Stability Minimalist Shoe or back to the dark side?

Hello all. I'm seeing a physical therapist who specializes in postural restoration for neck and shoulder pain that leads to dizziness. The first thing he asked me on day one was to see my running shoes. I told him I was a minimalist runner and he looked at me, smiled and said "Well there's your problem. We need to get you into a more stable shoe.". I'm not ready to go back to the dark side so my question is to any podiatrist or a doc that might have an answer to this question: Is the a such thing as a "Stability Minimalist Shoe"? Here's a link to the shoe list his clinic recommends. http://hruskaclinic.com/blog/view/hruska-clinics-2014-recommended-shoe-list1/ Thanks in advance!
 
I wish the answer was that simple. Over the years, I have found that some patients do better with a stability shoe, some do better minimalist while others seem to do well barefoot. I have had patients with horrible feet and asymmetry do quite well with good middle of the line traditional running shoe with a foot orthotic, while others do or did well with a vibram 5 fingers. The running shoe manufacturers have moved away from shoes with 0-4 mm of heel elevation (minimalist) since I believe some of the wrong body type individuals were using them to bad effect.

Without knowing much about your feet or your gait, I would be hard pressed to make a recommendation, however, I have recommended a minimalist shoe with an off the shelf orthotic with good effect. In other words, there are no absolutes as to what is good and what isnt. The new addidas energy boost line is cool since the material in the last allows for amplified transferance of force from the ground up. There are some other brands that have hybrid designs that offer control without feeling like you are running in bricks. Some may include these http://www.roadrunnersports.com/rrs...-running&searchQuery=mensshoesrunning menurrs

Also, Altra makes one that is totally flat bottomed for a minimalist feet http://www.roadrunnersports.com/rrs...-running&searchQuery=mensshoesrunning menurrs

Hope that helps. The vibram fad is leaving us but if you like that, you can get great deals as retailers get rid of them. Again, I am just making blanket recommendations for things to look at. Shod is not all bad in all people, just as minimalist is not all bad or all good for all. Since there is no criteria for figuring out who would do best with which type of shoe, right now, choosing is hit or miss.
 
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woops! i didn't see this was in ask the docs. apologies. i still like my humor though. ;)
 
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Gosh, getting a 'Stability' shoe just doesn't sound right, and remember, that doc who in a knee jerk fashion said that your minimalist running was the 'problem' is just a human being doing a job like everyone else...sometimes, very often actually, people get intellectually lazy, wherein they just don't want to think more deeply on a subject.


Seems to me like getting a 'stability shoe', that will ultimately weaken you skeleto-muscular stability instead of strengthening it, is a bad idea.

Wouldn't it be better of both you and your Doc to be more patient and thorough, find the source or exact nature of the instability, and do some strength and flexibility training to FIX it instead of effectively putting a cast on it?


By using a stability shoe to fix the problem, you are not actually 'fixing' the problem, and, likely, you will create other problems in other parts of your body.



Sorry guys, I know this is the Doc section, but I had not seen someone offering a voice of common sense dissent from the "Just immobilize" the problem prescription.