Running shoe dilemma for flat feet!

Leesespieces412

I have been Googling and pondering for hours, and then I remembered all you wonderful people who always steer me in a good direction right here on MFP!

So I've been running steadily for almost 2 months now and I LOVE IT. I could go on and on about why I love it but my fellow runners already understand so I'll get to the issue. I haven't ever been to one of those specialty shoe stores (I don't know if I have one near me), but I know I have flat wide feet and I think I overpronate, just not sure how much. I've run in two different kinds of sneakers. One pair is Nike but I don't know what the model is, but they look similar to the Lunarglides or the Dual Fusions, they have a lot of support on the bottom and they're a little heavy and don't flex very much. The other pair of sneakers is a flatter sneaker more designed for cross training or what I used them for, Zumba classes.

So here's my issue.. I feel like I run better in the flatter shoes. I don't know why, maybe it's because I can actually flex my foot, but they feel so much better to run in. But after running in them a few times, my knees and hips start to get sore (later, after the run, not during). The soreness doesn't happen with the thicker supportive Nike shoes, but my foot and lower shin get tight and crampy in those since I don't have much of a range of motion. It's just so hard to go back to that after experiencing how it feels in the flatter shoes.

So what can I do???? Help!!

Cherimoose

Try slipping in a pair of supportive insoles like Superfeet or Powerstep into the flatter shoes.

LoneWolfRunner

I would just keep running in the flatter shoes and ditch the others... I think the pains you are feeling are you adjusting to less drop in your shoe... which I believe is a good thing. But then again I am a firm believer in zero-drop minimalist shoes... and not one specialty running shoe store would ever recommend them to me...in fact, I got tired of the lectures so I stopped buying my shoes through them and just got them online. I can only speak to my own experience.... traditional running shoes were trashing my feet, knees, back.... minimalist shoes keep me running.

noexcusesjustresults2014

LoneWolfRunner wrote: »

I would just keep running in the flatter shoes and ditch the others... I think the pains you are feeling are you adjusting to less drop in your shoe... which I believe is a good thing. But then again I am a firm believer in zero-drop minimalist shoes... and not one specialty running shoe store would ever recommend them to me...in fact, I got tired of the lectures so I stopped buying my shoes through them and just got them online. I can only speak to my own experience.... traditional running shoes were trashing my feet, knees, back.... minimalist shoes keep me running.

+1

I love minimalist shoes too.

Give yourself time. Your body needs to adjust to running with that type of shoe. In time muscle imbalances can be eliminated along with the pain.

Strength train as well.