Run Like the Wind with the Right Shoes

running at sunrise

Although I’ve been an avid hiker for years, until recently I never really understood the appeal of running or jogging. With hiking you get to explore the outdoors, savor the fresh air and really absorb the beauty around you. I always thought running was just a really fast hike and I couldn’t understand how anyone could get the same pleasure and appreciation of their surroundings when they were moving past before they had a chance to register anything.

But when a friend decided to take up running and asked me to train with him I found that there is a whole lot more to running than people realize. And the first thing I learned was that hiking shoes do not make for comfortable or very effective running shoes! Now I also know that running shoes are not exactly cheap, so I headed over to www.discountrue.com to see what coupons were available before I started my shopping. They have a really great selection of Target coupons and promo codes, as well as offers at many other awesome shops, so you can really get what you want at an affordable price.

But when I headed into the store (I believe that with shoes it’s best to try them on in-store and then only head online to place your order), I found out that buying running shoes was not as easy as walking in and choosing a pair. Luckily, I had a sales clerk that was happy to help me by explaining how to go about finding the perfect shoe to suit both my feet and my running style.

First off, I had to choose between road-running, trail-running and cross-training shoes. The first two are pretty obvious but I found out that cross-training shoes are actually better for training in gyms or taking part in Crossfit activities because they give you more contact with the ground than a thick platform shoe does.

Then I had to determine my running style by examining the wear patterns on my most well used pair of running shoes. A wear pattern centralized to the small of my heel and the ball of my foot would mean I pronate when I run. If the wear patterns were along the inside edge of my shoe then it would mean that I OVERpronate when I run, and if the wear was along the outside of my shoe then it means I supinate when I run. Luckily for me I am prone to moderate overpronation which affects the majority of runners.

So I had plenty of running shoes to choose from and I could decide between running shoes that offered either stability or motion control. If I shown signs of mild overpronation, I would have needed stability shoes and if my overprononation was more severe then I would have only been able to search for running shoes that offer motion control.

After that, it was mostly about choosing a pair of shoes that gave me all or most of the features I was looking for. In other words, they needed to be made out of good quality material, they needed to fit in a way that made them feel like an extension of my foot and lastly, and most importantly, I had to find a pair that I liked the look and style of – and I did.

What you can learn from my adventure – running is not as easy as you might think, there’s a lot of preparation needed so make sure you research your individual needs and choose the best option!