How Much Does Shoe Weight Affect Performance?

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How Much Does Shoe Weight Affect Performance?
By Dr. Jack Daniels


As a matter of fact I did the original research on shoe-weight factor, when I was working for Nike in the early 1980s and our research was presented at the World Congress of Sports Medicine in Vienna in the early 1980s. We found adding 100 grams to the shoe increased the aerobic demand of running by 1%. Now 100 grams is about 3.5274 ounces, so each ounce changes the cost of running about 0.2835% To continue reading, please visit: http://runsmartproject.com/coaching/2012/02/06/how-much-does-shoe-weight-affect-performance/
 
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Reactions: Sid
So what do you all think about that?
 
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Reactions: Straif
The study assumes this is normal: "Basically, as shoe weight went lighter the cost also dropped some, but when the shoe weight went too light, then the cost went up because there was getting to be less midsole cushioning and the runner’s muscles had to start absorbing more landing shock and that costs more energy."
I bet their subject were Americans who had never learned to run barefoot, rather than Kenyans who had grown up running barefoot.
 
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Reactions: Bare Lee
The study assumes this is normal: "Basically, as shoe weight went lighter the cost also dropped some, but when the shoe weight went too light, then the cost went up because there was getting to be less midsole cushioning and the runner’s muscles had to start absorbing more landing shock and that costs more energy."
I bet their subject were Americans who had never learned to run barefoot, rather than Kenyans who had grown up running barefoot.

While I agree about the "less is more" approach (less mass to carry = better performance/efficiency) in general, these types of studies are often very focused for a specific niche, group, product or activity and anyone or anything that falls outside of that is not considered a valid data point or relevant to their study...

I'm with TomM - I would be very interested to see the differences in energy utilization (if any) between an experienced barefoot runner running barefoot, v.s. their shod runners in these various shoes. As it is, their presentation of the data draws the conclusion that for optimal running efficiency, you must be using that style of shoe.
 
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"Basically, as shoe weight went lighter the cost also dropped some, but when the shoe weight went too light, then the cost went up because there was getting to be less midsole cushioning and the runner’s muscles had to start absorbing more landing shock and that costs more energy."
.

It's a poorly-worded statement, no doubt.
 

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