Thwap, hu, thwap, hu, thwap, hu. At one time, the rhythmic pounding of a run created a hypnotic trance. The foot-strike created a dependable cadence to measure strength and speed. This beat carried me through 20 years of running. Last weekend 20 years of thwap, hu, thwap, hu, thwap, hu were silenced.

Every Islamic faithful makes a pilgrimage to Mecca. The same holds true for endurance athletes—only our Mecca is Boulder, Colorado. Muslims must visit the Holy Mosque, and athletes must patron the Newton Running Lab. I had the opportunity to visit the Newton Running Lab after winning a sweepstakes. (It pays to follow @sirisaac, which alerted me that the contest was going on.) Along with the trip, I received a pair of Newton running shoes and valuable training with Danny Abshire, the brains behind the Newton operations.

When I arrived at the Newton Running Lab, Danny and his wife Jennifer offered a very warm welcome and went right to work. Danny evaluated my feet and stride. I over-pronate, strike with my toe, and my strides are too long. Danny and Jennifer explained the Newton Running Shoe’s ability to correct your foot position and stride. With the right shoe and a lesson in proper running form, they could fix me right up.

I slipped on my new Newtons and immediately noticed a dramatic difference in my stride. I’ve purchased many shoes that have claimed to improve speed, comfort, and form but the Newton was the first shoe to immediately deliver. Danny leads a form clinic every Saturday morning, and as we started out he gave me instructions such as “land on the middle part of your foot,” “pull your arms back,” and “lift don’t push”. Shouldn’t running be the most natural movement? Yes, but over the years our brains and fancy running shoes have trained our bodies to run unnaturally. The Newton pulls from Sir Isaac Newton’s theory of gravity and teaches the individual to harness that “free speed” which naturally exists.

As we completed the initial form instruction, Danny decided that my feet needed a little more correction. My feet were measured for orthotics and soon I was ready to hit the road again. Danny and I headed out on a run through Boulder. Again he instructed me to quicken my cadence, lower my arms, and make sure my foot strikes the ground quietly.

“Quiet foot strike?” I asked. I’m reliant on the sound of my feet to carry me through my run. Danny explained, “Yes, you shouldn’t hear your feet hitting the ground.” And so I continued, conscious of the pounding and scraping of the pavement. Very quickly I found that the joint and foot pain I had become accustomed to was absent. There was no heavy breathing, which was monumental considering the altitude I was adjusting to. For the first time in many years, I was enjoying a relaxed, pain-free run.

After our run I had the opportunity to see the Newton offices and learn how a shoe moves from conception to completion. Danny is working on a book that focuses on the biomechanics of running and on his desk were the copious notes from many hours of research. The afternoon concluded with a quick discussion of Craig Alexander, 2-time Ironman World Champion and proud Newton shoe proponent. Craig has worn the Newton shoe for several years and happens to be my athletic idol. Jennifer handed me a Craig Alexander autographed Newton running hat which now sits on my desk, never to be worn, only admired.

Thinking back on the weekend, I recall the sight of the Flatirons, the numerous athletes on bike and foot, and that great training run with Danny.  In the midst of silent foot strike and relaxed breath Danny said “This is my religion”.  I agree, this is my religion, and now this is my peace.

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

Anyway, Brandon bought his first pair of Newtons last year and he’s been a convert ever since. He just posted a really thoughtful, three part entry on his blog entitled “Why I Wear Newtons.” Here’s an excerpt:

But, WHY did I switch? The answer to that question has a few layers. First, as I said earlier, I was blissfully unaware of what running actually was. For me it was something where I just went out and did it to lose weight or to look better, but now I was doing it because it was fun! Yes some of the long, boring mile remained long and boring, but they were not so laborious as before. Keep in mind that I did not all of a sudden get my Newtons and begin forefoot/midfoot striking, I had been doing it for a while in my existing shoes. Newtons, due to their minimal heel-toe drop (about 1/6 of an inch), allowed me to use a much more “piston-like” (up and down) action with my legs rather than having to force my toes down to overcome the giant wedge of my Nike’s.

Second; I wanted to go farther and longer. This part is less about Newtons, “the shoe” and more about the technique which they use and promote. Over time, I had come to discover, through trial, that forefoot running, with a shorter, more efficient stride, allowed me to go longer with minimal fatigue. It also allowed me to get up hills, where before I had to walk, I could now run up no problem. I know that this, again, may sound like a bit of, “hey mom! look how I can run faster and jump higher in my new shoes!!” syndrome, but again, this is NOT about the shoe, but about the technique that they promote. As I said before, I am not a small, lanky runner type of guy. I am tall and big and can bench-press about 275 lbs. (or could before I began trying to lean out for my Ironman). I have not had a single injury, save for ITBS which was existing, since running in Newtons. Not shinsplints, not plantar fasciitis, not knee pain, nothing.

I would highly recommend Brandon’s website where he not only posts about his training, gear and races but he also posts a “Recipe of the Week.” Grilled yellowfin tuna with pineapple salsa this week….when is lunch!?

“At the beginning of my winter training this year, I started training with a new Triathlon Coach who wanted me to change my running style from heel striker to forefoot running. He said it would increase my speed and running efficency, and reduce my risk of injury. I was apprehensive at first and questioned his judgement. I’d struggled with a left shin splint injury for the past 3 years and had gone to a lot of expense to get special orthotics and the right running trainers to try and ward off this recurring injury. But, I was still finding it hard to run longer distances without my shin splint (left tib post to be precise) flaring up, so I decided to give forefoot running a go.

At first, I found it really hard to run on my forefoot without my heels dropping so my coach suggested that I invest in pair of Newtons, initially as a training aid. He told me that the Newtons would ‘put me up’ onto my forefoot and help me to progress from heel striker to forefoot runner. I’d also heard the buzz about Newtons on the Triathlon circuit and decided to find out what all the fuss was about. £120 later and I was sporting a pair of lightweight orange and white Newton Distance S trainers, a far cry from my bulky motion control Asics running shoes (also £100 plus shoes).”

Read the rest of Johnny’s post here:

Here are two cool first impression reviews.

An excerpt from Robert at Psyrixx Blog:

“I don’t know if it was just my high expectations or if the shoes actually accomplished what they were designed to do but I ran my entire forty minute set without any hint of pain.  It was, as in Oceanside when I first tested the shoes, very obvious where my foot needed to be landing and the fact that the heel of the shoe isn’t super thick like most cross-trainers meant that I wasn’t over compensating to make sure I landed on the front half of my foot and in so doing straining my peronius brevis.  I was able to keep a nice fast cadence with light foot-fall, landing properly on my midfoot keeping my feet underneath my hips and I was surprised at how quickly the forty minutes flew by.  I guess without any leg pain running doesn’t seem so tedious.  ” Read more here.

And another review from amateur runner Andrea Hill.

“The shoes are built up on the midfoot so I do feel naturally propelled forward, even just standing still. When running, it feels awkward to let your heel touch down, so it wasn’t something I had to necessarily concentrate on: I naturally gravitated to running on my midfoot. I had met someone in Boston who had Newtons, and she warned me they were rough on the calves. I can see how this is, they’re much more engaged. This will definitely take some getting used to. I did notice that hills were much easier to approach, as I was already landing appropriately on my feet.” Read more here.