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Altras and mileage? (Read 34 times)

MadisonMandy


Refurbished Hip

    So I finally pulled the trigger and ordered a pair of Altra Olympus last week and now I'm in love.  They're everything I wanted in a high cushioned shoe.  I feel like I'm running on clouds and my toes have so much room to spread out!  I ran 5 miles on Tuesday and 5 miles yesterday in them.  But I'm worried about the zero drop.  I've never had calf or Achilles issues.  How much is too much too soon with these shoes?  Do I need to build up my mileage in them?  Does anyone run in them exclusively?

     

    I'm sweeping the last half of the Chippewa 50K tomorrow and I want to run in them, although that's probably stupid.  Is that stupid?  The cushioning feels really good on my hip and the wide toe box is making my feet happy, but again, I don't want to injure myself somewhere else either.  Curious how others have handled running in them.  Maybe I'm just being overly cautious.

    Running is dumb.

    FSocks


    KillJoyFuckStick

      I can't remember what you normally run in.  I've had my Olympus for a year now.  I'm good for about 10 miles in them and then my achilles start getting sore.  My normal trail shoes are NB MT 1210 with a 8MM drop for reference and road shoes are Brooks Ghosts with 10MM drop.

       

      And, yes, they are like running on clouds I love them.

      You people have issues 


      some call me Tim

        I guess it depends upon what you've been running in. I might do it from a 4mm drop shoe, but definitely not more. My wife transitioned too fast a couple of years ago and ended up with about 6 months of nagging achilles issues, but then achilles load is exponentially increased with speed, so if you're sweeping I guess that's not as much of an issue.

         

        Of course it'd probably be easy to convince another volunteer to hang onto them at one of the aid stations so you could run in them halfway... just a thought.

        MadisonMandy


        Refurbished Hip

          I normally run in Montrail Mountain Masochists on the trail.  (8mm drop, I think, according to Running Warehouse.)  I don't even know what a sore achilles would feel like. My problem areas are hips and feet.

          Running is dumb.

          MadisonMandy


          Refurbished Hip

            I guess it depends upon what you've been running in. I might do it from a 4mm drop shoe, but definitely not more. My wife transitioned too fast a couple of years ago and ended up with about 6 months of nagging achilles issues, but then achilles load is exponentially increased with speed, so if you're sweeping I guess that's not as much of an issue.

             

            Of course it'd probably be easy to convince another volunteer to hang onto them at one of the aid stations so you could run in them halfway... just a thought.

             

            Right.  We'll be running quite slowly sweeping, plus stopping to pick up trail markers.

             

            I suppose I could drop off a pair of shoes at an aid station and be at the mercy of the volunteers to bring whatever pair I wind up not wearing back to start/finish...

            Running is dumb.

            LB2


              I run in Altra's almost exclusively. I never had any issues with moving to a zero drop platform. I didn't work my way into them or anything. I just started running in them and never looked back. However, I have always run with less problems with heel/top drops of 4MM or less, regardless of the distance, 5K to 100M. I am not saying there is no need for a transition period; I am just saying it wasn't an issue for me.

              LB2

              AT-runner


              Tim

                Mandy, I've work the Olympus' for two 24hr events without any problems.  I even have the Altra dress shoes on right now.  I try to mix up my shoes, so I don't train in Altra's 100% of the time and if I accidentally wear them too often I'll feel some pulling in right calf.

                 

                For me, the toe box is why I wear them and the zero drop is secondary.  Good luck, and happy running.

                “Paralysis-to-50k” training plan is underway! 

                Birdwell


                  I found that trails really make the zero-drop thing almost a non issue. There's so much variation with your footfall and you're constantly landing in odd ways.

                   

                  I think you'd be o.k. sweeping the course.

                   

                  I was switching between Saucony Kinvara's (4mm drop) and Ghost 6's (12mm drop) when I got Altra's and I didn't have any issues going long early in them.

                   

                  Of course that was all before my foot injury (Lisfranc fracture) forced me to stop running and turned me into a big fat fattie.

                  MadisonMandy


                  Refurbished Hip

                    I found that trails really make the zero-drop thing almost a non issue. There's so much variation with your footfall and you're constantly landing in odd ways.

                     

                    Of course that was all before my foot injury (Lisfranc fracture) forced me to stop running and turned me into a big fat fattie.

                     

                    That's a good point, Birdwell.  Also, I'm sorry to hear about your fracture.  We've been wondering where you'd gone off to.  How's baby Bird?

                    Running is dumb.

                    LB2


                       

                      For me, the toe box is why I wear them and the zero drop is secondary.  Good luck, and happy running.

                       

                      Same thing for me. I like that toe box, the zero drop is secondary. But a 4MM to 0 drop is mandatory for me now, with NB MT101's being the exception.

                      LB2

                      Birdwell


                         

                        That's a good point, Birdwell.  Also, I'm sorry to hear about your fracture.  We've been wondering where you'd gone off to.  How's baby Bird?

                         

                        He's doing remarkably well. He's out of the helmet and the skull is healing quite nicely. The docs pretty sure he won't require any more surgeries.

                         

                        Thanks for asking and caring.

                        Daydreamer1


                          Mandy, thanks for starting this thread. I was about to ask the same thing.  I love my Hokas for the cushioning, but the main flaw the Mafates have is that the outer sole doesn't hold up well on rocks. I tore mine at Hyner last weekend and they only have 135 miles on them.  I've been looking at the Altras but was a little concerned about how they might affect my Achilles, and how long it might take me to transition into them.

                           

                          AT-  I'm assuming that you also use the Olympus on rocky terrain. How does the tread hold up on stuff like that? How are they in wet conditions?

                           

                          Bird - Nice to hear that the little guy is doing well.