Shoe Dog Run Analysis

This past weekend, I visited Runners Warehouse for the first time.  I like the guys at Laces and I'm going to try to patronize them as much as I can, but it was pretty fun to browse through the big box store version of a runners store, since Sports Chalet and Sports Authority are pretty thin on running gear.  I found the singlet top I want in the clearance section, so that was worth the trip right there.

They've got these treadmill stations set up for running gait analysis, administered under a program they call "Shoe Dog", and since there was no fee or obligation, I decided to see what they'd say for me.  I already know my arch is on the flat side and that my foot collapses in on the inner sole (pronation) during the roll-through.  I don't think I need any correction though and prefer a neutral shoe.

I really enjoyed going through the process and watching the results on the screen.  I got to see how I tend to distribute my weight (which is slightly right foot dominant) and confirmed that my arch is low and my pronation pretty pronounced.  The analyst, though, seemed to follow a script and suggested a stability shoe and an orthotic insert for the arch.  Having just read "Born to Run" recently, I reacted with a little skepticism of why I needed to fix something that wasn't broken?  She persisted in the mantra that over-pronating was bad and that my arch was something that needed to be supported as if it was a defect.

I wasn't going to debate about it, but about the only symptom I can see that might be related to the mechanics of my foot is the tendinitis I was experiencing in my ankle.  The "shoe solution" is to protect the foot and keep it from flexing the way it does.  But I've persisted, simply scaling back my mileage a bit, and I feel like my ankles have adapted and gotten stronger as a result of NOT protecting them with a motion controlling stability shoe or orthotic insert.  In essence, I let my foot do what it was supposed to do rather than weaken it by surrounding it with crutches. 

Anyway, I'm sticking with my cheap Big 5 Sporting Goods $40 Sauconey's and letting my pronation do its shock absorbing job for now.  The last thing I want to do is try to stiffen up my ankle and start to incur injury to my knees or hips.  I've been doing so good on the injury front, I don't want to change anything.

I am intrigued by the Newton running shoes though.  After the marathon, I might give those a test run.