![]() ![]() The shoe itself is very nice but there is one major problem in my opinion: I haven’t tried the A4 but I had the Saucony Grid Type A3 for a while.Īt first it seemed like a great shoe, a good alternative to my completely worn out Asics Piranhas that I loved. Overall, I think they’re a great deal for the price, especially if someone needs a little more between their foot and the ground. And at 5.4oz, I can’t complain about weight. They don’t get in my way like I thought they might. Ground feel is ok, not great, but it’s surprisingly easy to keep good form in these. I just wear thin socks with the Nikes and that seems to help. After several months in VFFs, my toes like their space. It’s not really restrictive, but it’s not as wide as I’d ultimately like. I think the only thing about the Nikes I don’t like (aside from the color scheme) is the slightly narrower toe box than the Mizunos. Ran a PR for the 1.5 mile in them too a few days ago. The foot feels great and I’m back up to where I left off mileage wise. I’ve had some reoccurring TOFP in my right foot, so after some rest I decided to do most of my running in the Nikes now, and supplement with some more regular barefoot training, and the occasional VFF run (instead of focusing only on VFF running). I think these will be the flats I use this fall instead, just because they do have a little more of a sole/cushion on them which helps save my feet a bit. I’ve taken them out a handful of times and like them even better than my Mizunos. ![]() Photos of the Saucony Grid Type A4 (click to zoom): If you decide to get some, please throw us a bone and visit Endless for the Men’s Saucony Grid Type A4 and Women’s Saucony Grid Type A4. The biggest challenge is maintaining my stride that is so effortless and fun when running in my Bikilas.Īnother added detail, the words “GET SOME!” are emblazoned on the outside of the heel. While not giving me a true barefoot feel, they are as close as I can imagine in a running shoe (I haven’t tried the Evo) and they seem to relieve some of the achilles stress. The tongue has a couple of elastic strips to hold it in place. I got a blister on my heel the first time I ran in them, but switching from cotton socks to moisture wicking socks fixed that. There are a couple of little padded “hydrators” on each side of the heel pod that give a firm but cushioned fit. I found the surface under the insole very hard and recommend keeping them in. It can easily be removed and I tried running without it once. The A4s don’t have much of an arch support(which I like a lot), just a thin insole that is not glued to the shoe and. Inside the shoe there is a very thin backing to the mesh upper. There is also an ultra thin lining, elastic tongue holders and “hydrators” pad the heel. The insoles are not glued in and are easily removed. (Endless carries men’s and women’s here.) I found that the Sauconys have a smaller heel-to-toe drop, less cushion, and cost less. Initially, I was leaning toward the Mizuno Wave Universe 3, but after talking with Greg at DailyMile, who likes alternating runs with his Bikilas and the Saucony Grid Type A4s, I decided to give them a closer look. Also, I was hoping some very slight cushioning of the heel would help with my achilles problem.Īfter reading about Edward Edmond’s use of racing flats in his training, I looked at the specs of various racing flats and narrowed it down to a few possibilities. ![]() I looked for something lightweight, with a small heel-to-toe drop and low profile that would allow me to maintain my forefoot strike. So, what follows is my search for a shoe that I could alternate with my Bikilas to relieve some of the stress on my achilles tendon… Saucony Grid Type A4 However, due to either pushing myself too hard lately or perhaps the inherent frailty of my middle aged body, I have developed a mild case of achilles tendonitis. All went well for the first couple of months and my perfectly fitting Bikilas are just great. Starting out, I focused on taking it slow and developing a proper forefoot strike. These days, when I run “barefoot” in Five Fingers Bikilas I don’t have these problems and running is fun again. I had tried running on and off through the years, but was an old school heel striker and always gave up due to back and knee pain. I learned about barefoot running here on Birthday Shoes and I decided to give it a try. Back in April, I started running consistently after about, uh, a 30 year layoff. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |