Pick a shoe, any shoe!

With so many different types of shoes available for runners today, how do you choose which pair would be best for you? Should you wear a "stability" or "neutral" shoe?  When I started running I was running in a $40 pair of Nike shoes that I got at the Nike Outlet.  The person who was helping me pick out shoes had no idea what they were talking about other than what shoe size I should get.

I went to Fleet Feet and had them do an analysis of my gait (how I walk/run) so I knew what shoes I should be wearing.  I would strongly recommend having an analysis done.  Fleet Feet (and most likely any running store) should do this analysis for free.  They told me that I have a neutral gait.  While the analysis that you get in a running store is not taking into account if you are a fore foot striker, a heal striker, or even if your running form is correct.  It does give you a place to start, especially if you are new to running and have not tried out different shoes.

I have three pairs or running shoes now.  I have the Nike Pegasus 29, Mizuno Wave Enigma, and Mizuno Prophecy 2.  The Mizuno shoes are my favorite.  Shoes that feel good to you might feel completely different to someone else.  Each brand is unique and will feel different, so go to a store that will allow you to try the shoes out.  The shoes should feel good when you try them on, so don't think that they will feel better over time.  Fleet Feet will allow you to return your shoes if you do not like them.  It doesn't get much better than that.

It is very important to take into consideration how many miles your shoes should last.  Most shoes should last between 300 and 500 miles.  Some people have journals so they can log every mile that they run in every shoe that they own.  While this is free to do, if you have several pairs of shoes, this could really be a real pain.  I recently came across a new product that is amazing.  It is called the Mino.  It automatically tracks your shoe usage and lets you know when your shoes need to be replaced.  You put the Mino pod under your insole and then you check it every few weeks.  The Mino is about 2.5 mm thick and you can hardly tell that they are there.  Your shoes are intended to protect your feet for a set amount of miles and after that, you dramatically increase the chance of injury.  I think the Mino could quite possibly be the product of the year in 2014.  It has been featured by Runners World and you can purchase your Mino at http://www.runmino.com/ for $15 plus tax and shipping.