Shoemakers attempt to ease runners’ joint pain
By STEPHANIE TAFT Special to the Daily Press
CITYWIDE It’s usually hotter and it’s often more challenging physically.Even so,some residents of Santa Monica continue to forgo running on concrete sidewalks or dirt paths along Palisades Park for a soft sand or cushioned track workout that is easier on the joints.
A number of runners blame the hard pavement for nagging pain in the muscles,joints,or spine, which is why running on the sand, tracks, or nearby grass has become more popular,according to Diana Pinto, a physical therapist at the Balance Disorders Institute in L.A.
“Running on the sand is definitely harder and more aggressive,” Pinto, a resident of Santa Monica who was an avid runner until she recently experienced knee pain, said. “The concrete is just really bad for your joints, so I prefer running on tracks. Cement isn’t made for walking or running on.”
Pinto, 26, reduced and redirected her running activity towards the tracks, something she recommends to patients who suffer from chronic running pain. Patients who suffer from acute pains, such as a sprained ankle, are told to stop all running until the injury is completely healed.
“Sometimes when people get an injury, their strength is not necessarily the only thing affected,” Pinto said. “That’s why I’ll also recommend that people with chronic pains run on the sand: It gives you balance, it’s good for the calf and ankle muscles, and it helps your feet learn to adjust to different situations.”
While running on hard pavement continues to cause distress within the muscles and joints, some runners refuse to give it up.
“To be honest, I think sand is worse for the joints because it’s so uneven,” runner Paul Johnson said after finishing a run on the concrete path by the Santa Monica Pier. “Concrete isn’t the big reason people get injured from running.”
Johnson said most joint injuries are caused because people don’t concentrate on their form.
“People can definitely get injured from not having the right form,” Pinto added. “But cement is bad on its own because it doesn’t absorb the force from running. There are some shoes that can help, but they aren’t everything.”
Many shoe companies, however, say different. One new footwear technology called Masai Barefoot Technology (MBT), also known as “The anti-shoe,” seeks to replace the conventional shoe, which stabilizes the body in such a way that the muscle structure loses its natural balance, resulting in joint and back pain. Building off the tyranny of the normal shoe, MBT sells as a “muscle-toning, posture-improving, calorie-burning, joint-protecting, back-relieving bilateral system that helps you stand up straight and walk the way you were meant to.” It is called “The anti-shoe” because it is anti anything that doesn’t defend muscles and joints against the corrosive power of hard surfaces.
“Both my girlfriend and I have a pair and we even use them to walk on the beach at lunch time,” Brian Veasey, new business director of Kastner & Partners, an advertising agency based in Santa Monica, said.“You can definitely feel them working.”
While many shoe companies continue to work hard to make shoes that don’t cause injuries, doctors and physicians still remain adamant about keeping off hard surfaces.
“Improvement in shoe technology has definitely helped runners deal with joint stresses,” Dr. Jason Boyer of the Santa Monica Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Group (SMOG), said. “But when a patient comes in with mild complaints that we attribute to running on a hard surface, we typically recommend that they run on grass or a track that’s rubberized and much softer.”
Although energy expenditure is higher in the sand or tracks than on concrete, numerous amounts of Santa Monica residents have come to realize that, even with padded shoes, concrete is much less forgiving on the joints.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 18, 2008. Read the original PDF.