Spikes vs. racing flats for Masters middle distance training and racing

First off, congrats for continuing your love for the sport. As a 39 year old, I understand where you're coming from. Certainly, our bodies aren't quite as iron clad as they once were, are they? To answer, I think quite a lot of it depends on what you were used to in your"previous life"- ie: did you race competitively previously in spikes? I would most certainly encourage you NOT to do your routine training in spikes, if this is not something that you're used to. As I said, we're much more injury prone these days as it is. You might stick with the flats for training, and reward yourself with a nice, new, light as a feather pair of Nike matumbos (less aggressive) or Nike victories (significantly more aggressive). Just the feeling of spikes on my feet elicits a Pavlovian response to run FAST. Just because you're a masters runner, doesn't mean you can't go out and fly. Good luck to you!

Nike usually has the best mid distance spikes. Get a pair and slowly use them more and more. Start off with some strides, then use them at the end of a workout and maybe get to a point where you are using them in 50% of your workouts and all races. They should help improve times a lot over flats.

Thank you very much for your support and advice.

I never used spikes in my 'previous life' so it would be prudent to buy a relatively cushioned (as far as a spike can be cushioned...) pair and to limit their use to track races. Possibly I may try to very gradually adapt to them in training (starting with low-volume sessions such as those at 400m pace and gradually extending the use of spikes to 800-paced sessions and then 1500-paced sessions).

Good luck to you, too! Run fast and stay healthy!

Barefoot is the fastest.

You could use spikes for the 400m but you don't really need them.

They are definitely harder on your feet than barefoot or racing flats.

I'm 44 and run just 3 or 4 track races a year - I've given up on spikes - I am uncomfortable with the lack of cushioning in spikes - all I remember is the whack whack whack of each footstrike rather than the rush of running fast.

So I run 1500s in streak xcs and 5000s in NB 1400s - I am not sure if it is faster or slower, but a whole lot more fun.

Runner 85,

Many thanks for this thoughtful suggestion. I myself thought (as per my previous post) that possibly I could gradually adapt to using spikes in training. Your idea of starting ultra-gradually by wearing them just at the end of a workout rather than the whole set of reps is really clever.

J.R.,

Thanks for your reply. While I am curious about barefoot running, I think that I would not be able to leave out shoes altogether... So I am left with either spikes or flats.

From your post I seem to understand that in your opinion spikes are not advantageous as compared with racing flats from 400m onwards. Has this been your experience with spikes and flats? I am a bit puzzled because the other replies to my post suggest that spikes do offer some advantage over racing flats in middle distance races.

It would be very useful if other fellow runners would contribute to shedding light on this issue by sharing their experience.

Agip,

Thanks a lot for sharing your experience with spikes. It seems that some people are enthusiast of the sensation of wearing this kind of shoes, so light and aggressive, while others - like you - do not like how they feel. I was wondering if all spike models have no cushioning such as those you stopped using. Maybe there are some spikes with some degree of protection and support that could be appropriate for us older guys?

Barefoot is much easier to get used to on rubberized tracks than running in spikes and much easier on your feet and legs.

When I was running the 200 and 400 they were usually in spikes, however I ran 200's in 23 sometimes barefoot in practice. The main thing is that your feet are not slipping. Most rubberized tracks are very good for running barefoot, unless it's a crappy track with a lot of grit on the surface that would slip and also tear up the feet, which has happened to me. Definitely wear shoes if that's the case but that's rare and you could tell warming up.

I'd say if you're running faster than 60s 400 pace then spikes can be desirable, but anything slower then that and barefoot gains the advantage by far. There is nothing on your feet so of course it is faster, as long as your feet are not slipping. I have always run 5000's and 10000's barefoot on good tracks, and the occasional 800 and 1500 as well.

Some of the Kenyans have run close to 8 flat steeplechases barefoot. Bruce Tullah and some of the other English runners used to race frequently on dirt and even cinder tracks. I don't know how they did it on cinders! Ryun used to wear flats on a cinder track for most of his workouts in high school. IMO flats slip a lot on cinders so I would always wear spikes on that type of surface.

