hate shopping for running shoes!

[jessmarimba]

I'm not really looking for specific shoe suggestions, but I'm not sure what I should be generally be looking at.

I've been running - err, was running - in a pair of New Balance 904 trail shoes with quasi-custom orthotics. I overpronate standing still - my right ankle just rolls in, and has since I was, oh, 2? (Mom refused to make a toddler wear orthotic shoes.) I have feet that make PTs and shoe salespeople cringe! But I'm a midfoot strike, and I have absolutely no desire to run in a heavy clunky pair of stability+ shoes that also cost a fortune. Plus the heels are so built-up in stability shoes that a midfoot strike just isn't possible. Of course those are the only shoes the salespeople will bring for me to try on at the LRS.

Edit - also wanted to point out that I run slightly pigeon-toed and not duck-foot, so I'm not rolling through my arch as I'm running.

So would a more minimal shoe be ok? NB 100/101? Nike Frees? The old New Balances have been discontinued and I have no idea where to turn next. Just buy whatever's comfortable and wait and see if I end up injured?

[Melalvai]

I don't have any advice, but I plan to get the vibram five finger shoes. I don't have any special foot/ankle/leg concerns. I just think from all the reviews I've read that these will be great.

[jessmarimba]

Yeah, I was hoping that, too. I have a pair. I think my therapist will disown me if she knows I wear them...so far I've just tried them for hiking.

[zoom-zoom]

NB 905s...? Honestly, the 904 was the shoe that turned me off to that series. My favorite shoe EVER was the 902. The 903s were OK, but the uppers were cut all weird. Then NB changed the last with the 904 and suddenly their wides were no longer wide. I had to go up a half size to get them long enough, but then they were too long. I heard that they improved the fit with the 905, though, so I may have to give them another try.

Right now I am in the Nike Run Avant+ and Lunarfly+ (same sole unit, just different uppers). They retail for $80, but I usually find them for closer to $60. The Mizuno Wave Elixir might be a good try, too, though I tend to find their heels too hard.

[OakLeaf]

Just if you want to transition to a minimal shoe, make sure you do it GRADUALLY. It's easy to want to push and do all your running, or even all of certain days' runs, in your new shoes (or your birthday shoes), and that's how people wind up injured.

Do plenty of barefoot indoor exercise - yoga and targeted foot exercises - as well as strengthening the hip adductors and rotators so that you're no longer excessively pronating. (What your feet do when you're standing still has little to do with your stride, but it can show you where you're letting your muscles get lazy.)

[jessmarimba]

Haha Oak - i am learning to run all over again No worries about too minimal too much too soon!

But I've been working on that overpronation for years and it hasn't done a thing. I've never been injured on that side or had any issues with that ankle - it's much stronger than the straighter one - it just looks wrong. Which is why I'm thinking I should just do what I want anyway and buy shoes somewhere where no one will tell me that what I want is wrong.

[KnottedYet]

I never try to "fix" someone's overpronation unless they are having pain or functional difficulties.

Sometimes, that's just the way someone is made. No biggie.

Wear whatever feels good to run in. Your body will tell you. The right shoes will feel magical like the right bike. (because they will be working WITH you, just like the right bike works WITH you)

Try a pair of Chaco Z1 or Z2 in the midst of your test-driving... just to humor me. They are great for midfoot striking. (the heel is neutral, even though the medial and lateral heel counters make it look thicker. I measured with a caliper, and my caliper don't lie)

[yellow]

Don't overlook the Inov-8 shoes. You should be able to find some to try on in Denver.

[jessmarimba]

Knot, I have a pair of Z2s and ZX2s and I love them...but it was 47 degrees out today I have run in them in the summer and they're great!

Jen, I like the orthotics - I am used to them, but the orthotics in combination with stability/motion control shoes give me massive blisters. I can only take one or the other. They help if I have to walk but make next to no difference when I run. But since I'm doing a lot of walking with the running now, I'll probably keep them.

And Yellow - I have (so far) out-shoed two running store chains here, neither of which had them on the display wall. I'm not sure where to head next. Besides Google.

