How To Buy the Right Running Shoes
Consider how often you run and for how long.
It is important to consider how often you run, as in times per week,
and how long each run is, as in minutes per run. Do not make the
mistake of only considering what you are doing now, but also consider
how often and long your runs will be in 4 months. In other words,
if you are planning on adding more mileage in the next few months,
you need to take that into consideration when buying your running
shoes.
Most runners will fall into one of two categories:
You run no more than 30 minutes per day, no more than 3 days per
week. If that's the case, a regular pair of sneakers should be fine
for you, especially if you are just starting out. You probably don't
need to buy new shoes unless you want to. In fact, what you have
now is probably fine, so go run! However, if you have been running
for a year (or more) or find yourself having trouble with injuries
(shin splints, IT band, knee pain), you may want to go ahead and
buy a good pair of running shoes.
You run no less than 30 minutes per day, 3 or more times per week.
If you are running this often and this long, it is imperative that
you have the right shoes for your foot type.
Now that you know if you need to buy running shoes, continue on
to find out what type of foot you have.
1. Consider how often you run and for how long.
2. Are your feet flat?
3. Are your feet high-arched?
4. Do you have normal feet?
5. Consider What Kind Of Running You Do.
6. Go To Your Local Running Store.
Are
your feet flat?
There are two ways to tell what kind of feet you have; you can
either just look at your foot (this is less accurate) or you can
look at your footprint (make a footprint by running on paper
with wet feet).
If you have a flat foot, your footprint will look like a foot
shaped blob. There will be almost no inward curve from your big
toe to your heel; there may even be an outward curve. If you are
just examining your foot, you'll notice that as you press your
hand down on the bottom of your foot that your foot flattens out
to conform to this new surface.
If you have a flat foot you are probably an overpronator. This
is the most common of the three types of feet. All this means is
that when you run your feet roll inwards. You will probably need
a shoe that will maintain stability for you.
Are your feet high-arched?
By either examining your foot or using the footprint test,
determine if you have a high arch. If you know you have a flat
foot, then you can skip this step.
If you have a high arch, your footprint will curve decidedly
inward, making the middle of your foot look very skinny. If you
are just examining your foot instead of your footprint, you will
notice a high and definite arch on your foot. If you push your
hand against the bottom of your foot, your foot will not succumb
to the pressure easily; the arch will probably remain rigid and
may never touch your hand at all.
If this is the case, you may supinate. Supination, or
underpronating, is when your feet roll outwards as you run. This
is the least common of the three types. You need to look for
flexible shoes with a soft midsole to act as shock absorbers for
your body.
Do you have normal feet?
If you've examined your foot or used the footprint test and were
unable to determine if you have a high arch or a flat foot, you
may have a normal foot. (Really, it should be called neutral,
because it's not actually the most common type.)
If your foot is normal, when you look at it, you won't notice a
particularly high or low arch. If you use the footprint test,
probably the best way to tell for this particular type of foot,
you'll see the classic "footprint in the sand" footprint. There
will be a noticeable curve inward, but not by more than 3/4 of
an inch at it's greatest part.
If you have normal feet, you can choose from a wide variety of
shoes including shoes made for normal feet, shoes made for
slightly flatfooted feet, or shoes made for slightly high-arched
feet.
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