School me on running shoes

[Fritzo]

I'm been hitting the gym hard the last few months and the soles my Adidas running shoes started to wear on the outer heals, making them a bit unstable on the treadmill. When I was in high school the doctor said I would need special shoe inserts if I wanted to play sports because I had short heels and pronation. This popped back into my head when I decided to get some new shoes, so I went over to a local running shop and forked over $40 for a foot analysis. They did all this crazy stuff where I had to step barefoot into some foam, they stretched my toes back and forth, bent my foot in half, made me crouch with my hand on my knee, stand on one leg, etc. They ran some kind of analysis and then gave me a list of shoes to go with.


I'm think I'm going to go with the Brooks Adrenaline GTS 20 or 21s, but there's at $40 price difference between the two. They also recommended Asics Pulse 11s, but because I have fairly large big toes they said the Brooks toe box might be more accomodating.

Anyone know anything about running shoes? I've never heard of Brooks before but they were really praising the brand. Asics I've seen in dept stores but assumed they were just like New Balance or Fila.

 

[shortylickens]

I've always found Asics to be more comfortable, I have very wide feet.

 

[deadlyapp]

Top running shoes really are Brooks, Saucony, Mizuno, and Asics. Nike, New Balance, and others have good running shoes as well, but you'll probably find most professional runners use one of the first sets of brands. All four have excellent range of support shoes (which is what the Adrenaline is).

To look at other brands, try the Asics Gel Kayano, the Saucony Guide, and Mizuno Wave Horizon, which should all be very similar shoes to the Adrenaline.

There is really no major difference between the 20 and 21 unless you have a preference in feel between the two. The 20 is just the last generation and being phased out. The shoe companies basically do minor refreshes every year to keep rotating inventory.

You could also try the Hoka Arahi's - they're an even softer feel (or used to be).

I've used the Brooks and Saucony and found both very good (my current shoe is a Saucony but I haven't run long distances in quite a while).

An edit, just to say, it's frustrating to see that they charged you so much for a foot analysis. Most good running stores can do this for free using a simple pressure analysis and then by watching you run just 20-50ft.

Also - you mention you've been hitting the gym. Just for awareness, most of the shoes you are looking at are going to have a soft and giving sole. This is definitely not what you want if you're doing any type of lifting (squats, deadlifts, presses) from a standing position. I definitely recommend having a more of a "gym" shoe with you to swap in and out with.

 

[Captante]

I've always found Asics to be more comfortable, I have very wide feet.

They're also extremely durable AND easy to find a deal on provided color isn't your primary concern.

Comes from not having a billion dollar advertising budget to pay for!

 

[Fritzo]

Top running shoes really are Brooks, Saucony, Mizuno, and Asics. Nike, New Balance, and others have good running shoes as well, but you'll probably find most professional runners use one of the first sets of brands. All four have excellent range of support shoes (which is what the Adrenaline is).

To look at other brands, try the Asics Gel Kayano, the Saucony Guide, and Mizuno Wave Horizon, which should all be very similar shoes to the Adrenaline.

There is really no major difference between the 20 and 21 unless you have a preference in feel between the two. The 20 is just the last generation and being phased out. The shoe companies basically do minor refreshes every year to keep rotating inventory.

You could also try the Hoka Arahi's - they're an even softer feel (or used to be).

I've used the Brooks and Saucony and found both very good (my current shoe is a Saucony but I haven't run long distances in quite a while).

An edit, just to say, it's frustrating to see that they charged you so much for a foot analysis. Most good running stores can do this for free using a simple pressure analysis and then by watching you run just 20-50ft.

Also - you mention you've been hitting the gym. Just for awareness, most of the shoes you are looking at are going to have a soft and giving sole. This is definitely not what you want if you're doing any type of lifting (squats, deadlifts, presses) from a standing position. I definitely recommend having a more of a "gym" shoe with you to swap in and out with.

It was like a medical-level analysis...they spent like 30 minutes giving me the worst foot massage of my life 😀 Probably had to pay for that equipment they ran the foam imprint through.

