Newton Gravity Review – v6
This is a quick Newton Gravity Review looking at the 2017 model ov VI (6).
But first to clear up the Forerunner 245 thing. I bought a new BLACK strap for my 235 to replaces the luminous green one. It looks much better and I’m pretending it’s a 245. It isn’t of course. I just feel happier doing that. Don’t know why. It’s in the photos further down. £5 well spent.
OK. Back to the Newtons.
Whilst I might associate ‘minimalist running’ with VIBRAMs, I would say that the Newtons differ notably from many Vibrams I have seen and NEWTON shoes are designed specifically to accommodate and enhance natural running foot-strike and gait. So you won’t be running in a glorified wafer-thin sock. Instead you’ll have something to promote natural technique. Generally from Newton this means:
- Allowing foot movement and spread within the shoe;
- Ground ‘feedback’ mechanisms in the shoe under the metatarsals;
- Small heel-to-toe drop ie not much of a heel; and
- A shoe-based energy-return mechanism under the forefoot…as shown in the 2 images, below.
I was specifically looking at these, pre-Ironman, to enhance efficiency and natural gait as well as see if there were any gains to be had from the energy return system. In the end I didn’t use them for the Ironman. I got my feet on them too late and didn’t properly get used to them. They were great up to an hour and did seem to give me, perhaps, a little extra edge in speed but a wee bit more adaptation was needed to properly bed myself into them.
Currently I’m using them in rotation with ‘normal’ shoes and progressing nicely.
If you have one pair of non-NEWTON shoes and you aim to replace them with the NEWTONs then that might be a risky strategy. If you’ve already used MOTIONs or FATEs then you’re probably good for the ‘upgrade’, although typically over £100 they are not a cheap shoe by any means – note: Amazon prices seem to be down towards Eu70 in some countries.
GENERAL VIEW OF THE SHOES – NEWTON GRAVITY REVIEW
They are lightweight and appear both durable and breathable. Once you are confident in them for longer distances they could easily be your only shoe brand.
The lugs under the forefoot, as shown above, do feel pronounced. They DO seem good for aiding impact reduction AND then assisting a possibly improved ‘toe-off’. I’m hoping that their ‘pronouncement’ will soften up a little as the miles keep going up.
They feel comfortable for me and true to the sizing and they lace up as well as most shoes do these days although perhaps the tongue could be a bit longer.
If you want to give some a go here are some Amazon links. I partner with NewRunningGear in the EU/UK and there should be a sneaky 10% discount if you buy through the link below using the code GRAVITYTFK10 – that’s the same code as for STRYD.
PRICE, DISCOUNT & AVAILABILITY
10% off at NewRunningGear in the UK
For those of you who want the links here they are:
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Reader-Powered Content
Newtons only really work if you have a slight forward lean and do a mid-forefoot plant.
This takes a lot of pressure off of your knees but places it lower down on your ankles.
It takes about 4 to 6 months to learn to change to the Chi/Pose/Newton style gate from
the heal toe push off.
It should also lower your Vertical Oscillation as well.
I own a pair of fate II and to date only took them out for one run this whole season. I didn’t care for them but not for the reasons above. I found the forefoot cushion too dense and hard on my metatarsal.
I’m a real dedicated forefoot strike with nearly zero lean (neutral all day long with ever so slight lateral push off, and that has to do with my hips more than any ankle weakness) and I found that for being a shoe with so much added material in the forefoot; the cushioning was really unforgiving. During that run I tried everything to reduce that, rocked back a bit on my feet, raised my cadence, lower my cadence (north of 173 the whole time) leaned in, leaned back, nothing helped; my metatarsals were on fire after that run. I own a pair of Zoom Elite 9’s, which in design run very similar (that air bag in the forefoot feels a whole like the Newton lugs in my opinion, just with a higher drop) and I didn’t have nearly as much pain as I did with the fate II.
Maybe it’s simply this model from Newton, maybe I should move up to the Gravity VI, maybe Newton just needs to work on their EVA to be more forgiving. Not that they are the same shoe in the slightest, but Reebok’s Float Ride’s ended up taking its place in my circle of runner’s this year and it has been a winner in my book. The Float Foam they created is amazing on the return, I daresay better than Boost.
As for the 245, it’s not going to be anything like the 235 knowing Garmin’s trend(s). It’ll end up being a stripped down version of the Fenix 5/ Forerunner 935 software in a similar aesthetic shell.
Justin
I own over 25 pairs of various Newton shoe models. Ebay. I am basically a neutral runner.
I am a competitive runner in the 70-74 AG. 8 min miles. I have never used the fate, aha, or other Newton starter models. I find the Distance good for training and MV2, MV3 and Elite models for races. I first started using the Distance for a 10k race, After about 2 miles,
it was like I was running backwards. I was about to chuck them away. It was not until I learned to forward lean, was I able to get the benefits of the lugs. There are many Youtube
videos showing proper technique. You have to start out slow and build up your speed while
forward leaning. Again, it took me about 4 to 6 months to be able to run sub 8 min miles and
do sub 7 min intervals.
Peter
That is a bunch of Newton’s. Thanks for the info. Right now nominally my Oscillation sit between 6-8cm, though admittedly when I took the Fate 2’s out it was early in the season (I don’t have year long access to outdoors due to temperatures in the negatives and indoor tracks are not available 24/7, so there is going to be a retraining period every year). I wasn’t in running form so perhaps I came off a bit harsh. I went and watch a few video’s on form. Going to give them a go a few more times this year before it is too late, that and I am training for a run later this month and don’t want to mix up my rotation of shoes for it (and injure myself potentially).
That and next year i’m going to look into the higher end models like the distance. Thanks again.
So, I lied. I took the fate 2 yesterday for a 4 mile run. Definitely have built-up a lot more strength in my feet since the last time I took them out. They didn’t have much of an effect on my form (still in the same range as other shoes I have worn this season), my stride length was at the higher end of what I can produce (around 1.30-1.45m). Cadence was a tad lower, but I chalked that up to just getting my feet around them. Shaved about 20secs off my mile (ish) as well.
What I did/do notice is soreness in different places with the newton’s; particular in my shins, lateral sides more than anywhere else. It’s not crippling pain or injury, just sore in places that I am not usually sore.
I have maybe 4-5 more outings with these shoes this year, but I will be going back to them next year more often as well as picking up other models to supplement my running next year.
good argument for shoe rotation
Strap on my aging 620 was on the way out so I bought a replacement red one from ebay, was funny how many people asked me about my ‘new’ running watch 🙂 Having a red strap give you at least a 1% performance boost btw!
hmm. I found black only gave 0.5% improvement. must try that 😉