Shoes are a (Running) Girl's Best Friend

Let's talk shoes.....

... not cute or pretty shoes.....

                                                   .... but these ones.

When I first started to run the very first thing I bought even before a sports bra was a new pair of shoes.  I LOVE SHOES.  Like a lot of people, I have a tendency to measure my self by size and when it comes to something I wear, the smaller the better.  With shoes it doesn't matter if you gain or lose weight your feet usually don't change size.  I say usually because my feet grew a half size larger with each pregnancy.  I used to be a size 8 and now I'm a size 9.... and in running shoes an even harder thing to accept is I am a size 9 & 1/2.

Nonetheless if you don't wear proper shoes that fit correctly and provide good support running is going to hurt.  Even if its not your feet hurting, shoes that don't have correct support can cause knee or hip problems.  When I bought my first pair of shoes some random guy (the running expert at my local running store) watched me walk and said I pronate. Meaning I need shoes with support to correct my form.  If you  buy shoes from a running store, not a sports store, but a running store with staff trained to fit you properly you can be sure that the shoes you buy will provide you with the support you need.

I have been through 9 pairs of shoes since I started running.  I will be buying my 10th pair soon.  Although I love shoes, I would prefer to spend my money on pretty shoes rather than running shoes.  But for some reason I seem to be hard on running shoes even though I try not to wear my running shoes for anything other than running.  Most shoe companies say shoes will last for 800km, running stores say 500km but one doctor I talked to said it really depends on the individual.  I can honestly say that I do not have the mileage to justify 10 pairs of shoes in just over 2 years. 

When it comes to running shoes my feet prefer Nike's. All but one pair of shoes I own are Nike's.  I bought a pair of Mizuno's which were a size 10 and they had harder plastic piece on the soles which sounded like I was tap dancing.  The fit was fine but I wasn't really crazy about them.  I bought a pair of Nike's after those.  I'm not sure if I will stick with Nike's this time or switch to something else but I will try to buy a pretty pair.... and maybe a shirt to match.