The vaporfly thread
1 lurker |
86 watchers
Feb 2021
2:09pm, 23 Feb 2021
98 posts
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fuzzyduck79
I went from 1:14:50ish half in flats to 1:11:12 in next% and would say shoes explain 90% of the 3.5min improvement The flats did a lot of damage to my calves too, whereas next% I ran two marathons in six days, both at full gas (started second one a little cautiously but it was a far tougher course and I soon felt I had the legs to push hard) |
Feb 2021
2:19pm, 23 Feb 2021
3,430 posts
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J2R
anthonyj89, that is something I can definitely believe - people getting all excited about the new magic shoes and for the first time shelling out on something light to run in, instead of their clumpy, heavy road shoes. They're bound to see a significant improvement in their times, but they would likely have seen decent improvement anyway in racing flats. I've been running in very lightweight, minimal shoes for ages and I'm not expecting to be that much faster in the Sauconies. But I actually don't really WANT to be that much faster - just a bit! |
Feb 2021
2:20pm, 23 Feb 2021
243 posts
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anthonyj89
Perhaps you are one of the big 'responders' then, that is quite remarkable. Are you sure its the shoes? I went from 1.12 from 1.10 in a month back in 2015 for seemingly no good reason. |
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Feb 2021
2:21pm, 23 Feb 2021
3,431 posts
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J2R
fuzzyduck, something I keep hearing about these shoes is that, even if you don't actually run any faster in them, your legs are much less beaten up for the same time. Sounds like you have experienced that benefit too.
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Feb 2021
2:24pm, 23 Feb 2021
244 posts
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anthonyj89
That's definitely true J2R. They take away the eccentric strain on the calves which would ordinarily lead to DOMS.
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Feb 2021
2:28pm, 23 Feb 2021
246 posts
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anthonyj89
Plus they have a bigger heel/toe offset compared to flats.
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Feb 2021
2:29pm, 23 Feb 2021
3,432 posts
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J2R
Is that true even if you are used to running distances in racing flats? Obviously if you do all your training in shoes with regular heel-toe drop, then on race day you switch to racing flats* with much less of a drop, you're going to feel it afterwards. But I wonder whether this would be the case if you did all your training in shoes with 5mm or less heel-toe-drop? *It does strike me as odd that racing flats are not actually flat. |
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Feb 2021
2:31pm, 23 Feb 2021
99 posts
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fuzzyduck79
I think I'm a medium responder (4% or just over) but it does matter what shoes you were coming from. I never used to bother paying for any premium shoes, but if you ran in 2% shoe before (eg Nike Streak) then don't expect to see another 4% on top of that. That's mostly why elites have seen lesser differences, in my view. nytimes.com |
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Feb 2021
2:34pm, 23 Feb 2021
247 posts
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anthonyj89
You are right again J2R, I try to do some easy miles in Kinvara or similar for this reason. Less of a shock when the spike/flats go on. First time back on track on 30th March for me will be a race, in spikes. Can't see that going well! |
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Feb 2021
2:37pm, 23 Feb 2021
100 posts
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fuzzyduck79
J2R, definitely feel fresher running in VF and the like. I know one runner who switched to wearing them all the time as they had a recurrent knee injury, and they allowed him to get back to running pain free and as often as he wanted to. With flats, I think you can adapt to running any distance in them, but you have to give your body the chance to make the adaptations, otherwise you run a high risk of injury. I maybe wasn't really ready to race a half marathon in mine, but I wasn't far off either. Most of the damage done in the last 2 miles is my hunch. |
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