Big congrats go out to Terry Clemens who won our second weekly free shoe drawing! He’s a 12-year-veteran of the New Jersey State Police who is running the Boston Marathon for the second consecutive time this spring…in Newtons! The final drawing is on Friday! Enter here if you haven’t already.
Check out this interesting study published in the November issue of Foot & Ankle International (FAI), the official scientific journal of the American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS). The study details the biomechanical changes that occur in feet during high heel wear and the correlation between the heel height and amount of pain, pressure and strain it puts on your feet.
The study was conducted on people walking, not running in high heels, but it’s reasonable to assume that the forces involved in running in a 1/2” heel lift are considerably higher than walking in more.
The study authors suggest limiting heel height as well as the use of padding at the ball of the foot can significantly reduce discomfort and risk of injury to the metatarsal heads.
Newton Racers have a 2 mm drop from heel to toe, the Performance Trainers are 3 mm and Guidance Trainers (Sir and Lady Isaac) are 5 mm. The typical running shoe has a heel lift of a 1/2 inch or more. You do the math.
Dear Danny,
I’ve been a runner since July 2, 1979. This past summer, with my 67th birthday looming on the horizon, I began increasing my mileage, with the objective of making my 1,200 mile annual goal (which I haven’t achieved in more years than I care to talk about). When I began picking up my weekly mileage my knee pain increased in direct proportion to the increase in distance. I found some relief in various inserts but it was always temporary and I was constantly looking for some new and better inserts.
In the midst of one of those searches I stumbled upon newtonrunning.com. I knew after only a couple of minutes of reading and watching that it was what I had been looking for. I checked for dealers, found none in Alabama, but one in Clarksville, TN where my wife and I would be working in the coming week. A call to the store let me know they were out of my size but had my wife’s so I ordered mine off your site and two days later, at the store in Clarksville, we purchased a pair for my wife Christina, and another for our business and running partner Adrienne Wall.
I completed my first run in Newtons the night of September 24th and I’ve not run in anything else since. I’ve thrown out all my inserts along with my Asics, but, most important, my knee pain is gone and both my distance and speed are up. I look forward to every run like a kid anticipating cake and ice cream and for a 67 year old with 30+ year of running behind me, that is saying a lot.
The truth is there aren’t words to convey what I feel. A line from a 60’s pop song states my dilemma, “How do you thank someone who has taken you from crayons to perfume?” Thanks to the shoe you designed and built, I’ve now logged over 1,200 miles for the year and I should easily exceed 1,500; next year I’ll go over 2,000, something I’ve not done in over 20 years.
“Thanks” isn’t nearly enough to say to you but it’s the best I can come up with. If I can ever assist you in promoting Newton Running, don’t hesistate to let me know how.
Your to count on,
Bert Carson
Huntsville, Alabama
By Danny Abshire, co-founder, Newton Running
The biggest culprit of modern running shoe design is that most training shoes have large, overbuilt heel crash pads that encourage and really only allow a heel-striking gait. Even if you wanted to run with a natural midfoot/forefoot stride pattern, the geometry and heel height of many shoes will not allow your foot to land naturally or parallel to the ground because the hefty heel gets in the way.
Natural running is the way the human body was meant to run in its purest form – namely, barefoot – across a solid surface. That means running with efficient mechanics centered around landing lightly on the midfoot/forefoot (the ball of the foot, but not the toes) and quickly lifting your foot off the ground instead of pushing off with excessive muscular force. In order to accommodate that style of running, a runner needs to be able to feel the ground and interact with it accordingly just as when barefoot. And to do that, the runner needs to be wearing lightweight, minimally designed running shoes.
The afferent feedback from feeling the ground encourages your body to run with light footsteps, upright posture, a relaxed arm swing and a slight forward lean. That important feedback is obtainable via minimalist, lightweight running shoes designed to allow the foot to strike the ground with a natural midfoot/forefoot gait but is impossible to receive wearing thickly cushioned shoes and a heavy heel-striking gait. Practicing natural running form can be simple, but it may take time to unlearn old habits and learn proper technique. Ultimately, natural running can help make a runner stronger, more efficient and less prone to overuse injuries.
Minimalism in its simplest form involves picking shoes that allow the foot to move more naturally than standard shoes allow. But not all minimal shoes are created equal. Newton Running shoes were designed to be an extension of the feet, enhancing ground contact without the jarring impact shock of the road, sidewalk or hard-packed trail below. Newton’s reduced heel height and sleek geometry allows the shoe to stay out of the way as it approaches the contact with the ground, and along with enhanced forefoot communication, allows the runner to strike lightly at the midfoot/forefoot instead of using a heel-striking motion that requires heavy breaking and excess muscular force.
Newton Running’s patented Action/Reaction Technology™ encourages natural running or a barefoot running gait and enhances the shock absorbency, leverage and energy return throughout the gait cycle, ultimately helping achieve a faster cadence and more efficient mechanics. Newton’s independent lab research shows the system returns up to 28 percent more energy and reduces impact up to 44 percent when compared to training and racing shoes offered by leading running brands.
Practicing natural running form can be simple, but it may take time to unlearn old habits and learn proper technique. But it also requires having the appropriate footwear to allow your body to run the way it was designed to run. Once you learn to run naturally, you’ll put yourself in position to run faster and healthier for the rest of your life.
