These running shoes from Enko claim to reduce joint stress.

I’ve seen some interesting running shoes over the years. Nike’s Zoom Fly Vaporfly 4% with its carbon fiber plate is one of the more recent ones promising performance gains. Yet, that shoe seems rather pedestrian when you check out this offering from Enko. Here’s how the company’s press release describes it:

True innovations are scarce. Even though running is a highly traumatic sport for joints, innovation in design has been limited for a long time. No steps forward to improve stride shock absorption and preserve runner’s health have been taken. No breakthroughs until ENKO arrived on the market.

I don’t know that no advancements have been made regarding cushioning in running shoes. You can easily find ones with varying levels of cushioning to suit whatever gait and mileage requirements you may have. Though, there are very few (none?) companies using materials other than foam or air bladders.

Exactly who is this for?

I haven’t been able to track down the weight which I imagine might be somewhat hefty. I also wonder how much it will affect stride length, leg turnover, etc. because right out of the gate they’ll probably be a little awkward to run in. However, when I showed my wife, who’s been involved in two car accidents (neither being her fault) and has the back and knee pain that comes with that, she was intrigued. She used to be a casual runner, but her knee joints just can’t do it any longer. I do wonder if something like this would help her be able to put down even a mile or two.

At $372 it’s a somewhat expensive experiment. Though, the company does say you have 30 days to try them, and if you’re not satisfied, you can return them for a 100% refund. I’m thinking about taking a closer look at them, and will report my findings if I do.