ÿþI've been following with interest asics trainers a spirited debate that is taking place over on . Like me, Bill is an advocate for greater variety in shoe choice, and his approach on his blog is to poke fun at the status quo in addition to providing the occasional shoe review. He also has published a number of interesting guest posts  is well worth a look if you haven't seen it already."We (ASICS) are now working on a training shoe that is less structure and lightweight, but still offering stability and holding true to a rearfoot srike pattern design.

If you are running pain free in ASICS 2100 series shoes, by all means, keep doing so. Being able to run is what is important after all, and why mess with what's working. However, as Bartold points out, humans are variable, so why should we expect the 12mm lift, heel strike model to work for everyone? This is why asics running shoes I'm so perplexed at his willingness to fight the minimalist movement. If some people are benefiting it, why all of the resistance? Sure, ASICS makes racing flats that are similar to many minimalist shoes, but good luck to the recreational runner who wants to find a pair to try on and doesn't asics gel kayano have access to a specialty running store.

It's pretty darn unlikely that you'll find the Piranha or Hyperspeed at your local Foot Locker or Dick's Sporting Goods. Until recently, the average runner has had little choice but to go with the 12mm lift, heel striking model. Thankfully, progressive companies like Saucony, Merrell, Altra, Vibram, and New Balance are bringing alternative options to the running masses.Yes, every runner is different, and does have different requirements. ASICS has a lot of shoes to choose from, just not if your preference or requirement is one without a big heel and lots of cushion. See again my above comment asics gt 2000 about the likelihood of the everyday recreational runner finding a pair of ASICS racing flats in a typical shoe store. In terms of heel height, ASICS might as well be one size fits all.

So much for that wet test ASICS!When criticizing minimalist advocates for lacking evidence, it seems that the lack of evidence is not so glaring as it is made to seem when you do dig into the literature. Without a doubt, there is some amount of contradiction, which is why this debate gets so heated these days. What's more, some of the evidence that is out there casts serious doubt on the very process that ASICS recommends when it comes to choosing one of their shoes  what could be more fundamental to what a shoe company needs to do than accurately advise its customers on how to choose a shoe?

Instead, when I go to my local Fleet Feet running store there are about 60 highly-cushioned shoe choices and only about 6 "minimal" style shoes. I know you can't speak for the shoe industry so just speak for Asics or what you've come to learn in your employment at Asics (if possible).

Let's try this then (questions to follow the colon): 1) What is the average heel lift (defined as the height difference in millimeters asics netball trainers between the heel and the forefoot) of the top 5 (by quantity) Asics running shoes sold at retail (both online & in stores) in 2010? 2) How many of those top 5 shoes have peer reviewed studies showing their effectiveness at preventing injury or increasing performance? I swear, this whole thing is like a religion discussion where neither side budges because both sides feel they are right. Anyhoo, I don't have a peer reviewed medical journal article to back up what I'm about to write so SB may want to hit that little "x" in the top right corner.