New Running Shoes

pictured from left to right: waterproof gortex Salomon trail running shoes, XA Pro 3D Salomon trail running shoes, old Brooks running shoes.

I finally broke down and bought myself a pair of running shoes that was direly needed. The last pair I bought in 2006 and used them in the summer to train for the marathon occassionally and now I use them for the gym. The pair I have been running in is from the years ago (maybe even the late 90s and I did not even buy them myself). They were a gift from my mom.

So considering how miserly I had been with my need for good running shoes and how important it is for me to have proper footwear due to my balance, I broke down and bought myself a pair. They were half off on the REI outlet. While this pair was still a little steep considering my thriftyness, in the description the shoe offered the best stability and balance for trail running which is a very crucial consideration for me.

They are totally worth the extra splurge! I totally love them and my balance does so well with them that I have been tempted to wear them around and on walks as well. I was able to run up the stairs at the gym and for a new shoe, it has offered me the most immediate adjustment to my balance. Other shoes it take some wearing them to get used to and I feel more steady the longer I have been wearing them. These were instant gratification however!

A bonus of these shoes is that they don't have laces which need to be tied! All other shoes I was constantly needing to tie my shoe after walking around them for a short period of time. In the marathon I even had a teammate tie my shoes for me as my hands were too weak to efficiently make a knot that was not going to come undone. Harley taught me to start tying my shoes in double knots which did the trick but later were a bother to get off and sometimes the knot would not come out requiring me to sit and fiddle with the shoelaces for 5-10 minutes. These are a dream! No tying is necessary! Like my water shoes, a fastener tightens the laces.

The pair with red on them are the waterproof ones for rainy winter days. I got them for a real steal about a year and a half ago. One of the shoes is missing the insole but now that I have the same brand and size shoe for the summer it is easy to just switch them out when the time comes. The shoes in the middle are my warm weather running shoes which I just bought. The yellow ones (Brooks) are the ancient shoes I have been using for years which have holes in them.

The brand is Salomon, the company which is known for making nordic ski boots. Back in my adolescence days when I was a skier, I was very pleased with the nordic equipment they made. I am equally and pleasantly satisfied with their running shoes. I have also purchased this brand for my summer and winter hiking boots which needed to be replaced. The tread on my old shoes is severely worn which results in slips on rugged terrain and hills.