With more and more of us exercising here is a guide to get you exercising in safe footwear.
Firstly, we have to take away the look of the footwear – The most important thing to look at is not the sole of the shoe, but the cushioning. When you notice creases in the midsole from it being constantly depressed, it is time to replace your shoes. Take a running shoe, generally we suggest that a shoe will last for 450-500 miles before the stability of the shoe goes, so for some the life of the shoe can be used up quite quickly. With a gym shoe/cross trainer a rough guideline to follow is that for every session the shoe is used (approx - 45 mins) this can be equated to 3 miles of use. You do the sums!
If your foot roles in or out excessively the support from the upper will diminish and can sometimes change the function of the shoe.
Body weight is also a factor when looking for the right shoe – Take the Nike Air Pegasus, this is a soft neutral shoe so for a heavier runner say over 80-85 kg (male) 65-70 kg (female) the life of the shoe will be less than something like the Mizuno Wave Creation – which is constructed more for this category. Be careful when choosing your shoes and watch out for clever marketing as an influence when choosing a new shoe
Take a pair of your old running shoes to your local specialist running retailer. There they will be able to look at the wear pattern in the cushioning and give you specialized help. An often-made mistake is to think you may supinate (roll out) when the outside of the heel is worn down, but don’t worry - this is usually normal. What matters is exactly where the wear is.