I long distance walk and do slow jogging in Olympus 4s now 5s. Love them. Have a pair of Altra Paradigm, feel heavy and flat, got a pair of Altra Vanish tempo and "smoked" my calves. Considering getting the Via Olympus.
I like the Via Olympus. My all time favorite shoe is the Altra Escalante 2, which some found the midsole to be too stiff, not enough squish. For me, the Via Olympus is the Escalante 2 with more stack, perfect. The Via is also going to last at least 500 miles, probably more. It's a beast.
I agree with the science and health standpoint behind zero drop shoes. If one was to run without shoes or use primitive slippers, it is best to keep your ability going natural. Personally, I am heavy heelstriker, prefer at least 8mm drop, and the more the better. I feel going forwards and easier. I run 80+km per week. I had achilles pains before, but the more I run the less I get any pains. Apart from piriformis, which needs some strenght training separately to keep strong enough, It is a weak muscle. Soft heel helps to avoid piriformis pain but I dont like too soft. Yeah and groin tendons always put a limit. Which is again postponed by softer shoes.
Agreed. There are benefits to zero drop shoes but not everyone can or should run in them. I do like them for everyday use like walking or daily use. There's less strain on the heel or calf as there is no real impact. I also prefer zero drop when strength training as I do feel more balanced when lifting weights.
Great review! I'm on the fence about them but I do need a stiffer shoe right now. Having problems with post tib tendon and big toe. I love my torins but too much bend in the toes for right now. Did you have any problems in the feet/ankles excluding the Achilles? Thanks. Again, great review, you answered a few of my questions.
Does it rub at all on achilles tendon due to foam recoil at heel? My escalante are fine, also torin, but i have a pair of thicker Torin Plush that rubs every step (even though I am not a heel striker).
I personally haven't had any issues with the Achilles and rubbing. But that could have something to do with the socks I'm wearing. A few weeks ago with another shoe I had rubbed on the Achilles. I had never experienced that before in that shoe. I then realized that I was wearing a low-cut/no-show sock. When I wore a slightly taller sock, I had no issues. I'm now reevaluating my sock choices and will go taller just to make sure I don't experience that again. I can't remember what socks I wore during my testing of the VIA Olympus but I didn't have any rubbing on the achilles.
Since it was a trail race, I raced in the Hoka Challenger 7. Since I can't always run on trails, I do a lot of my training on the road. I'll have a review of the Hoka Challenger soon.
