Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting Any trail joggers out there?

Gave up jogging on pavement a good while back and concentrated on just hiking the trails. Have recently started to jog the trails-walk the good hills-and it is a great workout. Not going for speed, but at 68 I can live with it. Problem is for the third time I have pulled a muscle in the crease behind my left knee, between the two tendons. It pops and I'm done for 4 or 5 days and yes I'm stretching more than ever. So, for those who do the same are you using a different shoe than a regular jogging shoe? An arch support definitely helped, but I have to watch more that I don't turn an ankle. Any suggestions for prevention?

Would like to keep this up in that running is again enjoyable. This seems to be the forum that gets the most play re: exercise.

Thanks in advance.

I use my regular running shoes for running on trails.

You might consider trying the green Superfeet inserts which position your feet slightly differently in the shoe and offer a lot more arch support.

Some folks seem to like the so called "trail running shoes" but I don't think they're worth the money.

Just my .02.....

I would try the trail running shoes they will alter your running style.You will find that foot placement and balance will improve and help prevent injury.

Try 5 fingers in a limited amount for short runs, they will force you to focus on technique and running lightly.

I run almost exclusively on trails, typically 40-60 miles per week depending on whether I'm training for a race or not (last race was a 50K two weeks ago).

I switched to Hoka Ones (actually their road shoe, not their trail shoe) last year and all my knee and foot issues went away. I run with a group of fairly experienced Ultra-racers and nearly everyone wears Hokas these days.

I use Merrill tough-gloves. You definitely have to ease into it, but i think minimalist is the way to go. Forcing yourself to use your calf as the shock absorber vs your knee and hip is so much easier on your body. Once your calves adjust of course

Be careful with the zero drop shoes like 5 fingers, trail gloves, minimus, etc. If you try to go too hard too quickly you'll end up with stress fractures in your foot. Speaking from experience unfortunately.

Where can I buy some online?

If you go minimalist , ease into it. I primarily use them for better form

hoka one

Online would be pretty easy, I think even Amazon sells them.

Two caveats:

1) I don't know of anyone who uses the "trail" version, every trail runner I know gets the "road" version.

2.) They run about a half-size small (go up a half-size). It might be good to try a pair on locally first.

Use my regular running shoes.

What distance would you start ... if, say, you hadn't run at all for 2 years and wanted to give minimalist shoe running a shot.

Probably a half mile or so, wear them around home for a couple days first. IF you are use to regular running shoes your calves may get sore just wearing them around

Just came back from a running store owned by a girl who does marathons.
She said my shoes were mucho to stiff for my feet and pigeon toed stride. Also my right foot is a 10.5, while the left is a 9.5. You think I would have noticed that after all these years.

Soooo we are into a much more flexible shoe. They definitely feel more comfortable just walking around and my foot contact with the ground covers a larger area.

We shall see how things go tomorrow.

I prefer as minimal of shoe as I can get away with and have been running in New Balance MT110s this year. I ran the MT101s all of last year. A flat shoe promotes a more natural form. A low to the ground shoe gives you better control and ground feel. The MT110s are flat and low to the ground but still protect your foot. I think shoes like the five-fingers and trail glove are to minimal for serious trail running or racing. They just do not protect your feet on real trail. Try kicking a rock in five-fingers, not good.

Most of the semi-minimal shoes last a long time and are affordable, as in less than a hundred bones. Cant say that about Hokas. The Hokas are just to high for off the ground for my liking too. My feet do just fine in the semi-minimal shoes. I ran two mountain 100s last year in the MT101s and did not have issues. Yea my feet were sore but hey it's a hundred mile race.

As other folks have said ease into the flat shoes. If you go easy and build from there you will avoid injury and end up stronger in the end.

Yeah, sharp rocks hurt like hell in my Merrill's. It's been so worth it though. I can run without knee pain for the first time in over a decade.

Five Fingers or Trail Gloves if the trail is not too rough. Start out slow/short distance and work your way up gradually. It took me a couple months. I can't stand padded shoes anymore.

Some REAL trail runners on this site (out of my league), you've gotten some good advice.

I think that trail running ~is~ easier on some parts of the body and harder on others. At least in my experience trail running is a bit harder on the soft tissue and a bit easier on the joints themselves. The prevention to injuries, if there is one, is to make adjustments slowly. Let yourself get used to the constantly changing stride length and cadence. Let yourself get used to the constantly changing range of motion. It's a process.

Far as shoes go it all depends on what I'm running. A groomed trail or a nice soft, dry dirt trail? I'll use my regular running shoes. In snow or mud or gnarly stuff I'll go to the La Sportivas and dig on the rooster tails for a while. Something with lots of sharp rocks and I will back off to the overbuilt Asics with the rock guard.

Will

Gave the new shoes a test on a three mile trail run/walk the steeper hills on two separate days. Much wider foot print made it more stable. The increased flexibility resulted in no pulled muscles.

She also asked me to try and learn to plant more of my foot on impact instead of just the heel. Along with a lift off that occurred before all my weight was on the toes. She described it as learning to run soft.

Some progress has been made.

20 yrs and 3 knee surgeries ago, I just used my regular running shoes with a pretty good tread. Miss doing that. Now, I run up a few hills here and there, but nothing like those days. I just use Merrill snow mocs for that though.