Common Questions: "When do I need new running shoes?"

Your running shoes are looking ragged, and they have holes in them. You love these shoes, though. You’ve hiked in them. You ran a marathon in them (or not). You’ two have been through a lot together! Should you get a new pair?

The answer might be no! If you LOVE your shoes, and you aren’t developing new aches or pains, you can actually keep your old, beat-up shoes! That’s my opinion at least but here are examples of some very elite runners that keep their shoes for years and have no problems. So if you’re trying to save a little cash, and you think you’re fine as far as discomfort goes - keep the shoes!

But what is commonly recommended?

Changing your shoes every 300-500 miles is going to be the most common recommendation that you will hear. If you are running around 20 miles/week, this is going to occur within 4-6 months. To keep track of miles, you can use a notebook, a watch like a Garmin, or different apps. Strava is my favorite running app.

If you aren’t keeping track of mileage, you might want to look at things like wear and tear on the shoe.

  • Holes in the upper (“pretty part” of the shoe), as mentioned, would be a sign that it might be time to switch things out if you aren’t in love with your current pair.

  • Look at the midsole of the shoe (the cushion/bottom, sometimes foam-like part). Are there a lot of wrinkles in it? This might be a sign that the support is decreasing.

Definitely change your shoes if you know you are having problems with them. Even if you recently bought them (sorry!). You should give new shoes a try. Sometimes it can take up to a month to decide if you really like the shoes. It may not be causing any pain, but form and fit are important variables that you need to also like if you are going to keep a pair of shoes. Personally, I have returned/discontinued shoes after 2 weeks when I experience things like numbness in my toes or when I think it’s squeezing my foot a little too much in certain areas. It depends on how “picky” you are. I’m the pickiest, but it works for me.

So… are you going to keep your old is it time for new?

Email or call us if you need to talk this one through with a professional!