Danny Abshire is the co-founder of Newton Running, a Boulder, Colo.-based company that makes shoes that promote an efficient midfoot/forefoot running gait. He has been making advanced footwear solutions for runners and triathletes for more than 20 years.
Congrats to Rosanne Morrison of Rockford, IL who won our free shoe drawing last week!
Rosanne says:
“Thank you and your company for this great giveaway. I have needed a high level pair of running shoes for a while-mine are 3 years old!. With the help of your website I was able to pick the perfect shoe for my particular problem. Thank you so much.” – Rosanne Morrison
We’re drawing another name for free shoes this Friday and another next Friday. Grand prize is a free trip to Boulder! See rules for the contest here.
Photo credit: Nils Nilsen
Newton Running shoes were spotted all over the place last week on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. As runners descended on Waikiki for the Dec. 13 Honolulu Marathon, dozens of runners were seen sporting Newton Running racers and trainers, both in pre-race shag runs and during the race. And a week prior to the marathon, Newton runners could be seen in the Xterra Trail Run World Championships, an event that drew 1,100 runners to the pristine mountain and rainforest terrain of Kualoa Ranch on the north side of the island. (If you’ve seen the movies Jurassic Park, Windtalkers, Pearl Harbor, Godzilla, Tears of the Sun or 50 First Dates or the hit TV show LOST (which were all filmed on this 400-acre working cattle ranch) then you have an idea of the kind of terrain trail runners encountered. Heather Fuhr (third among women, 1:38:01) and Rachel Cieslewicz (seventh, 1:42:13) were among the top Newton runners in the event. Aloha, baby! Check out the full Xterra results here.
There are a lot of crazy ultra-events out there, but this one might take the cake. The DECA Ironman in Monterrey, Mexico is a race to finish 10 Ironman-distance triathlons in 10 days. The fastest cumulative time wins.
Here’s a description from the Competitor website:
Each day, all of the racers head over to the University of Nuevo Leon. Once athletes complete the 2.4 miles of swimming in the pool, they take to the bike and ride over to the local track about 1.2 miles away. The track is located in the Parque Ninos Heroes. Once at the park, athletes must complete 93 laps around the track to obtain the 180 km of riding. After the bike, athletes run the opposite direction around the same track. The 26.2 marathon is made up of 22 laps.
Sounds fun, right?
Eighteen crazy people athletes from around the world started the race and an impressive 11 people finished. The first and only American to enter, Wayne Kurtz, a CFP from Pittsburgh, finished in 5th place with a cumulative time of 141:28:26. He credits his daily recovery and steady running pace to his trusty Newton Gravity’s. We’re proud of you Wayne!!!
The race website with full results is here. Read the recap from Competitor.com here. Next year, they’re offering a double DECA. That’s 76 km of swimming, 3,600 km cycling and 844 km of running. Sign me up!
From Danny Abshire’s inbox:
Danny,
You probably don’t remember me but you helped me out a ton at IM Wisconsin in ‘07 and I’ve been getting PB’s at every race since then. Won’t run in anything else! I just thought you’d like to see Newton represented in Athens, Greece in 2009…the 2,499th anniversary of the running of Pheidippides! My younger brother and I recently completed the the Athens Greece marathon. What makes this story unique is that Steven and I are both 100% Greek and have never been out of the country to see our relatives that live in Athens. It was also my brother Steven’s first marathon. I have run Boston, raced 5 Ironman Triathlons (3:32 pb Ironman marathon thanks to Danny) but was more emotional after this race than ever retracing our Greek heritage roots and history and running the original route of Pheidippides. I ran with my brother every step of the way taking pictures and helping him with nutrition and he finished strong and healthy. We started together and finished together. Next year will be the 2,500th anniversary – an amazing milestone in marathon history. My race report with pics can be found at www.trigreek.blogspot.com.
Thanks for your consideration!
Sincerely,
Chris Mandelaris
We’d like to extend a hearty congratulations to Josh Cox, who finished in second place place at the California International Marathon today in a time of 2:13:51, just nine seconds behind the winner, Ethiopian Tasfaye Bekele. This is a new PR for JC, beating his old record of 2:13:54 set in Chicago back in 2000. Apparently there was a big head win from mile 13 on, but Josh is pleased with his performance and his Newton shoes! This race qualifies Josh to race in the next U.S. Men’s Marathon Olympic Trials.
This is from RunnersWorld.com. Our man Josh Cox has a big weekend. We also just sent him some ‘magic shoes’ that will hopefully help him go faster!
Could Josh Cox Win the California International Marathon?
Cox, our videographer pal, set a U.S. 50k record of 2:47:17 in Arizona in January and California International Marathon Director John Mansoor believes “Josh is probably the only one (American) who realistically has a shot at contending for the win” at Sunday’s marathon in Sacramento. This race gives American men at chance to qualify for the next U.S. Men’s Marathon Trials by running 2:19 or better, and Mansoor believes “There’s going to be a good pack for the men who run to try to qualify. They should be able to work together to get it done.” He feels “there’s about 20-plus men who are trying to get that mark … maybe six or seven get it.” The contenders include Trent Briney, the surprise fourth place finisher at the 2004 Trials (he’s been training at altitude in Flagstaff, Arizona), and former Stanford star Louis Luchini, who’ll be racing 26.2 miles for the first time. Luchini has fond memories of Sacramento, where he took second in the 5000 at the 2003 NCAA Championships at Hornet Stadium. More And here’s video of Josh Cox doing an eight-mile run and some intervals in preparation for California International. More
