Are Super Shoes for Everyone?

Are super shoes for everyone? To answer this question, we first need to know what super shoes are. With technological advances in the running industry always finding new ways to improve their products, making shoes lighter in weight, more breathable, and more responsive, along came carbon fiber plated racing shoes also known as super shoes. These racing shoes combine a bouncy lightweight midsole foam with a carbon fiber plate to create a light and springy response, reducing the amount of work a runner must do to run a certain speed. Meaning the same race effort a runner gives in a normal running shoe will result in a faster pace when running in a super shoe.

So, do carbon-plated super shoes work for all runners or just the elites? We met up with Dr. Iain Hunter at the running mechanics' lab at BYU to get an inside look at the science behind super foams, carbon fiber plates, and the overall performance benefits of super shoes in the modern age! Dr. Iain Hunter found parallel results to other studies done around the country that no matter the pace, whether very fast or slow, we see the same kind of benefits across the board.

After comparing similar shoes with different types of runners, the 3-4% in energy savings is seen across a wide range of runners, from elite to average runners. The combination of rockered midsoles, responsive super foams, and carbon-fiber plates helps reduce the effort needed to run a particular distance, leading to faster times for anyone wearing them. If you're looking to optimize your performance at your next race, a carbon-plated shoe may be the answer.