Running on Soft Surfaces

Interesting ideas, thanks. It's kind oif puzzling to me that more research hasn't been done in this area (perhaps the major shoe companies don't want us to know that all of their fancy shoes are actually more of a hindrance than a help).

I don't know why but for the longest time I refused to believe that my shoes had anything to do with my hip issues (tightness/inflammation - constantly) - now it seems as though the lighter shoes are giving me better results. Maybe even more minimal shoes will work the best?

Balki_Bartokomous: It's kind oif puzzling to me that more research hasn't been done in this area

Seems to me that there actually have been a good number of studies published in the last few years. I don't really keep track of them - I'm pretty cynical about how useful most research is to someone like me, a runner trying to stay healthy and improve, and prefer to put most of my faith in my own direct real-world experience and that of other runners - but maybe someone can direct you to recent results. Or google "running shoe research".

Perhaps I just haven't looked hard enough. I agree, I also tend to trust my own experiences, however I find it helps me psychologically to know "why" something occurs. It helps reinforce the idea and reminds me why I am making a particular change in my training.

I've had issues with stress fractures and stress reactions in the past so I try to stay on soft surfaces. I don't have time to drive to trails everyday so I've learned to run laps around parks on the grass on weekdays.

It seems weird at first and it can be boring but you get used to it. I actually prefer it now because I don't contend with traffic or sloped roads, also once you get a feel for how long a circuit takes you can monitor your pace fairly accurately. You can also break it up by crossing the park diagonally or doing "X strides" on a soccer field every so often.

I've found that running in low-profile flats (even waffle racers) helps with instability issues and feels more natural on that surface. It also seems like this makes your legs stronger than running on a smoothe surface with a lot of rebound. I'm also lucky to have 2 fairly large parks near my house.

I used to run solely on concrete and asphalt which gave me really bad shin splints. For a long time I thought I couldn't run more than 35 miles a week. Then I started running on grass and trails regularly and I discovered I could handle much higher mileage without getting injured. For me I think the key thing was not the softer surface but the fact it was an uneven surface, and so it helped to develop my core strength and the stabilizing muscles in my legs. In short it made my body much more resilient to picking up injury.