What should I look for in a running shoe?

Enter any sportswear retail outlet and you will quickly feel overwhelmed by the variety, volume and ultimately choice of sporting footwear on display. Where do you start? Budget? Running shoes, trainers, cross-trainers, to cushion or not to cushion, in-built control or no in-built control, drop or no drop?
The global market place for running shoes is a huge growth sector, believed to be increasing by 7.5% per annum, with a global consumer spend of £10 million in 2018. Global brands are keen to get our attention and to do so there has been a burgeoning interest in footwear design, technology and material science as it relates to the running shoe. At present Nike are leading the way in market share. Who can forget Eluid Kipchoge’s superhuman sub-2 hour marathon in Austria last year. What was he wearing? Nike’s iconic Nike ZoomX VaporFly. As of October 2019, the fastest 5 marathons of all time have been credited to athletes wearing this Nike model.

Figure 1. The Nike ZoomX Vaporfly
Running shoe manufacturers are spending big on the technology behind these brands, and upgrading models on an annual basis, such as the Nike Pegasus or Skecher GoRun. For the run-of-the-mill consumer it is proving increasingly difficult to navigate the marketplace and understand what you need and what could help with your own personal performance goals. Running shoe appraisal is a science in itself.
So, is the hype around running shoe design and its impact on a runner’s performance supported by objective research evidence? There’s an awful lot of selective science going on, which means that footwear promoters will select the research that suits their marketing needs.
Ultimately, footwear choice is all about how the shoes help you manage the LOAD.
What do we mean by load? Running load is the capacity of the body to withstand the forces experienced during exercise or activity. Load has to be within the body’s tissue capacity or adverse stresses will be encountered which could lead to injury. Load capacity is determined by an individual’s biomechanics (primarily genetics), age, gender, muscle balance or condition, training intensity (distance per week as an example)/frequency/terrain, running style/gait. Load capacity is also influenced by injury history, medical co-morbidities, and performance goals – are you a couch to 5k starter, a doing-enough-to keep-fit runner, or a marathon elite?
Bearing this in mind, Matt Klein (https://www.doctorsofrunning.com/) explains that footwear choice is down to the ‘ride’. This term describes the runner’s comfort or experience of the run using the footwear. To date, there is no protocol to measure the ‘ride’ of a shoe in spite of some valiant attempts. A good ride for one person does not translate into a good ride for another, which upon reflection, is probably not surprising. Our genetics are unique, just like faces and fingerprints, the ride is dependent upon our muscle balance/deficits, skeletal structure, corresponding gait and biopsychosocial model which are difficult to measure empirically. The ride most probably, as discussed by Matt Klein, has something to do with the feedback we get from the shoe. The feedback being the nerve signals received centrally which then determine how our lower limbs function or react to changing demands and terrain, in order to help manage the loading of the tissues whilst maintaining efficiency of movement.
So, there are some runners, like Matt, who like to feel the surface as they run and prefer a more minimalist shoe, as opposed to Sunday-day runners like myself who prefer a running shoe with midfoot cushioning. We both feel that these footwear features enhance our personal performance in terms of speed and distance travelled. I just feel better at the end of a run using my neutral cushioned shoes. Physical trainers, sports podiatrists and physios who work with elite athletes often report that their client knows within minutes whether a shoe will work for them. There is a commonly held belief that this is because those elite athletes are more in tune with the feedback they receive back from the foot in the shoe. Us mere mortals will probably need to rack up a kilometer or so before we get a feel for how a new shoe is working for us.
So, think about what you need your running shoes to do.
Are you that couch to 5k runner who also needs to work on some body conditioning, are you a one-off charity marathon runner, or someone who is happy to settle in a middle distance over the long-term?
What’s your budget? If you’re not an elite then the advice is that you can spend £50-£100 on a pair of running shoes which will be equally as durable as the elite options (in terms of midfoot durability), and will work well in terms of ride and personal performance. Look at the sales. As mentioned, a lot of models are upgraded year on year but don’t necessarily perform any better than previous models. Consider last year’s model as an option.
Don’t go cheap. This is false economy, as the footwear is unlikely to retain durability over 200-500 miles (industry average), and you will not benefit from some of the running shoe technologies which may aid performance.
Do you like to feel the ground, or do you want midfoot cushioning? Shoe weight, upper material strength and comfort (important for those long distances), stabilising heel or forefoot flares for runners who need more control at the foot and ankle, sole drop, decoupling sole, reinforced carbon sole? I think the quick answer is, you need to try the shoe and get a feel for how your body responds. Be prepared for some poor choices. If you can find a retailer who is prepared for returns after a trial period then this is all the better.
On a final note, some more eminent sports therapists, physios and sports podiatrists than myself do not believe that a shoe needs to be broken in. If it’s not working for you then please don’t persevere, replace often in terms of that 200-500mile industry standard, and seek the advice of a knowledgeable podiatrist/therapist if you’re unclear on how to navigate the pitfalls of running shoe purchases.
For the Doctors of Running comprehensive reviews of commonly branded running shoes please go to their website https://www.doctorsofrunning.com/