I'm a shoe whore.
In my closet, I currently have:
4 pairs of Brooks Adrenaline GTS 6 (two brand new, one in-use, one "dead")
1 pair of Brooks Adrenaline Trail Shoes
1 pair of Brooks Adrenaline GTS 7 (gave me lateral knee pain, I don't wear them.)
1 pair of Brooks Adrenaline GTS 8 (these are okay, but the fit isn't quite right)
1 pair of Brooks Trance (thanks Mike Hayden)
1 pair of Brooks Axiom (for racing)
1 pair of Asics Gel Evolution (because my PT recommended them)
Most of these shoes are fairly new, with less than 50 miles on them. This is because I have been in search of the "perfect" shoe ever since my GTS 6 was discontinued, and it takes about 50 miles to determine if a shoe will work or not (once you decided you liked it enough in the store to buy it). I track shoe mileage in my training log, so I know exactly how much each has been used. The typical life of a shoe is 300-500 miles. But mine typically only get 250 before they lose their support.
Someone recommended that I try Nike shoes, because they run narrower than most. My problem with the new Adrenaline GTS 8 is that the fit is sloppy, particularly in the heel cup. Additionally, it has far too much cushion, like running on a mattress. I like the shoe enough that I am going to continue to wear it, it's just that it's not quite right.
I had no intention of buying new shoes anytime soon because I have plenty! But I passed by a running store yesterday and could not resist the urge to just try a pair of Nikes, or even another pair that the store recommended. The guy at the store pulled out a pair of Nike Air Zoom Structure Triax +11.
I put them on, and they fit like a glove! I ran up and down the block while the guy at the store watched. He said that I looked well supported in them. They felt amazing. The fit was perfect. The ride was smooth and responsive, with just the right amount of cushion. I had no pain in my feet or legs. As it turns out, these shoes are 0.3 ounces lighter than the Brooks Adrenaline, and every little bit adds up over a long distance, such as 26.2 miles. In other words, these shoes have the potential to make me go a little bit faster.
This morning, I took them to the gym for a treadmill run. My plan was just to test them out and break them in for 2-3 miles, and then switch the the Brooks Adrenaline. Even with the Brooks Adrenaline GTS 6, I have to do a few short runs to break them in and prevent blisters the first few times. Well, to my surprise, I just didn't want to take these babies off my feet. I loved how they felt. I ended up running 8 pain-free miles. No chafing, blisters, or anything. I can't even do that with my beloved GTS 6 on the first run! I even did some 100m strides (per my training program), accelerating to a 7:00 pace, and the shoes were very responsive and supportive.
I'm in love! When you run as many miles as I do, a good running shoe makes all the difference in the world. So, I would rather have a closet full of barely-used shoes than a bunch of injuries and/or uncomfortable runs. I do, however, plan on using all my Brooks Adrenalines, including the GTS 8. But as part of a rotation with my new Nikes.
Training shoes (and race shoes) has always been an issue for me. In my early says I trained and raced in Asics GT-2000s.. They use to be 2100, 2110 and so on all theway up to 2170 and they were all great and then Asics decided to just call them all 2000s... I have at this point found Saucony Kinvara and used them as race shoes for 6 years (one pair and it has all three of my sub 2:55:00 marathons) but when Asics changed to just call them all GT-2000 they were crap. Less than 100 miles. GONE... I wasn't happy
ReplyDeleteThis past summer I was looking for a shoe that did me better for mileage and so somone recommended I go from Saucony Guide to Saucony Omni. wore them once and did an 11 mile run in them. GARBAGE. I was back at the store like this shoe sucks. I felt like I had 5 lb. weight on my feet and while that might sound good I felt like it was an injury waiting to happen and I've had too many of those so I turned them in. They were so nice about it but I felt awful. I hate mt be the whiny bitchy customer. I'm like you're not gonna get a full refund so whatever the difference is I'll pay and they're like NO that's not how it works, etc. etc.
I do feel like I need to find a better training shoe than Saucony Guide though. they give me 450 miles in the winter and 200 miles in the summer months.