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Minimalist Footwear Thread

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Groundhog Oct 2019 12:07pm, 15 Oct 2019 588 posts	Quote Pin Groundhog jacdaw Maybe using minimalist/flat shoes means you are toe striking more (more load on calves) and having less impact on knees and quads on the descents? It doesn't mean you are doing anythng wrong.
oumaumau Oct 2019 12:49pm, 15 Oct 2019 1,241 posts	Quote Pin oumaumau Could be that you are 'muscling' with your calves (calfs?) instead of using the bigger 'power' muscles (glutes, hammys, quads) to do the work. How's your cadence?
oumaumau Oct 2019 12:53pm, 15 Oct 2019 1,242 posts	Quote Pin oumaumau Looking at a couple of pictures in the gallery (like this one {IMAGE 90421}), you look to be a little behind your leading foot - but nothing conclusive there... If it's not injuring you, then I'm not sure it's 'wrong' as such, but you could have some untapped power lurking in your butt
oumaumau Oct 2019 12:55pm, 15 Oct 2019 1,243 posts	Quote Pin oumaumau Oh, and trashed quads usually (often) mean over-enthusiasm when descending, or lack of 'eccentric loading' conditioning. Lots of good stuff by this guy, if you like a bit of reading irunfar.com
flanker Oct 2019 3:27pm, 15 Oct 2019 18,650 posts	Quote Pin flanker I'd say that overusing the lower leg muscles / not using the glutes is a likely cause. Something that I know I'm very guilty of at the moment
geordiegirl Oct 2019 3:34pm, 15 Oct 2019 9,037 posts	Quote Pin geordiegirl I’m the complete opposite jacdaw my thighs feel constantly shredded more so after Loch Ness and the never ending descents I never thought I’d dislike a downhill!
jacdaw Oct 2019 4:03pm, 15 Oct 2019 2,597 posts	Quote Pin jacdaw Interesting. I'm now wondering how to use my bigger leg muscles more effectively. I'm quite a fast descender down rough, steep slopes, and I never suffer much.
jacdaw Oct 2019 4:08pm, 15 Oct 2019 2,598 posts	Quote Pin jacdaw Sorry, didn't finish that... the endless undulations at kielder marathon on Sunday made me much sorer than a few long steep descents would have done. Cycling seems to build my quads much more than running.
oumaumau Oct 2019 4:38pm, 15 Oct 2019 1,246 posts	Quote Pin oumaumau From the link earlier, I think this: irunfar.com is the best one to start with for postural stuff. From the two pictures of you running in your gallery it looks like you are slightly 'sitting down' while running (but might not be the case, these are just two moments in time after all ), which would prevent your glutes engaging fully. Do you get a sore back when climbing? I'd expect that running the undulations would do that, as you are more likely to maintain a similar stance on undulations (just keep running), whereas on longer/steeper descents I tend to adopt a more fluid, irregular stride pattern depending on what's coming next. Hope that's clear
oumaumau Oct 2019 4:42pm, 15 Oct 2019 1,247 posts	Quote Pin oumaumau Looks like I should pause before pushing the submit button too... I'd also expect the bike to work your quads more - because of the fixed position, they are your best weapon to generate the force on the pedals. If you make sure your back is straight (as it can be) then your glutes should also contribute though.