Gear Check 101 (Sneakers)

There is an embedded simplicity in running that most beginners readily embrace: a pair of shoes, socks, bottoms and a shirt is all you technically need to hit the road.  That's a wonderful thing that will get many on the road for Day 1.  That said, while skimping on the gear won't be as detrimental as in say Hockey or Football ...

... Very quickly any runner that stays at it will find that a handful of basics will prevent an unnecessary early exit from the sport.

For that reason, I thought I'd summarize some of the basics that I use.  Today, I'll start with the very first thing a runner needs .. sneakers!



Sneakers
Sneaker purchases for most runners soon become akin to special occasions, to be coveted and celebrated right up there with the likes of Christmas and Spring Break.

I could spend blog upon blog entry just summarizing what I have learned about sneakers.
The best thing you can do to purchase a first pair is to seek out the advice of professionals.  For your first purchase, skip the big box stores, and meander on over to a specialty run store.  In the Greater Atlanta Area, the store most convenient to me is Big Peach Alpharetta.  Endurance House is a close second. You'll want to plan to spend approximately ~$120.  This would be a base shoe in most of your top-performing brands.  At the store, they will watch you run (perhaps video tape it), and go over things like pronation (whether and how much your ankle rolls as it makes contact with the floor) and foot-strike (what area of the foot lands on the floor first), as well as the drop (how much taller the heel of the shoe is than the forefoot) and weight of particular shoes.  Be prepared to have a limited range of color options.  This isn't Foot Locker, and we're not rappers.  Our sneakers are for function; we'll have time to look cute later. ;)

If any of this sounds intimidating, or "too much" for the type of running you are doing, don't sweat it.  I went in for my first fitting at a BMI of close to 35.  I hit that store out of sheer desperation.  I had just run/walked 7 miles for the very first time in adulthood.  I'd been training for about two months.  My brain was muddled, I was delirious, and in some serious pain!  I waddled my way into the Big Peach closest to me, still in running gear and everything.  During my session, the salesperson not only helped me find the right shoe, but had to give me water and a snack! I'm not sure exactly what I was thinking going in there right after a run.  Probably something like: please help. make it stop.  What I learned first and foremost is that my sneakers were way too small.  I came in with a size 7, and left with a size 8.  Your foot swells at these longer distances, and I was absolutely not prepared for that.  After helping me not to faint, we did a bit of running on treadmill.  Then he played back the video, and showed me that I was a neutral runner, and that I did not pronate much.  That gave him enough information to bring out three different styles.  I ran around the store in each of these, and selected the pair that felt best.

They help EVERYONE in this specialized way, not just the ultra-elite-jocks.  I promise.  And it really helps avoid injury and enhance performance.  After you have a bit more information about your specific needs, and you know things like whether or not you need a neutral or stability sneaker, then you might coupon shop and web-order things that you've found to be tried and true.  (You can, for example, save a good bit of money ordering last year's model of a sneaker.  If you ran in it one season, you already know that another pair of the same shoe will work, and now you can buy it for less).

To begin with, I'd stay away from more minimalist sneakers; after you've been at this a while, read up before considering that particular style of shoe.

I fell in love with Brooks a long time ago, but Mizuno is also a top fave.  In time, should you transition from 5K warrior to long distance crazy, you'll more likely than not come to own a couple of pairs of sneakers that you rotate.

Right now, I am running in 3 pairs:

Brooks Glycerin ($149.99) - A neutral shoe, and my go-tos at the moment

Vibram's 5 Finger ($99) - shorter runs.  These are your barefoot-like minimalist shoes, are very light, but require a good bit of working up to.  I would not recommend that a new runner begin here.  I did many a walk and treadmill 5 minute run before I even took these out for 3.1 miles.

Mizuno Wave Rider 19 ($119) - another top-notch neutral sneaker

The general guidelines for swapping out shoes is every 300-400 miles.  If you're using a couple of different pairs, you can put off purchases a bit longer.  (For me, I tend to add a new pair, and drop a pair, with every training cycle .. spring, summer, fall, winter .. but I am now running ~100 miles per month.  You may not need to swap out so frequently as a new runner.  Other factors will impact wear and tear too .. such as extra weight, and whether or not you wear out the shoe unevenly in one particular way.  I am notorious for poking a toe through the top of the mesh fabric in my sneakers.  That's usually when they become the rain pair.

A new shoe also needs to be eased into your routine..  Break a new pair in on a few shorter runs first, and never use a new sneaker on race day.  NOTHING NEW ON RACE DAY should be ingrained into the brain!  And that very much includes sneakers.

There are other types of specialty sneakers: sneakers for trails, sneakers for triathlons, racers, track shoes, etc.  I have not tried any of these, so I will have to leave you to explore them on your own.  I have been curious about adding a racer to my collection.  To run long distance, as I mentioned, I typically size up to a size 8 from a size 7 or 7.5 in other shoes.  Wondering if it makes sense to use my size 8 long-distance sneakers for the likes of 5K races.  I still have not pulled the trigger, though, but will certainly blog about it when I do!  It might be that I use my Vibrams for the short distances; still testing that out during practices.

And that's everything I know about sneakers. :)