Is anyone familiar with them? Has anyone actually tried them? Do they cause you to run differently (better)?
http://thegearjunkie.com/newton-running-gravity-shoes-column
They say they make shoes with rubber lugs on the sole to mimic a barefoot-running style. Based on that info alone, it sounds like a good idea, but I haven't tried it...
GIMMICK
They are excellent shoes. I was sceptical when I bought them but now I wear them on almost every run. I have been a heel-toe runner for years (especially since I stopped running track) but when I wear my Newtons I find that I am using my forefoot more.
Do they work with orthotics?
Josh Cox wore them in the Rocket City marathon.
I was standing near him at the starting line.
Do not wear Newton shoes, they might feel alright for a while but by raising your toe you are putting yourself at increased risk for Achilles tendon issues. The only people who should be wearing them is people who are forefoot strikers.
All of the pro triathletes who wear them shave off the lug under the forefoot. They all learned to do this the hard way... after getting injured.
Injuries wrote:
Do not wear Newton shoes, they might feel alright for a while but by raising your toe you are putting yourself at increased risk for Achilles tendon issues. The only people who should be wearing them is people who are forefoot strikers.
I thought the whole idea was that we should be forefront strikers, like if we were running barefoot.
The only problem with that thinking is that if you are not a forefoot striker you will hurt yourself changing your biomechanics. In addition most people are not naturally forefoot strikers but rather midfoot strikers which would still put the lug in front of your foot strike and cause extra stress on your achilles and calf muscles.
The shoes are definitely made to make you a forefoot striker. If you already run with a mid-forefoot strike they won't do anything for you that would warrant the nearly $200 price tag for a shoe which doesn't last more than 300 miles.
They're really the perfect shoe for triathletes. Even the most expensive shoes cost around $150, and Newtons were more in line w/ what they would spend on hobby #1 (swimming & $300 skinsuits for 1:20 min IM swimmers) & #2 (cycling) for mucho dinero bikes.
For everyone else, they're nonsense.
I can speak from personal experience - they seemed to work well, and my times were improving, but in fact I did develop am mild case of Achilles's tendonitis. I stopped using them for 6 months, then tried again with the same result - it took me over a month to recover - and I wont use them except for short races (ie 1/2 marathon or less) again.
Ahem, perfect shoe for yuppies