The Nike Vaporfly and its descendants, the Next% and Alphafly, have revolutionized the running landscape. In recent years we have seen new world records set in the men's and women's 10k, half-marathon and marathon. Many other elite runners have set personal bests in the now-dubbed "super-shoes". We have multiple independent studies showing improvements in running economy of around 4% on average. With all the disruption, the IAAF has finally had to step in and update their regulations on running shoes.
Now that these "super-shoes" are more widely available, the question on every runner's lips is "will they work for me?". Our guest today has been attempting to answer that question. Dr Hébert-Losier recently published a study in The Journal of Sport and Health Science in which she tested the Nike Vaporfly 4% on a group of recreational runners, like us!
Kim Hébert-Losier is a Senior Lecturer and Researcher in Applied Biomechanics at the University of Waikato, New Zealand. She is also a Physiotherapist and an accomplished runner, having qualified for the Boston Marathon twice. She joins me on the show today to shed a little more light on what these "super-shoes" are, how they work and whether the Nike Vaporfly / Alphafly can really make you a faster runner.
Check out the full show notes here
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Cool Stuff mentioned in the show:

Follow Dr. Hébert-Losier on Twitter @KimHebertLosier
Keep up with her research at The University of Waikato
Check out her running courses with The Running Clinic
Dr. Hébert-Losier's study: Metabolic and performance responses of male runners wearing 3 types of footwear: Nike Vaporfly 4%, Saucony Endorphin racing flats, and their own shoes
The New York Times analysis of Strava data on the Nike Vaporfly


Further reading and listening:

Pod Chat Live episode The Nike Shoe Controversy with Alex Hutchinson
The Real Science of Sport episode The Shoe That Broke Running
Extra Mile Health article Carbon Fibre Running Trainers: Science behind the super shoes from Dr Chris Bramah
BJSM editorial Is it the shoes? A proposal to regulate footwear in road running from Geoffrey Burns and Dr Nicholas Tam


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