Skip down to the pictures if you don’t want to read my crazy info about my past shoes and feet shape etc.
I’ve been getting Nike tennis shoes for probably the last …4 years or so. However the last pair didn’t fit quite as well and seemed to wear out a lot faster. At one point I bought a pair of Reeboks that I thought worked but they created pressure on my outer arch when I really spent some time walking in them so I wore them once and took them to the consignment store.
When I went shopping this time for tennis shoes I immediate went for the Nike’s because they’ve been what has worked for awhile now. Every pair I tried on however seemed to create different uncomfortable pressure points. I tried on pair after pair and none felt right. To me it seemed like they’ve changed manufacturers and decreased quality. I don’t think my feet have changed that much.
So I started trying on other brands. I wasn’t going for cheap but I was trying on anything from $20 – $100 no matter the brand. I wanted to buy two somewhat different shoes to alternate at the gym and honestly since I was going to go with a new brand I wanted to actually pick shoes from different companies. That didn’t happen.
Let’s stop for a minute and give you a little info about my foot: I’m almost flat footed with a flexible arch which can be annoying when shopping for athletic shoes. Anything with a major arch or hard arch HURTS for me to walk in. A gradually sloped or soft arch is however beneficial and typically helps keep my foot from rolling in when I’m not paying attention due to the softness of athletic shoes. I don’t overpronate (roll in) in harder or flat sole shoes.
My foot is verging on narrow so I need a good honest regular width, not wide masquerading as regular.
I’m fairly certain I broke a toe at one point and that joint hurts some. The residual pain years later is what makes me suspect I broke it but I didn’t get it x-rayed or stay off it at the time I damaged it. That pinch of pain does make me more aware when a shoe doesn’t fit right.
My daily wear I wear is typically ballet flat, very flat flip flops (leather, not foam or rubber) or ugg boots so you can really see my preference is a flat shoe with no arch support.
I’ve occasionally been tempted to just give up and wear ballet shoes or chuck tailors to work out in. I have considered the Vibram 5 finger but didn’t try any on this go round. I need to hit up my local outdoor climbing hiking shop and see if they have the smartwool version in to try.
I typically don’t run but I do often walk super fast and run in spurts occasionally.
Whoa, lots of info. Onto the shoes!
Kanadia TR 3 Shoes : these are my favorite so far. They are more level front to back though they do have a hint of arch support. What I mean by level front to back is that they don’t slope towards the toe which seemed to be something that seemed fairly common as I was trying every brand including Adidas. It was like most shoe heels were about a 1/2 inch higher in the back for the added cushion needed for running impact but it seems excessive and causes my foot to slowly shift forward. These do a good job of being more level but that may be due to it being a more outdoor style shoe. Really good fitting, comfortable, almost bouncy and tread feels a bit too … aggressive? for the gym but it does work just fine on a treadmill. I’m hoping it wears ok over time since I do think these were more meant for hiking.
http://www.adidas.com/us/N?searchTerm=kanadia+trail
Adidas Marathon 10: A little more sloped and a little looser fit somehow. I ended up buying a half size down from the other Adidas. Oh and I forgot to mention that the Kanadia was an 8 when I often wear an 8.5. I think I may have been in … 5th grade the last time I bought a size 7.5 but I bought the Marathon 10 in a 7.5. I couldn’t go any shorter and they were the right length but I still needed a thicker pair of socks (I wear super thin socks normally) to help reduce some remaining wiggle after tightening the laces. I know this sounds extreme but they really felt natural and closer to a natural feel than I was finding with cushion than I found on many other shoes. Good flexibility, good grip, fairly thin (but not flimsy), light. I actually expected the Nike Free Run+ to feel more like these did. I think my only complaint is that I wish they were a bit more level front to back but it’s ok.
http://www.adidas.com/us/N?searchTerm=womens%20running%20marathon%2010%20usa%20shoes
Follow up on the review. I ended up selling the Marathon 10 shoes. My feet were sliding towards the front of the shoe when I was walking if I remember correctly. They just did not get along with my feet.