RunningAHEAD - Topic: Asphalt versus Concrete

JamesD10

posted: 7/18/2008 at 8:37 AM

I know asphalt is a much better surface to run on then concrete but I must run on some concrete to get to asphalt. My housing addition has concrete on my street and I must run about .4mi to get to the part that has asphalt. So I am currently running between 2 and 3 miles at a time so .8mi is on concrete. How big a deal is this? Should I avoid the concrete and walk to the asphalt?

James

Dave23

posted: 7/18/2008 at 8:42 AM

I wouldn't worry about it.

Save Cheevers

posted: 7/18/2008 at 8:47 AM

Obsess much? It's concrete, not a bed of nails. I run on it all the time. I don't love it, but more because I hate avoiding the cracks than the surface itself. We all have our quirks, I guess.

Gordo_S

~Gordo~

posted: 7/18/2008 at 8:49 AM

I don't think the distance you are running on concrete is enough to worry about. Here is an article from Runner's World UK if you want further advice. http://www.runnersworld.co.uk/news/article.asp?uan=152

!If you don't...you won't! ~Remember the light at the end of tunnel maybe you~ ~If you choose not to decided, you still have made a choice~

MrFinn

Prince of Fatness

posted: 7/18/2008 at 8:56 AM

I'll take a flat concrete sidewalk over a cambered asphalt street any day. There's more to it than just the hardness of the surface. Don't worry about it.

Not at it at all.

runningwild

Lia's Daddy

posted: 7/18/2008 at 10:02 AM

Quote from MrFinn on 7/18/2008 at 8:56 AM:

I'll take a flat concrete sidewalk over a cambered asphalt street any day. There's more to it than just the hardness of the surface. Don't worry about it.

I'm with you on that. I choose to run on the sidewalk (concrete) instead of the road (asphalt) in several places on one of my regular runs because of this.

"Stadiums are for spectators. We runners have nature and that is much better." Juha "the Cruel" Väätäinen

JimR

posted: 7/18/2008 at 11:04 AM

With a shoe between you and the surface, it makes no difference, they are the same to you.

anutherfinemess

posted: 7/19/2008 at 2:39 AM

I have to agree with Phin. I know that asphalt is much softer and yes, I can feel a difference between asphalt and concrete so they are not the same to me. Still, that softness is negated by the fact that most of the time if you are running on a road you are running on the side of the road and that means that you are running along an incline. If you are running against traffic that means that the road is sloping so that your left leg strides further down than your right. That's just begging for knee problems. Plus, and here's one that maybe some don't realize, in the summer the temperature on the street can be as much as 5 to 10 degrees F hotter than on the sidewalk that runs alongside it. I tend to make my decision based on a lot of factors. Obviously if it's a really high traffic road I'll just hit the sidewalk and not worry about it. If it's low or no traffic and I can safely run close to the crown of the road, or at least on a level part of the road, then I'll take the asphalt. Even then if I start to get hot enough that it effects my run I'll slide up onto the sidewalk for a kilometer or two just to cool off.

And who am I anyway?
Just another fat jogger, evidently.

Figbash

posted: 7/19/2008 at 10:54 AM
modified: 7/19/2008 at 10:57 AM

I prefer asphalt over concrete for it's lack of expansion strips, it's a much more even surface to run on. As far as hardness goes, you won't notice the difference until your mileage gets much higher. Even then, the only time there will be a noticeable difference is on a hot summer day when the asphalt is soft. Don't worry, just run. Tom

paavoman

posted: 7/19/2008 at 10:09 PM

Quote from JimR on 7/18/2008 at 11:04 AM:

With a shoe between you and the surface, it makes no difference, they are the same to you.

Can I get an article that agrees with this? Because I'm having an extremely hard time believing that surfaces are all the same as long as you're wearing a shoe. If that was the case, then the previous article wouldn't need to exist.

NaderAlfie

posted: 7/19/2008 at 10:23 PM
modified: 7/19/2008 at 10:53 PM

Quote from runningwild on 7/18/2008 at 10:02 AM:

I'm with you on that. I choose to run on the sidewalk (concrete) instead of the road (asphalt) in several places on one of my regular runs because of this.

I agree as well. I just got in from a run and, while running on a heavily cambered road, I looked at the sidewalk and thought, "why not?". I ended up happier on the concrete.

"If you have the fire, run..." -John Climacus

backstretch

posted: 7/20/2008 at 8:42 AM

If there is a difference between concrete and asphault, I certainly can't tell.

"The drops of rain make a hole in the stone, not by violence, but by oft falling." - Lucretius

perfesserr

Imminent Catastrophe

posted: 7/20/2008 at 9:36 AM

I read a study once (sorry, can't find it now) that essentially determined that unless you're running barefoot there's really no difference, the cushioned shoes absorb the little bit of difference. At any rate, the little distance you're going isn't worth worrying about.

"Able to function despite imminent catastrophe"

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TJoseph

posted: 7/20/2008 at 2:42 PM

I can't tell much difference between asphalt and concrete. I would rather run on dirt when I can. Mostly because the trails tend to be away cars and traffic. I agree with those people said road camber is worse than running on concrete. Running on a cambered road (or dirt trail) bothers my knees a lot more than running on a hard surface. Tom

dnephin

posted: 7/20/2008 at 9:43 PM

Don't worry about it. Would you ask it this way: "I have to get hit in the head with something the volume of say, a shoebox. Should I choose said item in the asphalt or concrete variety?" They are both hard. So is compact earth. But you could twist your foot on loose trail, like the mulch one near my house. Just run.

DWARP
Marathon Madness Mob

Asphalt versus Concrete (Read 1378 times)