Any good shoe shop is likely to have walls and walls of training sneakers ranging from super cheap to eye-wateringly expensive in a rainbow assortment of colours. So how do you pick the right shoes? We’ve got a few pointers to help you make sense of it all:
1. Decide on your budget
Sometimes you could end up paying a lot just for the a particular brand, but generally you tend to get what you pay for. If you buy cheap $20 trainers, they are likely to not provide you with well cushioned support which could lead to injuries once you start regularly exercising in them.
Decide on how much you want to budget for and keep this in mind when you’re doing your research and once you’re in the shop.
2. What are you using your shoes for?
This is super important. If you’re going running, buy running shoes. If you’re running outdoors, buy running shoes with extra good support and grip. If you do dance classes, get shoes with less grip so that you can move freely without your shoes ‘digging in’ to the ground. If you’re doing a variety of activities, perhaps look at cross trainers. Think about what you’ll be doing in them most and buy accordingly.
Reminder: Casual/street shoes are not suitable for high impact activities and even though they may look cool, they aren’t designed as gym and sportswear.
3. Make sure they fit correctly
Comfort is important. If it doesn’t fit properly, you won’t want to spend much time on the treadmill in them and you may even get injured if your foot is slipping around inside your shoe or your toes are all scrunched together. Ideally, there should be around an index fingers’ width between the tip of your toe and the tip of the shoe when you’ve got your foot pushed back deep into the heel and your foot shouldn’t feel too restricted around the widest part.
Remember also that your feet swell when they get hot, and the last thing you want while you’re training is to be wearing shoes that feel too small!
Get your feet assessed and find out whether you have flat feet, ‘normal’ feet or high arches. If your foot soles are anything other than the ‘normal’ option, make sure you buy shoes to suit your feet or if you can’t find any you like, get some supportive inserts to replace the ones that come with your shoes.
4. Yes, the colour and style does matter!
There’s no better feeling than looking great in your new workout gear; if you get shoes that are a colour or style you really like, putting them on can help you feel more motivated to do your training!
Image / FreeDigitalPhotos.net – Stuart Miles