Hello everyone.

My name is Nick Pearson, and I am the buying director for Sweatshop, the biggest specialist running account in Europe with 25 stores in the UK. I am still directly involved in the selection of our footwear ranges, and generally get to see all the shoes from all of the suppliers 6-12 months before they hit the stores. Should I be able to help any of you with advice on any footwear issues please feel free to post your questions here.

Hi Nick I need some shoes suitable for my orthotics Ive tried to find some shoes where the heal is deep enough so the shoe doesnt slip so far no luck.I tried my old Brooks Adrenalines 5 with them in and they were nearly perfect although way too stable.

I need a neutral cushioned shoe thats deep enough
So far Ive tried all the Mizunos,Saucony Jazz x,NB 1060 & 835,Asics Cumulus,etonic streetfighter,
Would Brooks Radius be suitable cheers in advance

Hi Goldbeetle.

It does sound like the Brooks Radius would be a good option and would give you a good chance of fitting as the Brooks fit seems to suit.

As manufaturers become more wary of causing achilles irritation, generally shoes tend to be a little shallower than they used to be. I assume that you are removing the internal sock liner to accomodate your orthotic. To be honest we don't have too many people with this issue so I would guess that your orthotic is quite deep. If the Radius doesn't suit it may be worth trying a couple of the New Balance shoes that are from their traditional line. The 992 comes in at about £85, the 880 would be priced at about £65 and also is made on NB's SL2 last which is a wider last that they use on their more traditional shoes, so it gives a better chance of fitting width ways also.

Both these shoes are not usually held as stock items by running stores, so youmay have to ask a friendly specialist to order them in for you.

Hope this helps

Cheers Nick I have a tilt on my orthotic to take the strain off my rear leg muscles the Podiatrist says they work harder than they should,my local running shop has order a pair of Radius for me to try no obligation to buy so we shall see

Best shoes for front foot running? I actually run in Skechers, which some even claim as not a real running shoe, and am very happy with it. But I still am always keeping an eye on what's out there. For me, I like the extra support for good mileage, no matter how much the shoe weighs.

Hi Nick,

After a video gait analysis at a local shop I have been told that I have a quick pronation. I don't over pronate but the rate of pronation is faster than normal and I am told this could cause me problems. The guy who gave the analysis was demonstraing Nike shoes, but I wanted to know what other shoes were out there that can control the rate of pronation?

Cheers in advance,
BoabyBoy

Hi Nick

I'm a huge fan of Sweatshop.

I moved to Teddington 12 years ago - and how lucky am I with my local running shop :-)

However, I am bit "miffed" that you've stopped providing a treadmill for testing out shoes on. To me it's really important to give new shoes at least a minute's worth of trial - something I really can't do just running around the small shop floor.

Is there any way you can open up the use of the treadmill again within the Teddington store? I think it's still back there in the physio room...

Cheers

Hollywood

Hi TCC


I am afraid that I would find it difficult to answer your question with any confidence. It is the kind of question that is best answered with a good look at your current shoes and your muscular and skeletal make up. My advice would be to find a reputed local specialist who is able to offer some form of analysis. It is always worth seeking out the expert in the store you go to, as their experience is so valuable.

Failing that, just in terms of cushioning, the new Kayano offers more forefoot cushioning than ever before, the new Nike Vomero will give you an incredibly soft and flexible feel in the forefoot. If you prefer a more stable but cushioned feel in the fore foot it would be worth trying either the Brooks glycerin or the Adistar cushion.

Sorry I couldn't be more help.

Hello BoabyBoy.

You ask a very interesting question. I am intrigued by the analysis. To help me be a little more accurate it would be useful to know what shoes you currently run in, how often and how far you run, how long you have been running, and what injuries you have had over that time.

It is often the speed of pronation rather than the extent to which you pronate that can be a potential cause of injury. It is important in all running shoes to get the fit correct around the heel, but even more so in these cases, as the shoe has no hope of slowing down over pronation if you are rotating around within the shoe.

reply to my questions and then I will do my best to offer some advice.

