How to Tell When Shoes Are Worn Out

Audio Transcript

Michael: Hey Runners Connect fans. Today’s question is about running shoes and it comes from Christie.

Christie: Hi Coaches, this is Christie. I have a question about running shoes, and specifically, how long you should wait before you replace a pair of running shoes.

My running app currently has a shoe tracker, so I can track each pair of my running shoes. It tops out at about 350 miles, and so I’m wondering if that 350 mile marker is accurate for one to replace a pair of running shoes, or if there are other factors that should be taken into account?

For instance, I use Superfeet for orthotics within each of my shoes, and I’m wondering if that influences how long these shoes should be used?

Are there other factors like looking at the tread and how often I’m rotating different shoes, that kind of thing?

If you can, let me know if the 350 mile marker is useful and if I should replace shoes around that time or if there are other factors that I should be looking at.

That’d be great. Thanks.

Michael: This is a great question. Thank you for submitting it, Christie. This is one of those “little things” that we don’t talk about that often but it’s nonetheless super important.

First off, if you haven’t been fit for running shoes, I’d highly recommend doing so. You want to find a good running store.

Fleet Feet are everywhere and do a fantastic job but plenty of local stores are out there, too.

Ideally, they’re going to be trained in what’s called ‘gait analysis’. What they’re going to do is they’ll use either a treadmill or a section of the store.

A place I worked in college actually had a track as part of the floor of the store, so we used that track section for people to walk and run down.

They’re either going to use a camera or if they’re very well trained, they’re just going to watch you.

Honestly, you get to the point where it’s easy.

Once you’re well trained, and you’ve watched hundreds of people walk and run, you’ll know what to look for.

But a camera is really good for the customer so you can go back, watch and they can explain things to you.

Based on your gait, they’re going to recommend a pair of shoes for you because it’s very individualistic.

Just because a shoe is “good” does not necessarily mean that it’s going to be good for you.

Now, the reason I say all of that is that having a proper pair of shoes will actually help a shoe last a lot longer.

Here’s a good example. Let’s say you’re a heavy over-pronator. Over-pronating just means that your foot rolls to the inside a little bit too much.

Everyone pronates to some degree. That’s a natural part of your running cycle and walking as well, but over-pronators, their foot just rolls a little too far to the medial side, so we usually correct that with running shoes.

Now, here’s a good example. The over-pronator with a neutral shoe, which a neutral shoe is intended for somebody who pronates normally so that they don’t over-pronate. What they’re going to do, that over-pronator is going to wear out the inside of that shoe much more heavily than the middle and the outside.

Another example would be on the opposite end. A normal pronator with either a stability or a motion control shoe, and those are designed to control over-pronation, is going to wear out the outside of that shoe.

Yes, you’ll pay a bit more but it will even out in the end, as you’ll get a lot more life out of them, plus many of these places have tremendous customer service.

You’ll get all the help you need and you’ll have a great experience while you’re at it.

Now, as a rule-of-thumb, that 350 is a good number. It’s an estimation but it is a useful one, but as always, it depends on other factors.

The first one is the type of shoe.

For instance, let’s say we have a high cushion shoe. Obviously, we talked about how shoes are going to be separated, in terms of pronation control but they’re also separated in terms of cushion

So you have very high cushion shoes.

Some examples are the A6 Gel Numbers, A6 Kayano, the Saucony Triumph and Hurricane.

These shoes tend to last closer to 500, maybe even 600 miles depending on the shoe, the surface and stuff, but either way, they’re going to last a lot longer than that 350 number.

Then you have moderate cushion shoes.

This is where that 350 number comes from. Your A6 Gel-Cumulus, your A6 2000, New Balance 880, Mizuno Wave Rider.

These all fit into that moderate cushion, right in the middle of the line in terms of the cushioning.

Then, you have your minimum cushion. This is any minimal shoe; your Nike Frees, your New Balance Minimus, stuff like that.

Many of these are advertised to last as long as normal shoes but you’ve got to be wary because there is less cushion under there, so it’s possible that they’ll last even fewer miles than those 350 number.

The second thing is running surfaces.

For a little thought experiment, go drop a ball on a road and drop that same ball on dirt. Note how high it bounces each time.

That’s the shock going back into your shoes, so harder surfaces are much tougher on your shoes than softer surfaces.

Now, there’s no exact number but running on soft surfaces, which is great for your body anyway, will make your shoes last much longer.

If you can go on some dirt or some softer trails every now and then, obviously, it’s going to be really good for your body.

It’s going to help your shoes last longer as well.

One quick thing to mention, is that your weight has an effect on it. Someone who’s 220 pounds is going to wear out shoes faster than somebody who’s 120 pounds.

