Any shoe that fits well will feel comfortable, but very often, finding this elusive unicorn of a shoe is a lot harder than it seems. Running shoes should be particularly comfortable, given the amount of time one ends up wearing them, so it is a good idea to put an extra bit of time into finding the right running shoes for you and your preferences, before committing to paying for them. The trade-off for spending less time on navigating the search will likely be a pair of shoes that either hurt or do not fit well or that hurt you.
Before heading into one of the Asics stores in AU, you need to know that your running style will affect what kind of shoes you should wear, so let’s think about how you wear your running shoes and for what purpose, to see what your best options might be.
Buy according to how you pronate
Some people prefer road running to off-road running, and while personal preference does play a part in how you run, the surfaces that you normally run on will also play a role in how you experience your run. Each surface requires a different shoe type, and no matter what shoe companies tell you, there is no such thing as a multi-purpose shoe. Your shoes should be custom-designed and purpose-chosen to help you navigate the terrain of your choice. Road running shoes are too flat and too smooth to safely be used in a trail running scenario, and trail running shoes will simply wear away if they are used on terrain as abrasive as tar. Either of these options is destructive in their way, so it is a much better option to rather get the right shoes for the job.
Pronation, or how your foot rotates when in motion, also plays a huge part in the shoes you should pick. Checking what your pronation type is, should be the first thing you do when you are looking to buy a new pair of running shoes, as so much depends on this.
How your foot rolls when you walk and run is going to affect the shape of the shoe you end up buying, as the shoes will have to offer you support, no matter what your foot decides to do. Different types of shoes are designed to support different types of pronation, and you must pick the right kind. A gait analysis, such as what is offered at Australian Asics stores, is the best and quickest way to determine what your pronation type is.
Keep the length of the shoe in mind
Even though you might believe that you know what your shoe size is, you might be surprised to find out that your shoe size changes when it comes to running shoes. This is because running causes your feet to swell and expand, so the more you run, the more space you will need in your shoes to accommodate this expansion. Allowing a bit of extra room in your shoes, in the form of a larger size, is a great idea to help you keep comfortable when running.
A well-fit running shoe will snugly hold the ankle, provide some sideways motion around the middle of the foot, and provide enough motion around the toes to encourage blood flow to the extremities. The old guideline of a thumb’s width along the edge of the toes remains a good principle to follow to this day.
What about the width?
Of course, width is also a consideration. People need to be accommodated around having narrower or wider feet, to prevent them from sliding around inside the shoe, which could lead to chafing and blisters or being pinched, respectively.
If your running shoes don’t fit well, you put yourself at risk of numb or tingling toes, which happens as a side effect of too much pressure on the toes, like when your shoes are too small. Other symptoms, like blisters and bruises, might also occur if your shoes fit poorly.
This should give you more than enough reason to try on the shoes you might consider buying before actually paying for them - knowing that they fit right will save you a lot of pain in the long run!
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