Remember the second most important thing to choosing the right shoe,
is choosing the left one.
Post Highlights
The 3 Different Type of Foot Arches, Shoe Recommendations For Those Foot Types.
Shoe / insole Inserts. Do you really need them ?
What type of Socks should you be wearing ?
How do you figure out if a shoe is the “right fit” for you ?
How much should you be spending on your running shoes ?
After our maiden run @ crissy fields, some of us gathered inside the Sports Basement for the Shoe Clinic.
Tony Kauke, who works at Sports Basement, presented The Shoe Clinic. Later, I would find out that Tony is also the co-founder of the Bay Area Track Club.ref2.
Tony had a display of shoes in front of him, and started off the Shoe Clinic by first introducing himself, and then asking each one of us to briefly introduce ourselves. After that, Tony spoke about the 3 major types of running shoes, modelled around the 3 major types of feet arch that most people have.
The 3 Different Type of Foot Arches, Shoe Recommendations For Those Foot Types.
- Normal (medium) Arch. This is the most common arch in the foot. Normal pronatorsref3 have relatively stable stride. So normal arch runners can wear many different types of running shoes. If you are a bigger runner with normal arch you need a stability shoe, whereas if you are a lightweight runner with normal arch you could use neutral cushion shoes without added support.
- Flat (low) Arch – Runners with a flat arch are called over pronatorsref3. If you have a flat arch, then you need stability shoes or motion control shoes to help you correct your running motion.
- High Arch – This is the least common foot type. Runners with high arches tend to under pronateref23. So if you have this foot type, you should get neutral cushion shoes because you need softer mid-soles.
Tony said that most reputable running or active stores in the country will be able to do a Gait Analysis for you and help you figure out your foot type. They will then make shoe recommendations to you based on your foot type.
Shoe / insole Inserts. Do you really need them ?
Tony recommended avoiding inserts as much as possible unless you have a medical condition, or if your foot is
wired or if you are in-between stability sizes. The Superfeet insoles should be your very last resort.
What type of Socks should you be wearing ?
Tony recommended not wearing cotton socks while running. The reason for this being cotton is not a wicking fabric. So moisture from sweating, the heat and the friction will likely cause blisters unless all 3 are controlled and dissipated. Socks made from wicking fabric, on the other hand, will brings the sweat from inside to outside and that lets it evaporate. So synthetic wicking socks are the best.
How do you figure out if a shoe is the “right fit” for you ?
Some rule of thumb that Tony gave us for picking the “right fit” once we have our arch type and shoes type we need to buy are…
- When you wear the shoe, your heel should be “locked in”. There should be no up-and-down movement there, because if you have movement, you will likely get blisters very easily due to the friction.
- Your mid foot should feel snug, but not tight.
- Your fore foot should be able to wiggle the toes without touching any sides of the shoe.
- You should ideally have a “thumb space” from the edge of the shoe front to the front of your toes.
How much should you be spending on your running shoes ?
Tony said that for most of the performance shoes, the price starts around 88 to 90 dollars (NOTE: all these price recommendations are as of 2010). Shoes with suggested retail under 80 dollars are usually bad. You can also buy the closeout shoes at 80 or 90 dollars. Because closeouts are usually discounted because the colors and other cosmetic designs are from a previous year, and have as such “gone out of fashion”. Shoes that cost over 100 dollars are usually priced higher because they carry some of the shoe making company’s “gel”. For example, Nike Air touting it’s proprietary “air” technology and such. So you don’t really need these unless you are loaded like Rush Limbaugh ref4 and your doctor told you to start running because you are 1 Big Mac away from a fatal heart attack.