[colby]

My sympathies to you. Last time I looked for shoes, I went to a local running store and had to convince them what width I needed by putting the shoes on my feet. I was willing to start from scratch and figure out what I was doing wrong, since I had yet to find the perfect pair of shoes for me. It really feels like a lottery - there are so many shoes, so many companies make them, there are so many different styles... I always got suggested neutral or stability shoes and had yet to find the magical pair. Not to mention, one year to the next the shoes aren't quite the same and you start over. It's not a cheap venture, either, and if you have odd sized feet, they don't stock anything, so you can't bring them back and exchange them.

Good luck, I really hope you find the match. I was talking to a couple of people at the conference I attended this week about shoes, one guy had worked through Asics and made it to a pair of Mizunos that he just loves (we both agreed that he just got lucky ), the other guy had yet to find the perfect shoes, was sick of trying, and wanted to try running barefoot/minimal.

I wish there was a more scientific way to match people to shoes. Measure this, take a few steps, crunch some numbers, DING! You should be wearing....

[yellow]

And Yellow - I have (so far) out-shoed two running store chains here, neither of which had them on the display wall. I'm not sure where to head next. Besides Google.

You won't find them in a chain store!

OK, so not in Denver. But close. My hunch is that Colorado Running Company has a boatload of nice, light trail shoes. I have some La Sportivas that I love as well...super lightweight, low profile, awesome traction.

Colorado Running Company
833 N. Tejon
Colorado Springs
Colorado
80903-4707
Tel: 719-635-3833
http://www.corunco.com/product


Boulder Running Company - Colorado Springs
3659 Austin Bluffs Parkway
Colorado Springs
Colorado
80918
Tel: 719-278-3535
www.boulderrunningcompany.com

[KnottedYet]

Knot, I have a pair of Z2s and ZX2s and I love them...but it was 47 degrees out today I have run in them in the summer and they're great!

Here's the magic secret: http://www.injinji.com/tetratsok/outdoor.htm

I have something like 7 or 8 pairs of these socks. Did a half marathon in March in a pair of Z1 and Injinji socks. They make wool ones, too, which are great for the cold and the damp.

I love Chaco Z1 and Z2, and for cold weather add Injinji socks. I don't think I will ever go back to running shoes.

[jessmarimba]

Knot, I have a few pairs of those too, but even in wool socks and merrels my feet were numb in my office til lunch yesterday. It should be warmer for a couple weeks though. Chaco actually made trail shoes for awhile but I can't find enough info to see if the footbed design was similar.

yellow - the "chains" I meant were boulder running co & runners roost! but I think Colorado running co is opening a new store in Lakewood next week. If I read their website correctly, anyway. I ruled out a few more pairs today so maybe that'll be the last store I have to go to!

[jessmarimba]

Alright. I settled on the new balance WT 101s. We'll see how/if they work out.

One thing this process taught me - I wear insoles/orthotics partly because my (normal height) arch and heel are too narrow for most normal width shoes. However, my toes aren't really narrow enough for narrow shoes in most brands.

Also, no one makes minimal-ish shoes in narrow widths.

And if anyone anywhere has a spare pair of Teva X-1 classic trail runners (the old leather ones) around in a size 10...they were the my favorite running shoes ever. I'll pay good money for them!!

Thanks for everything

[KnottedYet]

Chaco actually made trail shoes for awhile but I can't find enough info to see if the footbed design was similar.

Nope, it wasn't.

In the 1990's Chaco subcontracted with Merrell to make leather hiking shoes and boots. (ironic, considering Chaco was later bought by Wolverine World Wide, the holding company that also owns Merrell). Those shoes and boots weren't even made on the same *last*, let alone with the same footbed! They were horrible.

Later Chaco made some trail shoes/sneakers. Not the same footbed, but the removable insole (cheap foam) was contoured to be similar to the beloved sandal footbed.

Now Chaco has the Ped Shed and Toe Coop, which ARE on the same footbed (finally!) and can be resoled. They (actually Wolverine) borrowed an idea from Birkenstock and created a Tokyo style back-strap clog and a London style closed heel "shoe".

The original owner and designer of Chaco (aka "Gecko" for us old folks!) started creating some really bizarre Croc rip-offs after he sold Chaco. I can't even remember the name of his rip-offs. They were just sad.