ÿþI also agree that converse white the shoe fitting process is stuffed, but as Kevin points out in another comment, it's not easy to offer alternatives, and I realize this. But, because alternatives are hard does not mean we should be content with the status quo when studies do suggest that basing shoe type almost exclusively off of things like arch height and pronation does not seem to be of any benefit to the runner. ASICS may not use the terms neutral, stability, and motion control, but I can assure you that shoe stores still use these categories, and runners are still fit to Asics shoes based upon them (my wife was).

I am very confident we get fear no favour answers, because if we are gonna publish this in the public domain, it is the reputaion of the key researchers at stake. "I have heard that good designs from a biomechanical standpoint can get sunk because they can't be marketed or because they don't meet aesthetic considerations" I am sure converse black this is the case with some companies, but not with ASICS the only reason a project gets sunk is if we can not establish beyond doubt that it works or, that it has the potential to injury the athlete. Let me give you a recent example. For almost 4 years, I have been working converse high tops on a project aimed at individuals with late stage overpronation, that is those pronating from midstance on, which is very stressful.

the reason the marketers pulled the pin, is not because of the product or the company, but because the consumer just would not acept the look of it it looked funny, and although like the Nike footscape, it was ahead of it's time, the marketplace was not ready for it or accepting of it so it did not sell. The marketers then had to ake a commercial decision, which is a reality of business. "I have heard that many good designers who are biomechanically oriented have left the converse black high tops business because they get frustrated by marketing departments.

Let me give you an example of this and the risks we take. In 2005 I identified a group of athletes who had an extraordinary divergence of injury rate and type in the sports community. in particular this group was suffering ruptures of their ACL's at a rate 8 times more often than their peer group. This group? Women. I wanted to try to understand why this was happening, and what we might be able to do to help, given that, at the time, all women's shoes were downsized versions of mens shoes, making zero recognition of the diffrences in anatomy, physiology biomechanics, etc. So we embarked on a fascinating journey.

We set aside a budget of several million dollars, and went to the Univerity of Melbourne to meet with Professor Kim Bennell (a woman), the head of the Centre for Health, Exercise and Sports Medicine. There, we mapped out a research project that was to take 4 years, and headed up by the extraordinary mind of Dr. Adam Bryant, a biomechanist at CHESM. I will not bore you with the details, but the research yielded 3 papers, all published, and if you are interested, I will send them to you.

Ok. I've been thinking that I may be unfairly judging you (and Asics). So I'd like to try out a pair of Asics to try out. I went converse trainers on the web-site to the shoe fit chart, but I couldn't really get past that page. Step 3 asks the consumer to select our "Category Type" but the only options available are "Structured," "Cushioning," "Maximum," and "Trail." If my foot requires a minimally supportive and minimally cushioned shoe because my foot arch is extremely strong as are the supportive muscles in my foot and leg, then which Asics shoe would you recommend? I am unconvinced that there is anything wrong with my running gait as evidenced by absolutely no foot, leg, or joint pain during short or long runs.