 

[Captante]

I'm think I'm going to go with the Brooks Adrenaline GTS 20 or 21s, but there's at $40 price difference between the two. They also recommended Asics Pulse 11s, but because I have fairly large big toes they said the Brooks toe box might be more accomodating.

Brooks makes very good running shoes as does New Balance ... also check out Saucony.

Note however there is no "best" running shoe any more than a "best" flavor of ice-cream. BY FAR the most important thing is get what fits your foot!

Again however Asics is my go-to for the posted reasons above plus they were already established making dedicated running shoes decades before Jim Fix made it trendy. Also when Converse All-Stars were considered to be "high-tech" athletic shoes!

Onitsuka Tiger (ASICS)

 

[Fritzo]

Top running shoes really are Brooks, Saucony, Mizuno, and Asics. Nike, New Balance, and others have good running shoes as well, but you'll probably find most professional runners use one of the first sets of brands. All four have excellent range of support shoes (which is what the Adrenaline is).

To look at other brands, try the Asics Gel Kayano, the Saucony Guide, and Mizuno Wave Horizon, which should all be very similar shoes to the Adrenaline.

There is really no major difference between the 20 and 21 unless you have a preference in feel between the two. The 20 is just the last generation and being phased out. The shoe companies basically do minor refreshes every year to keep rotating inventory.

You could also try the Hoka Arahi's - they're an even softer feel (or used to be).

I've used the Brooks and Saucony and found both very good (my current shoe is a Saucony but I haven't run long distances in quite a while).

An edit, just to say, it's frustrating to see that they charged you so much for a foot analysis. Most good running stores can do this for free using a simple pressure analysis and then by watching you run just 20-50ft.

Also - you mention you've been hitting the gym. Just for awareness, most of the shoes you are looking at are going to have a soft and giving sole. This is definitely not what you want if you're doing any type of lifting (squats, deadlifts, presses) from a standing position. I definitely recommend having a more of a "gym" shoe with you to swap in and out with.

Most of my weight training is bench based, but I do about 5 miles a day on the elliptical or treadmill and that's where the padding was suggested. They said the Brooks would accomodate my gait flaws rather than correct them, so that might be the way to go. The prices for the GTS 20's are on par with Amazon right now with sales going on (I think they're like $85 orig. $130), so thinking I'm going that way.

 

[Fritzo]

Brooks makes very good running shoes as does New Balance ... also check out Saucony.

Note however there is no "best" running shoe any more than a "best" flavor of ice-cream. BY FAR the most important thing is get what fits your foot!

Again however Asics is my go-to for the posted reasons above plus they were already established making dedicated running shoes decades before Jim Fix made it trendy. Also when Converse All-Stars were considered to be "high-tech" athletic shoes!

Onitsuka Tiger (ASICS)

Now you have me curious. Might have to get two pairs 😀

Also, I want to buy that squishy foam box I put my feet in. That stuff felt awesome!

 

[sdifox]

I have orthopaedic inserts, apparently my arches collapsed. That box is used for moulding inserts so I don't see why you need to do that for examination.

 

[Captante]

Now you have me curious. Might have to get two pairs 😀

Also, I want to buy that squishy foam box I put my feet in. That stuff felt awesome!

All kidding aside the most important thing is taking your time in the store (read: go alone) and trying on more than a few pairs with the identical socks on that you use for running.

Not sure its worth spending much money on a professional fitting unless your really serious though.

 

[Fritzo]

All kidding aside the most important thing is taking your time in the store (read: go alone) and trying on more than a few pairs with the identical socks on that you use for running.

Not sure its worth spending much money on a professional fitting unless your really serious though.

I think they were looking for stride and things that needed correcting, and I had a medical condition when I was younger requiring special shoes, so I was curious to revisit that to see if it was still a thing. This report says my hips are out of alignment, my feet are pronated, and I tend to squish my toes together instead of spreading them out. They actually sell shoes to correct these things or they can recommend shoes that accomodate my gait. I ended up going with the Brooks because of the larger toe box.