4th Day of Christmas = Running Shoes

Running Shoes. This is one of those topics that is impossible to please everyone because there are so many opinions and scientific studies. I'm not going to get into the specifics about this other than to say I think you need four pairs of shoes.

Thus, Four Pairs of Shoes on the Fourth Day of Christmas.

1. Trainers: these are your every day, volume and tempo running shoes. They should be sturdy with padding to prevent injury.  I like the Nike Structure Triax 14 that I bought last year. They solved my calf muscle problem that I could never really pinpoint a cause of. When choosing your trainer, this is where you get into the types of shoes for pronating and such. Below is a good video on the subject (found on Triathlete.com today!).

2. Race Shoes / Sprint workouts:  First off, let me tell you that I don't have a pair of race shoes like this, simply because I haven't moved them up the financial priority list (ie I don't have the money!). These are the shoes that are specially made for racing; they are light, easy to slip on in transition, and provide minimal padding. Not only are they race shoes, but you should probably run in them occassionally during the year, probably during sprint workouts or 2-3 race distance tempo runs each month so you know that your body "likes" them and they don't cause injury. Some of them look pretty cool, too.

3. Trail Shoes: I like trail running, and trail shoes can make a bit of a difference. If you think you'll be doing a fair amount of trail running in your training year, go ahead and get a pair of trail shoes instead of wearing your road shoes on the trails. I find that the biggest problem with the road shoes on the trail is that the tread gets eaten up pretty quickly. Stability and such is a long-second to simply getting my road shoes beat up too much.

4. Miscellaneous Shoes: All my used shoes turn into miscellaneous shoes. These are the beat-up shoes that are too worn down to run in but can provide basic shoe functions during other activities. The first option is gym shoes, like during a quick weight lifting routine. Or, they can be the shoes I throw on to ride bike with the kids. Some shoes turn into lawn-mowing shoes and get the green-grass-stain treatment. They could also be your first wet-wading shoes for fly-fishing or a pair of very light hikers, but I recommend some real water-shoes or hiking boots for those tasks. Don't forget that charities take shoes, too!