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The average person takes 1,200 to 1,400 steps each mile they walk or run. In other words, there’s a lot of stress on your body when you’re training or exercising, so the right pair of shoes can make all the difference.
It all starts with the proper style of shoe and the pronation of your foot. Pronation is the movement of your foot when you walk or run.
“There is a reason people develop knee pain or shin splints,” says Eric Fruth, co-owner and grassroots coordinator for the Columbus Running Company. “The goal with a good pair of shoes is to complement your foot and body type, and work with your biomechanics to make you more efficient and reduce injury risk.”
Your foot either overpronates, meaning the foot rolls inward when you move, or overpronates, meaning the ankle doesn’t roll inward enough and the foot rolls outward as a result.
A running shoe is designed for runners to be up on their toes while moving, while the walking shoe provides a little more stability.
“Brands will normally make a couple of different levels of shoes, some priced for everyday use
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and others for a quick sale,” Fruth says. “Teams will put their best people on the premier product with the highest level of expertise producing the shoe.”
Fruth recommends charting your mileage to better track when it’s time to replace the shoe. Typically, shoes are designed to last 300-500 miles. After that, time on your feet starts to compress everything down and flatten the cushion and support of the shoe.
And while finding the right pair of shoes is half the battle, Fruth is keen on doing all the extra steps when starting to walk or run, and that begins with stretching. Before a run, do dynamic stretching such as high knees and lunges to get warmed up; after is when normal static stretching can take place.
“The majority of people are going to ignore the beginning and the end and just do the run without any of the extra work,” Fruth says. “The extra credit assignments are going to increase your distance, and you are going to have a much better experience doing that if you do all the little things along the way.”
Rocco Falleti is an editor. Feedback welcome at rfalleti@cityscenecolumbus.com.
