The times they are a-changin’.
This post seems to be older than 13 years—a long time on the internet. It might be outdated.
I decided the other day that if I was really serious about this running business, I better get some dedicated running shoes. Previously, I had been using my trusty New Balance 993, a great cross training, high-mileage shoe that I actually have been and continue to use as my everyday shoe for the last several years.
It works great as my day-to-day shoe, but I find it lacking during my running1
After crowd sourcing some ideas, I decided to check out Road Runner Sports.
Road Runner has some cool technology toys that show how pressure is distributed along your feet and how you walk. If you’ve never been in to Road Runner before, the first thing they’ll have you do is measure your feet (my right foot is a 1/2 size larger than my left); then they’ll have you stand on the pressure pad to see your weight distribution and pressure points; finally, they’ll have you run on the treadmill. This allows them to figure out what shoe will fit you best.
I have flat, over-pronated feet, with a slight preference to my right side.
I tried on a couple different types of shoes, but eventually settled on the New Balance 1225 with RRS Road Runner Sport Control insoles and I love them!
They salesperson also showed me a new way to tie my shoes so my heel wouldn’t move up and down as much when I stepped:
From www.runnersworld.com:
Lace as normal until one eyelet remains on each side. Draw the lace straight up on the outside of the shoe and bring it through the last eyelet. This will create a loop. Repeat on the other side. Cross each lace over the tongue, thread it through the opposite loop, and tie. The loops help to cinch in the material around your ankle to prevent your heel from slipping without making the rest of your shoe any tighter.
(click the link and scroll down to see a video)
My feet don’t hurt as much and my knees and hips are doing much better.
0this is probably due to the fact that it’s my everyday shoe and generally wear the crap out of them, not some fatal design flaw in the shoe. I wore this shoe for 62 straight days while literally walking all around Europe last year and it was fantastic. ↩