Lately, quite a few bloggers wrote posts lamenting their heel strike while running and resulting injuries. I am no expert on the subject, but based on what I learned from professionals in physical therapy, running stores and Runner’s World, heel striking can contribute to poor form, put pressure on the wrong muscles and can often lead to injury.
When I started running, literally from the first time I started running, I experienced knee pain on the outside of my knee. I was diagnosed with Patella Femoral Pain Syndrome. My first race ever, the WTC Run to Remember 5K, started out great but about halfway through my knee was on fire. During my first 10K, the Joe Kleinerman 10K, my knee basically gave out sometime during mile 4. During my first half marathon in March 2010, my knees started hurting around mile 9 and hurt so much for the remainder of the race.
It’s been a year since I had that pain.
What changed? I am no longer a heel striker.
[March 21, 2010. I’m in the pink top. You can see my heel strike if you look closely.]
The change from heel striking to mid-foot striking was the best running decision I ever made, and the easiest. All it took was a new brand of shoes.
I wasn’t in the market for new running sneakers. I recently purchased my Brooks after getting fitted at JackRabbit (in a size too small, so after my feet got beaten up I exchanged them for a larger size). Before that, I wore Asics that a different running store recommended for me. But my knee problems were so severe I paid a lot of money for insoles. My knee problems continued. I was in and out of physical therapy. I thought it was just my body; I would never be someone who can run without pain.
When I went to pick up my race packet for my second half marathon, there was a promo going on from the race sponsor Karhu: try on a pair of their sneakers and get entered to win a free trip to run a marathon in Finland.
A free trip to run a marathon in a foreign country sounded too good to pass up, so I tried on the shoes with no intention to actually buy them.
Karhu shoes are not so heavily padded and raised in the center like typical running shoes, they are much flatter, designed with patented fulcrum technology to propel you forward. I tried their most stable version designed for heavy overpronators, Karhu Fulcrum Steady Rides.
Once I had the shoes on, the Karhu rep watched me jog outside. “You mid-strike in our shoes,” he told me. I wasn’t buying it. “Put on one of your Brooks shoes and one of our Karhu shoes. Then run again.”
I did.
And he was right. My foot in the Brooks was heel striking, and my foot in the Karhu was center striking. It was crazy to see such a difference. The difference was even there when I walked. Even my mom saw the difference.
I didn’t know if these new shoes with the new strike would actually help my knee, but I couldn’t walk out of there without buying them to see. I can’t stand spending money on things I don’t need, and I didn’t technically need new sneakers. And these shoes were ugly.
[For some reason I feel like I have clown feet in these]
But if I didn’t buy them, I would always wonder.
[My first race in the new kicks]
I am not exaggerating when I say these Karhu shoes changed my running life. I wore them at my next half marathon, and while my knee pain was drastically better than my first half marathon just two weeks before, I had not fully recovered from that so it was hard to tell for sure.
As I continued wearing my Karhu Fulcrum Steady Rides, not only did my knees stop hurting but I seemed to get faster. That could just be a result of becoming a more experienced runner, but I think the two factors both contributed.
[Look mom! No heel strike!]
Shortly after switching to these shoes, I demolished my previous PRs — all with absolutely no knee pain: Women’s Mini 10K in 56:05, 4 Mile Race to Deliver in 33:55 and the Queens Half Marathon in 2:06:27. Three astonishing races for me where I ran faster than I ever thought I could — and no knee pain whatsoever. That used to be completely unheard of for me.
(When I filmed my Bing: Friends Matter webisode, I wore my old running sneakers, which is why I am heel striking here. As much as I love my Karhus, I still find them ugly.)
And now, with just six weeks left until my marathon, I am proud to say that I have not experienced any of that patellar knee pain that used to plague me. None. (Knock on wood). I ran 18 miles on Sunday (race recap next week!). I ran 17 miles two weeks before. I’ve been running more miles during the week than I ever have before. I decided to get a new pair of shoes to break in for the marathon. At first I ordered the updated version of the Karhu Fulcrum Steady Rides — they were much cuter, and orange and gray! — but I didn’t even bother to try them on. I realized I need to stick with what works right now. It is not the time for trying out new shoes. I returned those and got a second pair of the exact same blue shoes I’ve been wearing for over a year. This time, without Queens Half mud:
Gross.
So, runners who are blatant heel strikers with injuries — not just knee injuries, but hip, hamstring, shin and more — try on a pair of Karhu (or other non-heavily-padded shoes). It was that crazy rise and padding in the center of the Brooks/Asics that I had before that made me heel strike. Take those away, and my running became more efficient and injury-free. Karhu’s website has some more information about this comparison, which I am not at all qualified to explain. (Note – My hip injury was not related to or caused by running. It was caused and felt during turned-out positions and exercises. Parallel movements, like lunges and running, do not cause the pain.)
I’ve recommended this to runners many times, but for some reason people are very quick to blow me off. I know it is easy to stick with what the fancy running store says, I know it is comfortable to wear a brand you are familiar with, a brand other people recognize. All I am saying is that if you know you have a heel striking problem, and you have been injured, just try these on at the store and jog a little, walk a little, wear one Karhu and one of your regular brand at the same time — and see the difference yourself.
I did not receive any compensation from Karhu for this post. They don’t even know who I am. But, should they read this, fall in love with my charm and wish to provide me with free shoes, or simply reimburse me for the pair I just purchased, I will not reject such an offer.
