When people say you should buy
proper shoes when you start running, listen to them. Please do. That is the
best advice I can give based on my such short training experience. Because if
you run with the wrong trainers you may screw you up. Badly. Hardly.
My first more considerable run (6
miles) was 2 Saturdays ago. It doesn’t look that big, but when you had never
run long distances before in your life, 9.6 km is a lot. I thought I was going
to die in the end. I even tried some sprints that of course didn’t work because
my body was not answering to my brain anymore. And as I said on the first post,
when I finished I had the most incredible feeling of fulfilment taking over me. But emotions aside, the problem was the following day, and the day after
that (and the other, and the other).
My knee was killing me. The right
one to be more precise. It felt that my leg muscles were all being pulled to
the inside, my hamstring, my calf. It was hurting a lot. So I totally gave up the idea of keeping using my gym training shoes. If I was going to take this
running story seriously, I would have to invest some money on it soon or later.
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| My knee-killer Nike. |
So I started to do some research.
Overpronation, underpronation, curvature. The words were scary and as much I tried
to learn by myself, finding a professional would be the wisest thing to do.
At Westfield Stratford there are many
sports specialized shops. I went to Nike Store first. The sales associate who helped
me was exceptionally nice and helpful. I told him I was just looking around and
would not buy straight away because I was just starting my research but he
insisted in doing the treadmill test to recommend to me the best options.
Not surprisingly, I have
overpronation on both legs: the way my lower legs move when my feet touch the ground
makes them roll inwards. Most people have low to medium overpronation because
is rare to find someone that runs in an Olympian perfect motion, so it is not
like I am a deformed extraterrestrial :-)
Anyway, according to the Nike guy, my
pain came after Saturday because regular gym trainers, as good and fancy as
they are, don’t offer the right support for runners – overpronators or not.
In my case I needed even more cushioning (provided by stability shoes) than
basic neutral running trainers.
After filming me running for a
couple of seconds in the treadmill (humiliating, I know) wearing 3 different
models, he recommended me the Nike Lunareclipse 4 (£110) http://store.nike.com/gb/en_gb/pd/lunareclipse-4-running-shoe/pid-874363/pgid-874362.
It felt strange, the sole was thick, solid, but he said that was a normal
feeling when you start using cushioned shoes.
As I wanted a second opinion, I
went to Sweatshop. And OMG, how amazing is that store? They have absolutely
everything for running. Despite the painful prices (even during sale), the
selection and variety were overwhelming.
I explained the situation to the
sales assistant again and he asked if I could spend around 20 minutes to try
some options. He molded a Sweatshop innersole to my foot and started the tests.
At Sweatshop they have a lot of equipment to analyze the way you walk. They
scan your feet, measure your lower leg, the way you walk, and everything is
explained step-by-step. It actually took me more than half an hour for the
entire process.
Then he selected some pairs – and
yes, my overpronation was confirmed – and I tried 5 different styles. Some of
them “solved” my overpronation problem better than others. Unfortunately, in
the end the only two that were most adequate to me I totally HATED the colour.
It was a Mizuno and a New Balance that, personally, I found horrible. Terrible
colours, shape, arght.
I promised myself that I was not
going to take a rushed decision and end up with a pair of trainers that I
didn’t have any satisfaction in using it. I know it sounds superficial and
shallow, but I wouldn’t spend almost £100 in a pair of shoes that I didn’t fully
love. It was a massive load of money.
Before leaving, he tried to sell the £45
pair of insoles (What? Are they not for free?), which I liked but considering I
still had to buy very expensive trainers, extra £45 were completely out of the table,
unfortunately.
I felt really bad about leaving the
store with empty hands after spending more than 30 minutes of that guy’s time,
but sticking to my budget was a priority. I was frustrated, of course. But when
I went home I kept looking, and looking, and looking, until I found heaven.
 | |
|
Wiggle is a paradise for cyclers
and runners. It is a website that has everything you find in the best stores
for a third of the price. The same Asics Kayano20 I felt in love at Sweatshop and they
didn’t have my size was £140 at the store and £99 at Wiggle. So I went for it.
Deep. Happy. I got the trainers, a winter running jacket, leggings – the ones I
destroyed at the fence that I mentioned on the first post, a thermal…
everything for a little bit more than I would have paid just for the shoes hours
before.
I know that when you go to a shop
the extra money you pay for a product includes a lot of extras. I would never
be able to buy the perfect shoe online if I haven’t done the tests before. You
pay for the super trained specialist that helps you to discover how is your
running style, you pay for the convenience of leaving with your products on
hand… but for students on a short - non-existent - budget, sites like Wiggle
are the salvation.
Even paying for free regular
delivery my products arrived just 2 days after the order. The feeling of
putting my new shoes filled me with joy. That joy you feel when you are certain
you bought something really great (at least for you!). Yes, like the sales guy
from Nike said, the extra support and cushioning would feel weird for a while
and even hurt on the first kilometers, but I ran my 7 miles last weekend and it
couldn’t be better.
So if you decide to start running,
save some of your pub/beer money and invest in really good quality shoes. Your
knees – and Achilles, and calves, and tights, and hamstrings – will be
thankful.
P.S.: Pictures all taken from Google because my shoes are already dirty and muddy (damn British weather!).
Groundfloor, E20 1ES
0844 332 5656
Groundfloor, E20 1ES
020 8519 2252
Wiggle.co.uk
Wi
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