i made an illegal shoe to run faster

Whether you're thinking about starting a couch to 5k or preparing for a marathon major like New York or London, you might be wondering: do illegal running shoes actually help you break your personal best? In this video, Sabrina dives into the world of super shoes, tech doping, and biomechanics to see how much they can change her race time. Along the way, Sabrina learns about the evolution of running shoe technology, designs a custom pair of shoes, and consults with an elite runner to change the way she runs forever.

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SOCIAL MEDIA
Sabrina
Melissa
Taha

CREDITS
Produced by Sabrina Cruz
Video Editing by Joe Trickey
Sound Design by Joe Trickey
Special Thanks to Cleo Abram, Laura Desjardins, and Jade C

MUSIC

RECOMMENDED READING
Why the Olympics Almost Banned This Shoe by @CleoAbram
The Running Shoe Book (1980) by Peter R. Cavanagh
The New Quarter-Life Crisis (2024) by Maggie Mertens

TIMESTAMPS
00:00 local woman experiences first world problem
00:32 the plan
00:41 foreshadowing
00:49 in b4 "omg its cleo" in the comments
01:09 what are super shoes?
01:37 are super shoes tech doping?
01:55 why are so many people running?
02:19 the problem with running 5k
02:42 is this cope?
03:00 no
03:02 i spent my entire video budget on these shoes
03:29 it wasn't worth it
03:36 addressing a plot hole
04:24 is this cope? (reprise)
04:48 yes
04:54 the problems with my current shoes
05:43 day one electrolyte fans rise up RAHH
06:56 idk why i read a history book instead of watching a shoe making tutorial
07:13 can you tell i consume a lot of cosplay content
07:17 the evolution of running shoe uppers
08:46 the evolution of running shoe midsoles
09:50 is it unpaid labour or is it friendship?
10:03 why running shoes are so chunky nowadays
10:28 there isn't actually much of an evolution of running shoe outsoles
10:35 presenting my illegal shoes
11:04 running 5k in DIY shoes
12:50 how the DIY shoes held up
14:14 finally consulting an expert
15:08 my flexbility is off the charts
15:30 oh no, the charts are a good thing
15:47 realizing how badly i messed up
16:03 my strength is also off the charts (below them)
17:00 actually solving my problems
18:03 uh oh, i got jogging-pilled
18:59 is this cope? (finale)
19:02 yes

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Welcome to the joke under the fold! Here's a purely hypothetical pun

I'm preparing to run an ultramathon through some Nordic countries... I can't wait to cross the Finnish line.

Leave a comment with the word FINNISH to let me know you were here ;-)

[answerinprogress]

I hope you liked that video! Make sure to get your free Sample Pack with any LMNT purchase at And if it's not for you, get a full refund. No questions asked, no return necessary!
- Sabrina

[brockmckelvey]

Alternative idea: slow your 5K run so that you can watch TWO sitcom episodes instead of one

[WantEpicMusic]

I like how at the start, you're like "i started running, because maybe fitness is important" and how quickly that turned into "how can I do this thing, but as little as possible, by reducing my time"

[loremipsum]

Warning: spoiler
I love how the first half of the video is actually making a shoe that worked surprisingly well, but the other half is just explaining how that was a stupid idea, down to how two of the main features of the shoe made specifically for you were bad specifically for you.

[CleoAbram]

This was so much fun! So excited to see you take this topic and RUN with it (sorry sorry)

[jerrik-]

This whole channel is basically looking for answers, and realizing you had the wrong question to begin with.

Which is why it's awesome.

[isneezelightning]

Laughing to myself in hypermobility disorder (hypermobile EDS or hEDS specifically) as the specialist went from "wow you're flexible" to "hm, let me just go through the beighton with her real fast to get her score" lol. Laughing doubly in the "running supposedly isn't supposed to hurt" thought I had when you first mentioned it was hurting your feet/knees. (Joints....)

[lgniisfire]

Protip, if you want a faster time, i recommend "accidentally" pressing the pause button on the timer and then remembering to press it in the final 200meters. My current best is 5 km in just 5 minutes!

[SMGMPA]

As someone that used to run consistent 22min 5K's. That was an ambitious goal for 3 months. It took me over a year. And I would vary my run and route daily to keep myself entertained. I would do one timed 1.5mi run a week, an untimed 2 mile run, two 5K's which only one I time the other I didn't. And sometimes I would run before work, then I would get home and and go for a "short" run doing sprint intervals after work. I have to give you a lot of credit for staying consistent. Good job Sabrina!

[sparkfrog]

That bit about your muscles overcompensating for weaknesses is really crucial! One time I got injured but didn’t quite pay attention to it enough and ended up in even worse condition because of it. Make sure you take those rest periods seriously, especially if you’re injured,

[theAkornTree]

8:55 "I think I'm going to make it extra thick, to solve my pain problem" made me wince so hard. Thicker soles are like drinking alcohol when you're freezing. You feel warmer but you're dying of hypothermia. Thicker soles mean we don't feel as much pain while we damage ourselves by heel-striking. It's good to see the expert advise using a thinner sole.

[nicolasreveco]

day by day sabrina will eventually fix my whole life and I WILL procrastinate on it

[FortTheMighty]

OMG not you getting a hypermobility diagnosis im dead. good luck babe im hypermobile too and strength training has required a lot of care but u can def accommodate it!!

[StanleyFlinn]

"Outside is free" is a bold statement to be making in Canada in October.

[captaincozmo]

The arrow in the thumbnail should've been a bit closer to the shoe itself

[jeran]

i just wanted to call out the transition effect at 9:24 . It was super subtle, and well executed. Almost too much, where i just didnt want it to go unnoticed. thank you for doing cool things :)

[singerofsongss]

omfg sabrina finding out she’s hypermobile because of this video is so funny to me. i am also excessively bendy and thought it was normal my whole life 😂 the absolute best thing i have done for my joints is yoga and strength training :)

[AdamFairbanks-mq]

As someone who’s been running for way too long, watching someone else get into it is awesome. That ending where she starts to actively enjoy it and feels proud of herself? That’s what we do it for!! Getting past the beginning where everything is hard is absolutely the worst part, and watching someone overcome that genuinely made my day. And I think all runners have at least one phase of obsessively trying to figure out how shoes work, I certainly did lmao

[nemmiril]

Oh tech doping is super interesting! As a swimmer I remember something very similar happening in the early 2010’s. The international board of swimming banned a whole bunch of swim suits that had over-engineered little rubber bits. You can see a huge difference in swim suits from the 2008 to 2012 Olympics if you want a good example.

[Ashley-xulk]

The "sock" design of the shoe reminds of how shoes use to be designed. I couldn't tell you what century but I saw a few examples from Nicole Rudolph's channel. The shoes were made of fabric so you could freely move your foot around within the shoe, and while that seems unstable, it seems to be a design that works rather well.