Anyone recommend a decent pair of trainers for jogging?

[rich888]

OK then, am pretty fit, have been going to the gym for years and use dumb-bells at home as well as a Sole E95 elliptical cross-trainer which I've been using for several months now which is working wonders on the legs (especially when ramped up to level 12 for 20 or 30 minutes), but now have a new problem which is my 5 year old lad who is learning to ride a bike, he's now progressed from the wobbly falling off phase on the back garden, to being pretty stable on his wheels and is getting faster by the day, so yesterday marked the maiden ride on the pavement with me running alongside him to ensure he didn't deviate too much from his chosen route and onto the road, and credit due to him, he excelled himself by remaining not only on the pavement but also on the bike so no plasters needed.

Now at this point I should mention that this run was announced at very short-notice by the wife, so put my shoes on and off we went, then I promptly stood on a stone about 1/4 mile up the road whilst running alongside my lad and am now limping around with a very sore bruise on the ball of my foot!!!

So wonder what trainers are recommended for jogging nowadays that would absorb the majority of bumps and stones encountered on such a run which I estimate to be about one mile in length, perhaps two or three times a week. I'm not interested in designer labels, just after an affordable and decent quality pair of trainers for jogging alongside my lad without killing my feet or my joints, so can any hardened joggers on here offer any advice on what trainers to buy and where to buy from because this jogging lark is all new to me?

Cheers in advance

[Hoofy]

In my experience, buy any decent brand and you should be fine. (Reebok, Nike, Asics, Adidas etc.)

[MrBarry123]

Hoofy said:

In my experience, buy any decent brand and you should be fine. (Reebok, Nike, Asics, Adidas etc.)

Yep.

I have a pair of Nike Pegasus 32 and they seem to be doing a fine job at the moment for what is pretty much entirely running.

[gifdy]

I bought a pair yesterday. The shop ( Alton Sports ) had a treadmill and let me try on pretty much every show they had before buying. I was surprised what a difference there was between some of them. Anyway - it didn't cost any extra and I found a pair I felt really comfortable in. They also checked whether I was over pronating and needed trainers with additional support. He called it a structured trainer or something. I would recommend this rather than buying blind off the interweb, the prices weren't much different.

[Pieman68]

gifdy said:

I bought a pair yesterday. The shop ( Alton Sports ) had a treadmill and let me try on pretty much every show they had before buying. I was surprised what a difference there was between some of them. Anyway - it didn't cost any extra and I found a pair I felt really comfortable in. They also checked whether I was over pronating and needed trainers with additional support. He called it a structured trainer or something. I would recommend this rather than buying blind off the interweb, the prices weren't much different.

Close - stability shoes for the over pronator. I know as I have to use the most supported ones they have - The Brooks Beast

Definitely get a gait analysis. I had no idea how wrong I was going with major ankle issues and leg pains leading to Dr prescribed 3 x 600mg ibuprofen a day just because of general pain. 1 visit to the podiatrist and I was given orthotic insoles and bought stability trainers. Nearly 2 years off the painkillers now and doing my first half marathon on Sunday!!

[boyse7en]

If it really is only a mile three times a week, then you could run it in pretty much anything trainer shaped. Lidl's running shoes for £7.99 will do the job, or whatever feels comfy in sports direct.
You're not going to do enough distance to need to know whether you are over-pronating or not.

[Challo]

Pieman68 said:

gifdy said:

I bought a pair yesterday. The shop ( Alton Sports ) had a treadmill and let me try on pretty much every show they had before buying. I was surprised what a difference there was between some of them. Anyway - it didn't cost any extra and I found a pair I felt really comfortable in. They also checked whether I was over pronating and needed trainers with additional support. He called it a structured trainer or something. I would recommend this rather than buying blind off the interweb, the prices weren't much different.

Close - stability shoes for the over pronator. I know as I have to use the most supported ones they have - The Brooks Beast

Definitely get a gait analysis. I had no idea how wrong I was going with major ankle issues and leg pains leading to Dr prescribed 3 x 600mg ibuprofen a day just because of general pain. 1 visit to the podiatrist and I was given orthotic insoles and bought stability trainers. Nearly 2 years off the painkillers now and doing my first half marathon on Sunday!!

^^^Defo get a gait analysis done. Even if you doing a few miles now you might increase and its worth while getting the right trainers for your feet. You don't have to spend top dollar plenty of places have sales and a decent pair of last years trainers can be had for around £50.

My girlfriend started running 5k's and was running in Nike Free4 and the guy said they where to worst trainers she could have for her running style. Changed to Adidas boost and feel 100% better, no pain and less soreness.

[boyse7en]

Challo said:

^^^Defo get a gait analysis done. Even if you doing a few miles now you might increase and its worth while getting the right trainers for your feet. You don't have to spend top dollar plenty of places have sales and a decent pair of last years trainers can be had for around £50.

My girlfriend started running 5k's and was running in Nike Free4 and the guy said they where to worst trainers she could have for her running style. Changed to Adidas boost and feel 100% better, no pain and less soreness.

I agree that, should he carry on and increase his running, he should get an analysis done and buy suitable running shoes. But it is a bit over the top for running alongside a cycling five year old a few times a week.

[gifdy]

boyse7en said:

Challo said:

^^^Defo get a gait analysis done. Even if you doing a few miles now you might increase and its worth while getting the right trainers for your feet. You don't have to spend top dollar plenty of places have sales and a decent pair of last years trainers can be had for around £50.

My girlfriend started running 5k's and was running in Nike Free4 and the guy said they where to worst trainers she could have for her running style. Changed to Adidas boost and feel 100% better, no pain and less soreness.

