Help me find a shoe that I can love.... (Read 88 times)

So, I have problem feet.

I have mildly hypermobile joints, and in my feet, this led to developing bunions as a kid.  I overpronate pretty badly, especially on my left foot, and I wouldn't worry about it except that it does seem to be linked to some SI joint dysfunction and the bunions get inflamed after runs.

A recent visit to a podiatrist confirms that my arches are fine, but that my foot has a lot of mobility.  He recommended a SOLE insert for running just to keep some of the stress off my bunions.

Now here's the thing.  I do better (from experience & doc agrees) with a shoe with a straighter last, but the insert + a stability shoe (usually Kayano or the Saucony Omni) means I have a beast of a shoe on, and while I can run without pain, I feel clunky.  I'll *take* running without hip pain over not running at all, but I feel like I'm fighting the Omnis a lot, enough so that I don't want to buy another pair.

I'm trying to figure out where to go from here.  Lots of life left on my shoes, but sales are coming up soon and I like finding deals.  Anyone have any experience with shoes like the Brooks Dyad or Saucony Echelon?  They're billed a neutral straight shoes for orthotics/flat feet, and I think they might be what I need, but it's hard to find good reviews of them. I'm not a very big woman (~130), if that matters.

Anyone with feet like mine have suggestions?  What do you use?

Unless you get a doctor-designed orthotic I would not buy the Dyad. It's like a completely flat shoe that's designed to be a blank template for you to put your custom insert into.

The Omni looks like a pretty good shoe if it's working for you. The problem with other shoes I'd recommend is that they don't offer very good stitching or support on the medial side of the ball of the foot where I assume your bunion is most pronounced. In general I'm not inclined to give you a real recommendation without knowing the extent of the bunion.

What I'm curious about with your SI joint is whether it's Q-angle related and whether support shoes (the wedge in them) help or hinder the impact forces you feel there.

For ~$120 a pair I'm  hoping for at least some mood music....;-)  No, seriously, what I'm looking for is mostly a shoe that feels a bit faster/more responsive.  The Omni in particular feels a bit like a brick; it's hard to push the pace in it.  I've run a bit in the Saucony Mirage, and it feels great -- just disappears, but I am wary of using it over longer distances.

More info: big toes angle in, so bunions are moderate, and any surgery would require messing with the bones in the midfoot, so this isn't just a cosmetic bump.  As they're mostly asymptomatic and there's no cartilage damage, the podiatrist and I are agreed that if surgery is in my future, it's probably a decade or so down the line.  SI joint dysfunction -- result of my son's giant noggin two years ago -- and it definitely feels better in a more stable shoe.   I do a lot of exercises to help hip stability, too, but the shoe is obviously an important part.