Picking running shoes for a first time flat footed runner

I have flat feet. Since you are new to running, take some time to watch a few videos on Chi Running or Forefoot Running or Low Impact Running. Search youtube, watch, and learn. All of the techniques have a similar thread of leaning at the ankles and landing on the front of your foot. It will reduce impact on your knees and arch. Go to a running store and get their opinion, try a few different brands, styles, and designs. As you begin running pay attention to aches, pains, and imbalances and watch how your shoes wear out and how this affects how you feel. Learn about your particular biomechanics and how they change as you get stronger and better at running. I started with one kind of shoe, and now wear a completely different kind, on the opposite end of the shoe spectrum. Go with what works for you, there is no "right" answer about what kind of shoe you should be wearing, and there are a lot more factors associated with shoes and running success than your arches.

I'll add natural running and barefoot running to this list. All of these are techniques that optimize the natural biomechanics of your body.

OP:

My recommendation to a new runner is avoid shoes that "correct" your form until you have one. If you go with a running shoe consider a neutral shoe until you have a good stable running form that works for your body. I've even heard of barefoot runners with flat feet showing improvement as their feet strengthened and form improved.

I tried running shoes at first and each one resulted in a different issue that could be linked to an unbalance in my form. Ultimately I moved to a barefoot/minimalist technique and shoes. The focus instead was on strengthening the entire chain from core to toe and improving my running form.

Everyone is going to say to go to a running shoe store. I'm not discrediting that advice. But, I have the flattest and widest feet in the world lol and these are so &&%^@#&*(@ COMFY!!! There is barely any arch in the sole. Its almost completely flat on the inside! If you have flat and wide feet, you'll understand my excitement of finding a comfortable shoe haha. Another plus is that they are very affordable. I've been using the Cohesion 6 for a while and will need to replace them soon. They just "upgraded" this shoe so I'll have to get the Cohesion 7. I tried them on the other day and they fit the same as my 6's.

Saucony Cohesion

http://www.famousfootwear.com/en-US/Product/00433-1031343/Saucony/Grey_Mint_Navy/Womens+Cohesion+7.aspx

My most recent pair is Asics Gel Kayano. I went to a specialty store, and had my gait analyzed. What happened to me is what a few people mentioned in your post..... went too hard too fast. That resulted in physical therapy and a $560 bill later (after insurance). During therapy, I was taught how to run right (on my midfoot, as most flat footers don't). I'll be curious to see if they recommend the same shoe or not, when I am approved to run again.

My advice; get your gait analyzed. Specialty stores exist for a reason. Don't care about the look of the shoe, as long as it's exactly what your feet need. Most, if not all, stores will let you return them if they don't feel good (I returned a pair two months after I bought them).


Good luck!

Interesting article, but from personal experience as a longtime runner and marathoner, I found a gait analysis very beneficial. I was skeptical until I finally acquiesced and had one done at Road Runner Sports. I discovered I'd been misinterpreting my foot mechanics for over 20 years. I've been running with the proper type shoe and custom fitted insoles for 4 years now and the knee and foot problems that plagued me for years have virtually disappeared.

Get fitted for shoes that work for you, at a running store. My feet always thank me, and I have medical condition that causes flares in my plantar fascia all the time. Be kind to your feet.

A cautionary tale on "motion control" shoes. I always thought I had flat feet (based on footprints and what I'd been told at running stores), and had gait analysis done, so jogged (or race walked... go ahead... make fun of me) for years in "motion control" shoes. Well, last year, as I was training for my first long distance event, and as I was getting to 20 or more miles a week, I started having crazy pain in the tops of my feet. It got bad enough that I could not reasonably flex and extend my feet to go up and down stairs normally, and I was getting some ankle pain too, so off to the doc I went. Well, seeing a podiatrist was truly illuminating. He took X-rays of my feet and showed me, via bone/joint alignment, that I do NOT have "flat" feet, but that I have very flexible feet. When weighted, my feet spread out a lot. So, I'd been jamming my feet into shoes that basically kept my feet from doing what they need to do to support me. As the doc put it, I could have kept using motion control shoes for years without problems if I stayed at lower mileage, but "mileage reveals everything." He said that shoe companies can make a ton of money selling stability and motion control shoes, but more often than not, forcing the body to move in a way totally different than how it has since first learning to walk/run can cause problems up the limbs (feet, ankles, shins, knees, hips). In his practice, he rarely tries to sell people on custom orthodics or specific shoe shapes. His only advice to me was to look for a shoe that "looks like a tennis racket" on the bottom - meaning the toe box has plenty of room for the foot - because, regardless of individual foot shape, the foot will swell with mileage.

Well, it cost me months of PT to resolve the tendonitis, and a new pair of shoes, but now I walk comfortably in a "neutral" shoe (Brooks Ghost) and wear simple off the shelf inserts (Super Feet green).

Soooo.... the moral of the story for me (and for lots of people) was to keep it simple and just wear a neutral shoe. Best of luck finding something comfortable for you!!!

I'm not trying to make a case. I simply provided you with the link that you requested. As stated, I was getting very confused about shoe selection because I read contradicting things on the internet...hence why I posted the question on MFP to get better informed by people that have had experience using various running shoes.

I understand, I just have a degree of frustration about how badly mass media report on what I'd loosely describe as scientific issues. They don't debunk a myth on the basis of one small study, yet positioning it like that could lead someone to make decisions based on that.

From a personal perspective I used to try to run in shoes that were inappropriate for me; cushioned, very flexible. After many unsuccessful forays into running I got more appropriate shoes, and now I'm training for half marathon.

As I have just come off of a layoff and money is very very tight I think I will go try on the saucony runners to start with and then study some running techniques and if I stick with this running thing then I'll do the gait analysis and splurge on a more expensive shoe if it's recommended. At this point I don't even know if running is something I will enjoy.

I didn't enjoy running until I had shoes that suited me.

Now that I'm more experienced at running, and I've sorted my form out I'm less dependent on having the correct shoes. In practice trail shoes generally don't have the same level of sophistication, given the nature of trails.

It's a little bit chicken and egg unfortunately.

I have very flat feet, but I also supinate or roll outwards. Due to this, I had tremendous trouble finding the appropriate shoes for my running style. I was always told support shoes for overweight flat footed people, but the structure in the arch pushed me too far outside. It wasn't until I went to a running shoe store and explained to them what I had experienced with my previous shoes and what I was looking for in a shoe that I got fitted properly. I ended up going to New Balance, which I never thought I would, and wound up with the 1080s. They provide just enough cushion for me without being too soft. Good luck!