I agree that, should he carry on and increase his running, he should get an analysis done and buy suitable running shoes. But it is a bit over the top for running alongside a cycling five year old a few times a week.

Given that he goes to the gym he will already have basic trainers & Lidl trainers are unlikely to be any improvement. If he wants additional cushioning from the stones then best bet is to try a bunch of shoes to see what is comfortable, no ? The gait analysis is (normally) free, so why not ?

I tried the Adidas boost and confirm there is a lot of cushioning although they were too narrow for me

[Hoofy]

Certainly, the cheap brands like Lidl and Tesco's F&F are not going to be ideal. Well, they're probably perfect for doing heavy squats as there's no compression so it feels like you're standing in barefeet.

[rich888]

Hey, just wanted to say thank you to everyone that's replied and the information provided has been very useful indeed.

I guessed that the standard pair of Adidas trainers I use in the gym probably wouldn't be the right sort to use for jogging, and like you say, absorbing bumps whilst running on the road or pavement is rather important long term.

I've never heard of gait analysis so will need to ask in store to find out what this is, and if the assistant gives me a blank look think I will try somewhere else. I have a high instep so need to buy the right sort of trainers before I end up breaking something.

[Foliage]

Gait analysis is worth it,

BUT a cheap pair of asics (about £30) should do the job if its only 1 mile 3 times a week.

Try decathlon (its a sports shop) if you have one local.

[Hoofy]

rich888 said:

Hey, just wanted to say thank you to everyone that's replied and the information provided has been very useful indeed.

I guessed that the standard pair of Adidas trainers I use in the gym probably wouldn't be the right sort to use for jogging, and like you say, absorbing bumps whilst running on the road or pavement is rather important long term.

I've never heard of gait analysis so will need to ask in store to find out what this is, and if the assistant gives me a blank look think I will try somewhere else. I have a high instep so need to buy the right sort of trainers before I end up breaking something.

Are we talking Adidas trainers or the hipster retro bullst? The former will be decent enough for any running or training (I paid £20 for some general Adidas fitness trainers and you can tell the difference between them and F&F or Matalan fashion trainers). The latter will be great for deadlifts and squats.

[Challo]

rich888 said:

Hey, just wanted to say thank you to everyone that's replied and the information provided has been very useful indeed.

I guessed that the standard pair of Adidas trainers I use in the gym probably wouldn't be the right sort to use for jogging, and like you say, absorbing bumps whilst running on the road or pavement is rather important long term.

I've never heard of gait analysis so will need to ask in store to find out what this is, and if the assistant gives me a blank look think I will try somewhere else. I have a high instep so need to buy the right sort of trainers before I end up breaking something.

Not sure where you are based but most proper running stores do gait analysis. In reality they get you to run on a treadmill and check how you run, how your feet impact the treadmill, and that can determine what type of trainer you might need,

It's done for free and you not tied into buying trainers from them but gives you good ideas on what you should look for if you want to get new trainers.
My girlfriend used these guys and very helpful and have stores all over the UK. http://www.sweatshop.co.uk/Stores/All

[MC Bodge]

There is a lot is pseudo-science about "gait".

Run properly with strong lower legs and feet and there is actually no need for most of the support/motion control "technology" in trainers.

Try to avoid landing heavily on your heels -easier in shoes with lower heels (or lower heel to toe drop height).

Puma do some very good, lightweight, low drop running shoes.

[sawman]

MC Bodge said:

There is a lot is pseudo-science about "gait".

Run properly with strong lower legs and feet and there is actually no need for most of the support/motion control "technology" in trainers.

Try to avoid landing heavily on your heels -easier in shoes with lower heels (or lower heel to toe drop height).

Puma do some very good, lightweight, low drop running shoes.

except that in some folks flat shoes can irritate the achilles tendon/calf complex. You need to have good ankle (achilles flexibility for these) for casual joggists, a runner with heel ramp and toe spring will be more forgiving

[MC Bodge]

sawman said:

MC Bodge said:

There is a lot is pseudo-science about "gait".

Run properly with strong lower legs and feet and there is actually no need for most of the support/motion control "technology" in trainers.

Try to avoid landing heavily on your heels -easier in shoes with lower heels (or lower heel to toe drop height).

Puma do some very good, lightweight, low drop running shoes.

except that in some folks flat shoes can irritate the achilles tendon/calf complex. You need to have good ankle (achilles flexibility for these) for casual joggists, a runner with heel ramp and toe spring will be more forgiving

Indeed, I said "lower", not flat. Building up the distance and effort carefully and conditioning the legs will pay off rather than increasing too quickly with a heavy heel strike leading to long term injury.

[lemmingjames]

Two schools of thought, some say go down the gait analysised route and subsequent trainer, some say minimalist/lower drop.

Have a read up about both and decide. Im in the minimalist camp and like my 0mm drop Saucony's but then they do have a chunky bit of rubber underneath them (Virrata 2's) to absorb the impact

[Tiggsy]

gait testing, air pockets in heels - all a marketing dream.

humans can run without it - otherwise we'd not be here.

if you get pain when you run its not your feet...its how you run or your Nike Air MAx 200 Gel Support blah blah!

[sawman]

thats a fair point, but your average cave man did not run about on concrete, tarmacadam or packed cinder and gravel, neither did he wear leather soled oxfords to the office where he sat in his office all day - he was out in the woods chasing sabretooth tigers or tending his crops all the time

The modern human foot is not so well prepared for running in todays world and so shoes are helpful, to reduce stresses and injury