56. How Super are Super Shoes?

In episode #56 of the podcast, Dr. Kate and Dr. Kacy discuss all aspects of running shoes including their components, trends in styles of shoes, and “hot takes” (aka potentially controversial opinions) on who may benefit from “super shoes” and how often to wear them. They briefly discuss the anatomy and physiology of a running shoe including the stack height, upper, cushion, drop, outer and sole. Then, they talk about trends in these components including the common phenomenon of extremes in fashion and sportswear including the popularity of minimalist footwear followed by the pendulum swinging the opposite extreme of “maximalist” or high cushion and stack height footwear popularized by such brands as Hoka. They also touch on the idea that no one shoe can prevent injuries in runners. As Dr. Kate says, “We’ve been making changes to running shoes for the last 40 years but injury rates have not changed,” so ultimately runners best bet is to choose the most comfortable shoe for them.

Dr. Kate and Dr. Kacy also talk about the more recent technology development of carbon-plated running shoes that have also been called “energy return shoes” or “super shoes.” They also dig into research support and data on the use of these shoes for performance enhancement but also talk about the potential risk of wearing this shoe for all training runs. Dr. Kacy talks about how she rotates wearing these shoes into her training (hint: she does NOT wear them for all training runs and may not even wear them at all in every training week she has). They also talk about what the research says regarding optimum pace for runners to have in order to benefit from wearing super shoes and if this exists. Both women emphasize that it is important not to get seduced by how good these shoes feel and think it is ok to wear them all the time because there is also the reality that this shoe that allows for more energy return also creates more force going through all the body tissues!

Dr. Kate and Kacy also share some of their thoughts on the importance of strength training for runners and how buying and running in a “super shoe” is NO replacement for strength training! Dr. Kacy notes, it is much more important to focus on the runner’s biomechanics, strength, and mobility than to find the “perfect shoe.” As Dr. Kacy says, ““We always talk about shoes as tools, which we’ve already referenced already and the the runner is the one running in the shoe, it’s not the shoe that is running! So, we are often concerned about the biomechanics of the runner and the strength of the runner versus what’s going on at the shoe.” Dr. Kate shares some of her prerequisite strength benchmarks that she looks for in a runner before she will recommend that they try a carbon-plated running shoe. If you have been hearing the hype around these “super shoes” and want to learn more, give this episode a listen!