On running surfaces... (Read 558 times)

I have decided I will take smooth even concrete over rough and uneven asphalt. I will take smooth even asphalt over and a rough uneven off road surface. Am I alone in this?

I have run primarily on asphalt roads.... when on a business trip I ran a week on concrete sidewalks and roads. I never believed the bs about concrete being harder than asphalt blah blah... but after a week on the concrete I am now a believer! The unevenness is ok if it is evenly distributed... like a trail.. but consistently running on an off camber road I don't like... at all... I try to move around a bit so that each legs gets their turn to be on the downhill side... I also try to run in the space the car wheels sit as often as I can because that area tends to be level...

okay so I am not alone... I suppose if I ran alot off road and strengthened my legs perhaps trails would be easier on me. But the way it is, if my footing is insecure I feel the pounding a lot worse on my joints.

yea sidewalk trips can be brutal! you sure do feel those next day even if you didn't hit the ground.

I avoid any tilt on sidewalks or tilt due to road camber. Assuming there is no tilt, I'd take trail over asphalt and asphalt over concrete. Rough uneven works out the lower legs and is good but you have to gradually adapt to it if you're used to smooth surfaces.

okay so I am not alone... I suppose if I ran alot off road and strengthened my legs perhaps trails would be easier on me. But the way it is, if my footing is insecure I feel the pounding a lot worse on my joints.

I totally agree. Recently I was running in a nice, soft asphalt bike lane of a major road, but the surface was crowned and my peroneal tendon started bothering me. I jumped onto the level, hard sidewalk and the pain disappeared. Of course, I'll take a level asphalt or dirt trail any day if it's available.