Hi Hollywood

Many thanks for your positive comments about the Teddington store, I am especially pleased as that was where I started, coincidentally about 12 years ago.

To be honest I agree with you about the treadmill, I am awaiting a call from the manager to establish exactly what use they make of the treadmill currently. I do understand that the physio room offers an excellent service and is popular, but it shouldn't be at the expense of our customer service. I understood that only when the room was being used for a treatment the treadmill was unavailable, however it sounds like they are making it unavailable permanently.

I am not sure what I can do if the treatment room is being used, but I will consider the problem and let you know, it should definitely be available when the treatment room is not in use.

I can tell you that we have plans to refurbish and refit Teddington later this year, these plans include 3 treadmills with full video analysis available, in an open area of the shop. The plans are exciting and work will hopefully start in September/October time.

In the meantime I will report back if I can find a solution to the immediate issue.

Teddington is my local shop too. Exciting news about the refurb, and I echo H's post - you really need to run with a shoe to figure out whether it fits. I guess the alternative to a treadie is to let customers do a lap of Bushy Park?

To be fair... 2 years ago I know they let me use the treadmill - but last Summer when I was shoe shopping the assistant definitely said that the treadmill was permanently out of bounds.

I like the sound of the refit - and I'll be interested to see what you build. I can imagine that quite a lot of the time you won't need 3 treadmills - but then on Saturday mornings I can definitely see there still being a queue!

Thanks for the reply and good luck!

P.S. Please make sure you thoroughly clean (or maybe burn?) all the shoes that Greg's tried on ;-)

:eek: you ever been run over by a baby jogger?

Hi Nick, thanks for getting back to me.

I currently wear Mizuno Wave Nirvana 2's for training in (motion control), I also wear Saucony Fastwitch Endurance for racing/speed work and I wear Inov8 mudclaws for hill running. I run most days, taking rest the day before a race. I have been runnning competitively for a year now. My weekly mileage is between 50 and 60. The injuries are always around the knee area. My right knee suffers from ITBS, which I am managing with compression bandages and stretching. These methods are proving successful. More recently I have been getting pain in my left knee down the inside and behind. I have to say that I never get pain during or after racing, speed work or hill training (apart from the normal thigh burn!!). only after steady, recovery or long runs. These runs are usually on a variety of surfaces from tarmac to grass. Height: 5' 9", Weight: 10st 4pnds.

The reason I wanted your advice is because I keep getting differing views from different places. I have had video gait analysis in two separate 'specialist' running shops in Edinburgh (none of them sweatshop - although I do shop there for clothes). My first post on this thread was my most recent analysis and to be fair the guy showed me running with 4 different shoes on and synchronised the videos so that each step was in time. He showed me the quick rate of pronation, and that I don't over pronate, and suggested a pair of Nike shoes (i have forgotten the name, sorry), but I wanted to have more choice when i am due to change shoe (in a few weeks). I was also told that the Nirvanas won't cause me any (more) problems but they are not the correct shoe for me, and that the ideal shoe for me was one that was more cusioned on the outside (heel strike) and more rigid on the inside, to help the rate of pronation and to stop the heel snap effect that I currently experience. The first analysis I got (when I bought the Nirvanas) the assistant told me that I was a bad over pronator. He seemed to make the judgment without looking back at the video, as he says he has seen thousands of feet and just knows by looking at them!!! I don't think I will be back there!

Anyway, what confuses me (and maybe you could answer this for me) is that I experience no pain when racing or doing speed sessions. I have never tried a long run in my racing flats, but if using them is going to mean pain free, I might just do that!!!
(my 10k times are around the 34, 35 minutes mark and I race up to half marathon, if this info is useful).

Thanks again in advance.
BoabyBoy

Actually young man, I have been meaning to talk with you... It's about the BPTT race route.... Have you noticed how everyone else runs around the outside of that tree at the end of the straight ;-) ?