Shoe Saga

Not to completely understate it, but shoes are very important to a marathon walker. Duh. During the course of a normal TnT season, a person will usually go through two pairs of shoes. Most good quality walking shoes have about 300 miles of walking in them. After that, they may still look to be in good shape but they lose their supportive qualities and can negatively affect your performance and/or cause injury.

Shoe #1 : I got my first pair at Movin' Shoes. They are Asics Gel-Cumulous'. I tried on a few other types of shoes but this one seemed to be the one that supported my feet the best. I bought them at a 8-1/2 size which is a 1/2 size smaller than I usually buy my shoes. The guy helping me out swore up and down that they were big enough. I did have a bit of extra toe room but they were a little tighter at the widest part of my foot than I was used to. For the most part, they have served me well. When I started getting to the longer mileage, I would get a small blister on the tip of my "index" toe. My thought was that as my feet swelled, the tip of my toe was rubbing on the end of my shoe. This is a good solid shoe for me and it has served me well. Not perfect but serviceable. I used them on Tuesday nights training and it is obvious that they are played out. Step in...




Shoe #2: Picked up the ole' Asics Gel Nimbus VIII's. I decided to go up a 1/2 size to a 9, which is my "normal" size. They were definitely roomier and felt pretty good in the store. I used them twice during shorter mileage mid-week training and they felt good. Then the train walk... Blister city. Blogged about it and everything. Dealt with the blister and tried them one more time during short mileage. No go. My foot was sliding around in them. They had to go. So onto...







Shoe #3: Brooks Radius 7's in an 8-1/2. Picked them up this last Thursday. Didn't get a chance to train in them Thursday night and wore them today. Guess what, had to take them back today. They have some stitching right at the widest part of my foot and it felt too snug. I loosened up the laces, but that seemed counter-productive. Took them back in today to SDRI and swapped them out for...




Shoe #4: These are Brook's Glycerin 5's. I tried several more pairs on but these were the ones that were wide enough up front so that it didn't feel tight. Also no problematic stitching along the front squeezing my feet. Baptism by fire tomorrow with them as we are doing a 14-miler. I'm so glad I paid the extra $25 at SDRI for the membership. It allowed me to refine my shoe selection until I think I finally got something that is going to work well.