TRAINERS – the most important piece of running kit you will buy.
You want
to get the right pair and the best way to ensure you do is to go for a gait
analysis session.
A shop assistant who knows their stuff will watch you
run and then pick out the perfect trainers for you.
It’s widely
available now and is often free – but do big sports brands always get it
right?
Here, DAVID FIRTH rates the gait analysis experience at three
major stores and reviews the trainers he was recommended.
Nike Town, Oxford Street, central London, recommended Nike LunarEclipse+ 2
(£63.99, ):
The moment you walk under the imposing Nike swoosh and into this gleaming
palace of sporting and lifestyle paraphernalia, you immediately want to buy
everything.
So it’s a good job there are good people like Omar to keep you on the straight
and narrow. Having dragged myself away from the plinths showing off all
kinds of trainers that would break my feet if I ever considered running in
them, Omar ran me through my gait analysis.
He asked all the right questions – How often do you run? How regularly? What
trainers do you run in now? – before sticking me in a pair of neutral Nikes
and recording me doing my thing on the treadmill.
Looking back at the tape, he immediately clocked that I have a fairly neutral
running style but I overpronate on my left foot. He also commented on my
mid/forefoot landing, which he reckons assists with speed.
He thought I could probably get away with a neutral trainer but decided a shoe
with built-in stability would just be a safer bet given the slight
overpronation. Now, I admit I had preconceptions before I arrived and
suspected the staff would usher me towards the newest model in their
stability range – the ultra-light LunarGlide+ 4. But no. Omar straight away
pushed the LunarEclipse+ 2, an older model. When I mentioned the
LunarGlides, he said he thought the extreme lightness detracted from the
stability. I liked that honesty. He ordered both pairs in my size to try on
the treadmill and while both offered adequate support for my slightly
collapsing left ankle, the LunarEclipse+ 2s undeniably felt better from the
box. So that’s what I went for.
A few weeks on and several runs later I must say I’m pleased with them. It
feels as though they have cushioning in the perfect spot for my running
style – right on the ball of the foot. And these hug the feet far better
than the others on this list without ever feeling restrictive.
It’s not all good news. As far as stability trainers go, I felt the so-called
Dynamic Support system in the sole was too flexible and too lightweight –
the shoe weighs just 306g – to offer sufficient structure.
Also, while these look beautiful, there were signs of the rubber on the toe
pulling away from the material after just a handful of runs. Not great.
For me, these just about work but if you need a genuine pair of stability
trainers, I’m not sure they’ll cut it.
That said, there’s no denying that at this sale price, you’re getting a great
deal.
Asics Flagship Store, Oxford Street, central London, recommended Asics
GEL-NIMBUS 14 (2E – wide fit) (£130, ):
Asics know their running and the testing facilities on show at their sparkly
new flagship store on Oxford Street will blow your mind.
They offer a “Dynamic Foot ID” gait analysis service, which includes a
print-out of your feet detailing any pronation issues, but far more
impressive is their Running Lab.
For £200, you get to spend two and a half hours being put through your paces
by Lydia Meddings, the running services manager, to find out everything you
could want to know about your body and how it affects your running.
You get a 3D foot scan, a body composition report, various strength tests and
a good old blast on a treadmill complete with a fetching mask to measure
oxygen consumption, amongst other things.
The session is undeniably very pricey but if you suffer recurring injuries or
if you have a real hunger to get faster, this is well worth the money.
You come away with a great deal of information, including time projections for
half and full marathons. In my current condition, I could apparently knock
out a 3hr marathon…plenty of motivation to beat my current best of 3hr
13min.
Gait analysis comes as part of this immense Running Lab experience, but you
can just have the “Dynamic Foot ID” separately.
It’s an in-depth 30-minute session which is free if you buy shoes in store or
£20 if you decide not to – but you get your print-out to take away.
My run in neutral shoes revealed my neutral/underpronating right-foot landing
and ever-so slight overpronation on my left.
Given my midfoot landing, Lydia recommended the cushioning GEL-NIMBUS 14 and
my 3D foot scan from the Running Lab indicated that I should go for a wider
2E fit.
Having tested these out for a few weeks, I must say I’m delighted with them.
This is the first time I have ever had wider-fitting shoes and I can feel
the difference. My feet tend to swell a little when I run but in these, my
feet never felt restricted.
On the move, they feel sensational. Lovely cushioning with every step, very
lightweight (at 316g) and decent support despite the lack of any built-in
stability.
These have Asics’ much-trumpeted Full Length Guidance Line, a groove that runs
the the length of the sole, apparently to guide your foot through the gait
cycle. I suspect there’s a touch of the marketing man’s influence in this –
seems a bit of a gimmick to me.
That said, I did feel my form stayed strong even on longer runs but I think
this was down more to the lightweight build.
I had a few teething problems – the switch from my old stability trainers to
these left me with a couple of annoying calf niggles but having phased them
in over a couple of weeks, they’re all good now.
£130 is a lot of cash for a pair of trainers – but these are something very
special for the neutral runner.
Runners Need, Monument, central London, recommended New Balance 1080 V2
(£94.99, ):
Full disclosure – given the absence of a New Balance flagship store, I met a
representative from the firm at this particular Runners Need branch, hence
the NB shoe recommendation.
The gait analysis from store manager Rasa Kavaliauskaite was thorough – she
got me to remove my shoes and socks and squat down so she could see where
pressure was being loaded through the legs.
Rasa grabbed the heavy stability trainers I had turned up in and inspected the
sole – she pointed out heavy wear on the outer areas, suggesting the
stability element was too strong for me and was actually pushing me on to my
outer arches.
All this and I haven’t even jumped on the treadmill.
A quick run confirmed Rasa’s suspicions that a neutral shoe would suit me
best.
She said the best options for me would be the Asics GEL-NIMBUS 14 or the New
Balance 1080, which has a very soft ride and lots of cushioning.
Jon Hosty from New Balance also talked me though a new point-of-sale technique
they are looking to roll out – Good Form Running.
With the trend for barefoot running, the new approach is aimed at helping you
gradually tweak your running technique to make you stronger so your shoes
have to do less for you.
It is based on four key elements – cadence (amount of steps), posture, midfoot
striking and lean.
The plan is for Good Form Running to supplement the traditional gait analysis
– it involves using an iPad to film you side-on running on a treadmill
before taking you through questions related to those four key elements.
At the end, as well as walking off with your new trainers, you get an email
with technique tips to implement into your training, depending on what your
Good Form Running video/questionnaire threw up.
New Balance hope to roll this out to specific retailers so they become
official New Balance Good Form Running retailers.
It’s a really interesting idea and is effectively an after-sales service – you
get your trainers but the Good Form Running advice can really improve your
technique.
On to the New Balance 1080s themselves, they’re a very tidy pair of trainers.
They are even more lightweight than the Lunar Eclipse+ 2 at just 297g but I
found the ride a little harder.
Despite New Balance offering the biggest range of width sizes, it was
recommended that I stick with the standard width, having worn New Balance
shoes in the past with no problems.
However, having enjoyed the extra freedom of the 2E-width Asics, these did
feel a little suffocating.
Back to the positives, I felt the transition through the foot was really good,
really helping to propel me onwards, and on rougher ground they felt really
solid.
A good chunk less expensive than the Asics, the 1080s are top, top value.