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Hokas - Increasing the Heel/Toe Drop

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K5 Gus Jun 2013 10:38am, 29 Jun 2013 170 posts	Quote Pin K5 Gus I'm thinking of getting a pair of Hokas - the new Rapa Nui which is less "platform soles" than the others, but still bigger than "normal" ( 1.5 times bigger rather than 2.2 ) hokaoneone.eu My main aim for getting these is the cushioning, suffering from plantar fasciitis at the moment and read of a few people who use Hokas to help. I've tried a pair on in a shop and they wonderful. However the Hokas are a 4mm/5mm heel to toe drop, and I'm not used to that lower level, I still wear "traditional" shoes around 10mm. So I'm worried that although it may help the PF it may cause other achilles/calf problems. I was wondering if removing the Hoka insole ( which is very flat and very thin, about 2mm uniform ) and replacing with a more shaped insole with a bit of arch support and heel/toe drop would be a good solution. Anyone tried Hokas with their own insoles ( orthotics or standard ) or got thoughts if this would be a good/bad idea ? The other thing that I'm not sure of is that Hokas deliberately have a sort of "rolling" feel to them, and maybe changing the insole to a more built up one would alter this - which may or may not be a problem
Carlos Fandango Jnr Jun 2013 10:42am, 29 Jun 2013 194 posts	Quote Pin Carlos Fandango Jnr Hmm, I'm no orthoticist so this is just the opinion of some guy with an internet connection: having a low drop might encourage you to land on your forefoot which could reduce the heel impact and help the plantar. But then as you seem to be aware, it would increase stresses elsewhere. I tend to think that the only way to find out is to try it. There are just so many variables and every foot/ankle/leg combo is different!
FenlandRunner Jun 2013 10:45am, 29 Jun 2013 16,310 posts	Quote Pin FenlandRunner K5 Gus, are you going to wear Hoka's on-road or off-road?
K5 Gus Jun 2013 10:47am, 29 Jun 2013 171 posts	Quote Pin K5 Gus It would be road and light trail - definitely not muddy hillsides.
Derby Tup Jun 2013 11:13am, 29 Jun 2013 6,045 posts	Quote Pin Derby Tup I'm naturally quite light on my feet and land on my forefoot. I rarely if ever wear cushioned shoes. However, if I wear really low drop or zero drop I am prone to very tight calves and also sore Achilles. By all means try the Hokas but don't start doing all your runs in them at once. Start with a mile or two maybe once a week, and see how you go is my advice. Oh, and run at night so non-one can see you in them! ;-):-P
FenlandRunner Jun 2013 11:16am, 29 Jun 2013 16,311 posts	Quote Pin FenlandRunner K5 Gus, they would be fine for that. I regret wearing them for the Highland Fling as they wrecked my ankles. For road, level terrain they are terrific. Worn them for a number of marathons including Snowdonia and they performed really well, no ankle issues.
K5 Gus Jun 2013 11:26am, 29 Jun 2013 172 posts	Quote Pin K5 Gus DT - as I said, I'm aware of the problem with going straight to lower profile shoes, which was why I was asking about using more built up insoles to raise the profile so that it's a lot closer to what I'm used to. FR - do you use the standard insole or have you replaced it with one of your own ?
FenlandRunner Jun 2013 11:42am, 29 Jun 2013 16,314 posts	Quote Pin FenlandRunner Standard, as delivered.
hellen Jun 2013 9:56pm, 29 Jun 2013 14,359 posts	Quote Pin hellen You could always get a heel lift thing to put under the insole. When I had Achilles trouble the Physio suggested it. It's a kind of gel thing that raises the heel a bit so maybe start with that and gradually do some runs without?
hellen Jun 2013 9:59pm, 29 Jun 2013 14,360 posts	Quote Pin hellen amazon.co.uk