Shoes? Who cares about shoes? Part 1

Before now, running long distances was never something that I had considered. I once considered people who do run extreme distances as either loony, or sports junkies. I was once such a junkie, but the passage of many years and life changing events had chiseled away at my sense of adventure in that area. Before setting off into endurance runner training, the most that I had ever ran at one time was 5 miles. In my youth, I often trained for entering the military by running in nothing but combat boots. The end results were calloused and jacked up feet, and knees that often hurt, even when I was 17. I knew nothing about running shoes, the types, make or even the construction. I thought all tennis shoes were alike unless they had cleats. Little did I know how wrong I was.

When I start something new, the first questions that I always ask are: who, what, when, where, why and how? What are my goals? How do I get started and stay motivated? Who will be my mentor or model? When will I make time to do my thing? Where do I find more information? Why am I doing this? These aren't in any particular order, but they give me fuel and direction for my destination.

I knew that I wanted to run, but the heavier a person is the potentially harder it is on the body, and this would be true for me as well. Gaining the right information to resolve my impact issues remains very important. You don't learn to speak fluent Spanish by hanging out at French restaurants. So, the first thing I had to do was get around people who speak the language of running. With additional research and more questions, I've answered a majority of my concerns, and I now pound the pavement for 20-25 miles per week--I'm just slow for now.

Getting Fitted:

Believe it or not, there are people who enjoy running bare foot on city streets, pavement and anywhere that can be traveled by foot. If I step on a rock at the beach I get reduced to child like sobs and much drooling. So I say to those barefoot runs, 'more power to you.' I need a good pair of shoes, and that starts with getting fitted/evaluated for running shoes. The best thing about getting fitted for running shoes is that you get informed about how your feet move from heel to toe, and what you look like as you move. Most dedicated running shoe stores (Road Runner, Fit Right, Portland Running, etc.) have gone high tech by taking a video of your gait/pronation (the stride as you walk or run) and playing it back for you to see for analysis. Then, they have you stand on a mat to map your arch height. At the end, you should be handed a paper with the completed evaluation. The evaluation is free, and there isn't an obligation to buy shoes. If in doubt, then ask before you begin. With the evaluation in hand, you now have the information necessary to make an informed decision concerning the type of shoe that you should buy. Learn as much as possible how to identity shoe qualities without the help of a sales person. Nowadays, I always run into sales people who don't know the basics about shoe construction, but are quick to steer me to what's popular.

The Basics: Shoe Construction

The construction of every pair of shoes starts with a model called a Last. The Last is what gives a shoe its form: straight, semi-curved, or curved. If you were to have shoes made, the maker would use either a mold of your feet or a wooden model (Last) and add putty to it, so that he can account for any abnormalities of your feet. It's because of the Last that your new shoes would fit like a glove. For industrial shoemakers, there isn't any putty, and the Last is likely plastic or polymer. Industrial lasts are one size fits most. That's the reason why you have to try on several pair of shoes to get the right fit.




A shoe built from a straight(1) Last helps prevent over-pronation for severely low arches (the rolling of the foot into the inside of the ankle). A shoe with a semi-curved (2) Last is less robust than one with a straight Last, but still provides support for low arches. A shoe with a curved (3) Last is made for feet with high arches and have little to no arche support. A note to wearers of high heels: all high narrow heeled shoes are made from a curved Last. If your feet are flat or near flat, then your feet are likely killing you after wearing them for only 2-4 hrs. Note that the wider the heel, the straighter the Last used to make it, and it's therefore likely to be more comfortable. How do you I.D. the kind of Last used? Just look at the bottom of the shoe and draw an imaginary line from the heel to the toe. If the line seems curved, then it does, and that's the kind of Last that was used to make it.

There is much more to teach and learn on this subject, but this is the end to part 1. In part 2, I'll discuss the makings of a good running shoe. Most shoes can be broken down into 3 elements: the upper portion (the upper), the mid-sole, and the outer sole. All of the elements play a crucial role in determining what shoes are right for you, and why a greater portion of the running community frowns upon wearing Nikes. More on that later.

Cheers, and keep on running!