuries occur from changing heel heights. While true, you can avoid Achilles tendonitis any other injuries by transitioning safely. Any questions? Feel free to ask me in the comments!
One of the blessings of being a coach is this: If you pay attention, you can see trends before they become trendy. Sometimes they are positive, like the value of adding cross-training to your routine. But many times they are negative and can force you down detours during training.
Source: Got Calf, Achilles or Foot Pain? This May Be Why
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About The Author
Dr. Nick Campitelli
Dr. Campitelli is a podiatrist in Akron, OH specializing in foot and ankle surgery with an interest and enthusiasm for running as well as helping runners with injuries. For the past several years he has been treating running injuries in patients by fixing their form and transitioning them to minimalist shoes. Having treated runners with all types of injuries through conservative measures with orthotics and shoe gear changes to reconstructive foot and ankle surgery, Dr. Campitelli has brought what works best and is most current to his practice as well as the Akron and Cleveland running communities.
Very important post here. It’s very important to understand what direction trends are causing things to head in – sometimes fads are more than fads. Thanks for sharing!
“…and now realize the cushioned heels are what we were needing.”
Typo?
Sorry!!!! Should read NOT what we need! Thanks!
Hy Dr. Nick
Been running in Five Finger for the last 6 years. Last year in september i transitoned to Xero shoes. I did then almost 50 to 60k a week. In January i did my first lactat test and found out that i had been running too fast everytime in all my training sessiosn. In march i got achilles enthesis bilat.. Been out of running since mid june. Not because of my ff or my xero sandals but because i did too much too fast. So not allways blame the shoes sometimes injuries are even faster there if you do too much. Now i stretch a lot and i ve been learning new moves from dr. Nicholai Romanovs Hips and Hamstrings book 🙂
Great post. You’re absolutely correct. In fact, I just finished an email to a local runner suffering from Achilles tendinitis. In my practice the majority of running injuries I see are related to training patterns, typically from running too hard, and not a result of shoes or even from “flat feet”. Flat feet is now being considered more of s variant to foot types as opposed to a true pathology.