You can always try different ways and to see what works best for you.

Personally I do NOT like a lot of cushioning in shoes, which is a way of trying to cover up bad designs. High heel lifts are an example of bad design that cause the heels to bang on the surface and cause injuries.

The only purpose of shoes is to protect the feet, and (in some cases) to help keep the feet from slipping.

You don't need much protection from a rubberized track, and in most cases you're feet are not going to slip.

That reminds me of a race early on in high school. There was a tornado warning part way through a big invitational, so everyone was herded into the gym for 2 hours. Then we all went back out to the track and finished the meet! Note, this was not in California. The cinder track was entirely flooded with water. I ran the 800 barefoot, had great fun and ran quite well considering the conditions. I would not have run nearly as well wearing shoes.

Water on the track is no problem at all without shoes.

I'd go with the Nike matumbo...a bit more cushioning and supremely light.

J.R.,

Thank you very much for elaborating on this fascinating subject of barefoot running. The track I have access to for my everyday training is of the 'crappy' variety, so I would be a bit afraid of running without shoes. I will give barefoot running a try if in the future I will have the possibility to use another track with better surface. In the meanwhile, I will probably start to very prudently try using spikes, just to see if they work for me.

Fellow master,

Treat yourslf to some spikes my friend. If you feel faster, you will run fasster. Hello 4:5x!! Keep the trainers on for workouts, spikes for racing only. Large luck.

get some spikeless "spikes" ... spikes tore up my feet in college back when I was a youngster. I always wore Waffle Racers or similar - my feet thanked me for it.

Thanks a lot for your kind words and your encouragement. Best of luck to you, too!

McFlounder,

Many thanks for your words of caution. A common theme in the replies I am receiving is that spikes may indeed be a bit dangerous and increase injury risk. I definitely listen to these warnings as I had been plagued by injuries in 2011 and staying healthy is my first priority now. Maybe it will turn out that I cannot use spikes, however it should be possible to try them very gradually and prudently (e.g., the first time just 1 or 2 strides at the end of the workout), isn't it?

Spikes are great if you phase them in gradually.

Every spring, where I live in the UK, a bunch of people who have been doing roads and XC all winter put on their spikes for 'whole sessions', make their calves sore as hell for a couple of weeks, and often get injured. The smarter ones do exactly what people above said: put them on for a couple of 100m strides the first time, then for more and more of the session, until after 4 weeks or so they are comfortable running sessions in them. I've been at it 4 weeks and raced a 5000m two days ago and I feel fine, but the first few strides a month ago left me tight.

For me it's also symbolic. When I lace on my spikes, I say "I am going to run hard now", and I do. But for longer sessions at 3000 pace or slower I'll usually wear racing flats and spare the calves.

Thank you for further clarifying this issue. Graduality and progressive adaptation seem to be the keys to healthy use of spikes.

With this in mind, I would come back to one of my first questions: do spikes enable a slow runner to run faster in the 800/1500? What improvement in race time is it reasonable to expect? In other words, does the potential gain in race time more than compensate for the increased, though minimizable, injury risk?

Lee Masters wrote:

Thank you for further clarifying this issue. Graduality and progressive adaptation seem to be the keys to healthy use of spikes.

With this in mind, I would come back to one of my first questions: do spikes enable a slow runner to run faster in the 800/1500? What improvement in race time is it reasonable to expect? In other words, does the potential gain in race time more than compensate for the increased, though minimizable, injury risk?[/quote]

Bump

Are there some fellow runners so kind to share their experience about the possible gain in time with spikes vs. racing flats in middle distance?

The issue of energy return from spikes is murky - most people think spikes are primarily for traction purposes, but some think that a christmas tree spike will not puncture the surface of the track, but actually trampoline off the surface of the track, increasing the runner's speed. Which would suggest some speed gain over flats.

http://web.mit.edu/3.082/www/team3_f02/pages/design.html