Newton Running are our running shoes of choice and our go-to brand for a fair amount of apparel too.
While living in Colorado we were lucky enough to be able to attend several of the form clinics that Newton put on at their headquarters in Boulder on Saturday mornings, often being coached by the co-founder of the company Danny Abshire. We’ve been privileged to have talked with Danny on numerous occasions, he has answered our questions and taught us more about the science behind the shoes and his plans for the future. We have gradually changed our running style from a heel strike, the most common form of running these days, to a mid/forefoot form. We’re still not perfect but we keep trying to improve in every run. This leads to a more efficient running form, results in less injuries and feels like a more natural way to run.
There is too much to cover on natural, midfoot and forefoot running here but if you are interested I would definitely encourage you to read up.
Some great books to read are “Born To Run” by Christopher McDougall and “Natural Running: The Simple Path to Stronger, Healthier Running” by Danny Abshire.
I use the stability range and run in Newton Motion V 2016 with a 8.4oz weight and 3mm heel-to-toe drop for training runs. For marathons I either run in the Motions or in the Newton Distance V 2016 with a 8.1oz weight and 2mm heel-to-toe drop. I cringe now when I think back to the Nike and Mizuno shoes I used to run in with 12mm drops. When running back-to-back marathon weekends I have found the Motions to be preferable as they are a slightly softer ride with less tension.
Newton Motion V 2016 Men’s
Leah has a more neutral gait and used to run in neutral shoes but finds having some additional support beneficial to her ankle, so now also runs in the Newton Motion.
Newton Motion V 2016 Women’s, in both colour variations
Personally we did not like the IV 2015 range and skipped straight from the III 2014s to the V 2016s.
For winter trail running we both have the BOCO AT II which are excellent and for summer trail running, the BOCO Sol.
BOCO AT II 2016. Women’s (Left), Men’s (Right)
BOCO Sol 2015. Women’s (Left), Men’s (Right)
If you decide to move towards more minimalist shoes be sure to do it gradually, it takes some adapting and will use muscles in a different way which will lead to soreness during the adaptation period. Newton also makes shoes with larger heel-to-toe drops to help people ease into minimalist running.
Testing out the new BOCO Sol 2015
Flying over the trails!
To read more, visit www.newtonrunning.com or www.newtonrunning.co.uk