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David S.
David S. Sendmail

Hi DM's has anybody here made the transition from being a heal striker to a mid foot runner? if so any advice welcome..

asked 3 months ago | Report

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  • Kris M.
    Kris M. Sendmail

    I switched last year. It's a slow process but in my opinion it's worth it. I bought a new pair of running shoes that weren't completely minimalist but didn't have as much of a heal as "normal" shoes, they were actually considered a racing shoe. I felt this way when I did mess up form and heal strike I had less chance of hurting myself.

    I had read a lot about it and watched video's, so I kinda had an idea of how to change my form. Then I slowly transitioned into it. I would run for 5 min in the new shoes doing a mid foot strike, then switch into my normal shoes for the rest of the run. Slowly building up time in the newer shoes with the mid foot strike, 5 min at a time. Your calves will be on fire! So do not transition to the new form too fast.

    Until it became natural for me I had to concentrate on it. While in the newer shoes I had to remind myself to do a midfoot strike and to actively pay attention to form so I could notice if I slipped. It feels awkward at first. I had read a lot where people said it would feel weird and then one day it would finally hit you and you would think "That's what it feels like!" I didn't believe that. Then it happened to me. haha! I had gone on vacation and didn't want to bring 2 pairs of shoes so just the minimalist made it in the bag. Probably about half way through the trip I was running and noticed that I felt comfortable, the form felt good and natural. I thought "So that's how it feels." lol!

    I would say it probably took me a month to switch over 100%. I switched 100% in May 2011. I still have calf soreness. It's not nearly as bad but I can feel it. It's not every run but it's mostly on longer runs. I've started to wear compression socks when I do my long runs and that really seemed to help. I'm not concerned I still have soreness, I've read it can take your calves a year or longer to really get used to it. I've also since switched to a more minimalist shoe and love it. I had no problems switching from the in-between shoes I was wearing. I'm not ready to go to a barefoot shoe, I like having some support still.

    Not sure this was helpful..but good luck! Switching has caused me to have less hip and back pain. I also had suffered a heal fracture and now don't really worry about re-injuring that. although I am having some Achilles pain. Oh well..it's always something right? haha

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  • Gil R.
    Gil R. Sendmail

    David, you're making the right choice, and you will add more satisfaction and fun to your runs once you've converted! It took 30 years to grow a generation of heel strikers, so it may take that long to convert everyone back! Check out this video. It's very helpful for starting the technique and it explains two of the essential basics to the technique: foot landing and posture. Good luck!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jio7DK15Q1E

    answered 3 months ago |Report

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  • Ryan
    Ryan Sendmail

    Honestly I found the biggest game-changer for that was changing up the shoes. If I wear traditional running shoes, I almost can't help heel striking somewhat because the heel is so thick. Switching to a shoe with less of a heel-toe drop inherently made it much easier.

    Also, upping cadence helped a lot as well - getting up to about 180 footstrokes per minute. For that, I went to an online metronome site, set it to 184 (or something as close to 180 as was offered) and listened to it for a while until the rhythm sunk into my head. Then I went out and tried to match it. With a faster cadence, I found that I just don't have time to heel strike.

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  • Josh H.
    Josh H. Sendmail

    I second everything Kris said above… read that first.

    I switched last year. I felt entirely unnatural at first. I'm a 6'1" 190lb runner and this has changed everything for me. My number one piece of advice... get it in your head up front that you are a brand new runner. I took my weekly mileage down from 35 all the way to 15 when making the switch and progressively grew strength over an entire year. My calves were in complete shock over this new form and it honestly took an entire year to grow that strength. Now that I’ve made the transition I’m faster & healthier. I’ll purposefully heal strike for a minute of two on occasion during long runs to give my calves a rest… but heel striking now feels like running with the emergency break on.

    I began running in barefoot shoes (Vibrams) for about 20% of my weekly mileage. Take this VERY slow and easy to start. I'm talking less than a mile to start even if you're a marathoner. It will force you to learn the new form and was the best way to understand the change that needed to happen.

    Watch videos and take it slow. If you do this wrong you’ll end up with a messed up Achilles or worse. Good luck and have fun with it!

    answered 3 months ago |edited 3 months ago |Report

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