RUNNING SHOES

HISTORY, ANATOMY & TIPS ON PURCHASING YOUR IDEAL RUNNING SHOE

HISTORY OF THE RUNNING SHOE (PART 1)

As the most primitive and user-friendly of sports, running requires little equipment. Unlike the golfer who utilizes a host of clubs in his armamentarium, the runner has but one piece of equipment in his weaponry, the running shoe. Invariably athletes I see will arrive with numerous questions regarding the running shoes. This article discusses the runner’s “weapon”, its history, and provides some insight when purchasing your next pair of running shoes.

It is believed that running footwear actually came into being around 393 A.D. after the Romans outlawed the Olympics. The Roman armies possessed a team of runners who were used to send messages and an edict was issued by the emperor to supply this team with Gallicas: A single solid soled shoe designed to protect the foot during long distances. The Gallica most likely represented the most primitive form of the running shoe.

Certainly, much has happened since then. In 1839 Charles Goodyear mixed sulfur with boiling crude rubber and created rubber as we now know it. Applying this substance to her shoe became one of the greatest advances to running shoe technology.

By 1865 Spalding and Sears catalogs featured running shoes costing $3-$6 and amounting to one

By Dr. Michael M. Cohen, DPM, FACFAS

quarter to a half of an average person's weekly salary. In 1948 Addi Dassier further developed running shoe technology when he created the Adidas shoe company in Germany, while his brother Rudi formed the rival Puma company. The heated competition subsequently fueled shoe innovation. In Japan, Tiger developed the first distance marathon shoe in 1951 which featured a 2-compartment forefoot one for the big toe and the other for the remaining 4 toes. This design was modeled after the traditional Japanese Geta. New balance hit the running shoe market in the 1960s with the first American-made running shoe, after the owners who manufactured orthopedic shoes since 1906 in Boston decided to apply their experience to running shoes.

A decade later the US Tiger shoe distributors erected their own company based on an innovation developed by Bill Bowerman, the Oregon State track coach best known as Steve Prefontaine's guru. Bowerman developed the waffle outsole by pouring liquid rubber onto a waffle iron and glued it to the midsole of a track shoe to aid in traction and shock absorption. His innovation is now universally known as the waffle outsole and the company was named Nike after the Greek goddess of victory.

Running as a sport has grown exponentially and so did the competition for the running shoe market. Companies began investing large sums of money into biomechanical research and shoe testing. Emphasis is placed on sound knowledge of the running gait and its effect on the running shoe. Today advanced technology provides the science in the quest to develop the perfect or ideal shoe. The industry has evolved exponentially owing to the very lucrative market. Billions are spent each year by consumers to purchase shoes touting the best shock absorption and designs allowing maximal stability. Experienced runners are well aware that an appropriate running shoe is essential to train at ones greatest potential. Wear the wrong shoe and risk being banished to the ranks of the injured.

Look for Part 2: Anatomy of the Running Shoe in the September issue of OUR CITY!

▸ Michael M. Cohen, DPM, is a Board-Certified Foot and Ankle Surgeon and Diplomate of the American Board of Foot and Ankle Surgery. He is a Fellow of the American Board of Foot and Ankle Surgeons and Board Certified and Diplomat of the American Board of Podiatric Medicine. He practices with the Foot, Ankle and Leg Specialists of South Florida specializing in lower leg injuries and reconstructive surgery of the foot and ankle. The South Florida Institute of Sports Medicine in Weston is located at 1600 Town Center Blvd., Suite C, (954) 3895900 and in Pembroke Pines at 17842 NW 2nd Street, (954) 430-9901. The practice website is www.SOUTHFLORIDASPORTSMEDICINE.org.

OFFERING SAME DAY & EARLY MORNING APPOINTMENTS & CONSULTATIONS

OFFERING

SAME DAY & EARLY MORNING APPOINTMENTS & CONSULTATIONS

$800

NEW PATIENT $300 | FOLLOW UP (WITHOUT X-RAY) $100

SURGERY CONSULT $350 | X-RAYS $50 PER AREA | PRP $800

INJECTIONS

$550

STEM CELLS $1200 | SHOCKWAVE (5 SESSIONS) $600 | INJECTIONS

ORTHOTICS $400 | CASTS $200 | LACERATION REPAIR $550

MEDICARE | BLUE CROSS | BRIGHT | UHC | CIGNA | AETNA | AMBETTER | TRICARE | WORKERS COMP | ACCIDENTS/LOPS SIMPLY | SUNSHINE | OSCAR | MEMORIAL PHO

Dr. Carlo Messina Serving

MEDICARE | BLUE CROSS | BRIGHT | UHC | CIGNA | AETNA | AV MED AMBETTER | TRICARE | WORKERS COMP | ACCIDENTS/LOPS SIMPLY | SUNSHINE | OSCAR | MEMORIAL PHO

NEW PATIENT $300 | FOLLOW UP (WITHOUT X-RAY) $100

SURGERY CONSULT $350 | X-RAYS $50 PER AREA | PRP

STEM CELLS $1200 | SHOCKWAVE (5 SESSIONS) $600 |

ORTHOTICS $400 | CASTS $200 | LACERATION REPAIR

NEW PATIENT $300 | FOLLOW UP (WITHOUT X-RAY) $100

SURGERY CONSULT $350 | X-RAYS $50 PER AREA | PRP $800

STEM CELLS $1200 | SHOCKWAVE (5 SESSIONS) $600 | INJECTIONS $100

ORTHOTICS $400 | CASTS $200 | LACERATION REPAIR $550