That’s just plain and simple, but it also has to do with your foot strike.

For example, some people slap the ground with their feet. Their feet come down very hard, and those people are going to wear out shoes quicker than somebody who’s very light on their feet.

Now, let’s talk about insoles.

First off, Superfeet insoles are tremendous. I just want to throw that out there.

I’ve seen a lot of people have a lot of success with those. It’s similar to a proper shoe.

It will help a shoe last longer as you wear it out at the proper places.

Now, shoes are made in a contour so the cushion isn’t necessarily evenly spread throughout the entirety of the shoe.

Insoles will help keep you in alignment and wear the right parts of the shoe out.

It still depends on a good fitting shoe. You don’t want to think that an insole is going to fix a poor fitting shoe.

Now, one mistake I’ve seen over and over again is that people think that they can extend the life of a bad shoe just by putting an insole in it. That’s a huge mistake that often gets people injured.

One other thing to mention is heel versus forefoot strikers.

I’m very much a forefoot striker; almost up on my toes even when I’m running easy, thus I hardly wear out the heel at all.

I went through a lot of shoes even though I’m very light on my feet just because I wasn’t wearing out the heel.

I was totally wearing out the forefoot stop which typically does not have a lot of cushion. Most shoes are designed for heel strikers so they’re going to put most of their cushion in the heel.

Now, those higher cushion shoes that I talked about; the A6 Gel Numbers, shoes like that, they actually put a lot more of their cushion in the forefoot, so those might be a good solution for somebody who’s more up on their toes.

But for most people who are either heel strikers or strike right in the middle of their foot, any shoe is typically going to be designed for you. That means much more cushion in the heel for when you come down and then a little bit more under the forefoot for when your foot pronates forward.

Now, to talk about rotating shoes, this really does help each one last longer.

What I recommend is rotating two pairs at a time and alternating each day, so you wear one, one day, wear the other one the next day and then repeat.

The molecules in shoes recover similar to human muscle, and they regenerate when given time.

I know that’s a weird concept but they do.

Some of the molecules, the cushion and the form of shoes will regenerate over time.

It’s a little bit more of an upfront investment to buy multiple pairs at a time, but it will save you money over the long haul, because you’ll rotate amount and they’ll ultimately last longer than if you just wore each one at one time.

Let’s talk about how to determine wear more specifically than just a random number.

Number one, and you mentioned this in your question, is the tread. Think of it like a tire; a bald tire is no good, right? The same goes with shoes.

The first thing you’ll notice is the very exterior wearing out which is okay. Obviously, at the very exterior, there’s a flimsy material that’s going to wear out pretty fast.

It’s going to look a little bit bald, that’s okay. The big indicator is when the tread starts getting very soft.

A good thing to do, if you go to a shoe store is to take a brand new shoe and bring in a worn out shoe and compare them.

Turn them over; put your thumb on the tread and press in.

You’ll notice that the tread on the old shoe will give; it will be very soft and almost spongy whereas the new shoe will be very tough, very rigid.

That’s the difference between a brand new shoe that has tons of miles left in it and a worn out shoe.

You can use the wear pattern to see if it’s a proper shoe for you. Your wear pattern should wear right along the contour, basically right along the middle of the shoe throughout the shoe.

If it’s way to the end side, then what’s probably going on there is that you’re pronating heavier; you’re over-pronating possibly a little bit, at least, more than the shoe is designed to prevent that pronation.

Let’s say you’re in a neutral shoe and you’re an over-pronator. You’re probably going to wear out the inside of that shoe whereas the middle is going to be completely fresh cushioning.

On the opposite end, if you’re not an over-pronator but you’re wearing a stability or a motion control shoe, you’re going to be wearing out the outside because it’s pushing you to the outsides of your feet.

This happens because it’s designed to push you away from the inside, so you’re going to wear out the outside, the middle and the inside are going to be completely fresh.

The last thing on that is if you start getting aches and pains, look at your shoes. I mean, that’s obviously not a place that we even want to let it get to, but it’s a good indicator.

If you start getting some little aches and pains, especially in the knees, maybe your sheen starts acting up a little bit, definitely check the tread on your shoes and see if it’s time to get a new pair.

Now, keeping track of the mileage on your shoes is fantastic but really, again, just use it as a reminder rather than a hard-and -fast rule.

Besides, some shoes coming out lately claim to last 1,000 miles.

You don’t want to get a new pair when you don’t need them. Simply use the number in terms of the 350 number as a rule-of-thumb, and then check the tread as we talked about before.

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Thanks for tuning in and have a great run today.