Choosing the right running shoes

There are some points one should consider when choosing a pair of shoes if one is serious about running a long distance run,i.e half marathon. Choosing the correct shoes ensure one will train comfortably and reduces the risk of getting injuries.

Let us understand what is pronation,

Pronation is the in-rolling of the foot from the heel to toe when your feet strike the ground.The pronation becomes more marked when you jumped or run due to your body weight as it squashes your foot and stresses the in-rolling.The pronation gets worse as your legs muscles get tired.

Underpronation occurs when the outside (Lateral side) of the sole takes most of the impact.

Overpronation occurs when there is too much in-rolling from the outside to the inside (Medial side) of the sole.

Neutral Pronation occurs when hitting the outside of the heel and ball of the foot evenly across the foot.

One of the ways to determine whether you are under or over pronate is by checking your last pair of running shoes at the forefoot area.

1) Underpronation - most of the wear is on the inside (medial),
2) Overpronation - most of the wear is on the outside (lateral),
3) Neutral - most of the wear is uniform across the forefoot.

Another way is wet your feet and walk onto a piece of paper.This is to make an imprint of your foot on the piece of paper.By looking at the imprints, you can compare the imprints to the types of pronation as mention above. You can also find out more details on pronation from runner's world.

For Under pronators - Cushioned shoes with plenty of flexibility.
Over pronators - motion control shoes
Neutral pronators - Stability shoes