Trail Running Shoes

Audio Transcript

Coach Michael: Hey Runners Connect fans. Welcome to another episode of the Runners Connect podcast.

I am here to answer today’s training and racing questions. Today’s question is about the best shoes for trail running.

Bill: I do a lot of running on trails. Some of them fairly rough and rocky. Do I need to wear trail shoes or are normal running shoes okay?

Michael: This is a really good question Bill, and it definitely gets a little bit murky when you look at it.

I think a lot of the times, what most people think is. “If I’m on a trail, I obviously need trail shoes right?”

Not necessarily the case to me because a trail could mean a lot of different things. There’s just a gravel road which can be considered a trail.

There’s a very even bike path that could be considered a trail. On the other hand, there’s rocky, mountainous, hilly, uneven terrain, and that’s very different.

Obviously, these are two very different scenarios so, it really comes down to the specific situation.

I want to talk about the difference between a regular running shoe and the trail running shoe. The main difference is going to be the tread on the bottom of the shoe.

If you look at the bottom of a normal running shoe, it’s a relatively smooth surface and has some grip.

It’s like a tire but then you look at a trail shoe, basically everything’s going to be more or less the same, except on that sole.

The tread on the bottom is going to have a lot more of a grip and more rigid than a regular running shoe.

If you move your hand across it, you would feel that it’s much more rigid and generally provides just a much better grip on whatever surface it is you’re on.

If you were to take a real trail running shoe with the real grip on the bottom, then if you were to run on a regular road, sidewalk, or path, it’s going to feel a little bit weird, because it’s got a lot more grip than you really need for that specific situation.

There are definitely situational type shoes. Trail shoes are best for trail; road shoes are best for the road.

Another difference is that a lot of times, trail shoes really build up the material on the actual shoe part that’s around your foot.

Some of them will add like a Gore-Tex material which is waterproof and very thick.

So sometimes they’ll be heavier but Gore-Tex and heavy tread on the bottom; those are situational.

In terms of finding which shoe is going to work best for you, in each given situation, obviously, if you’re doing most, you’re running on the roads and sidewalks and maybe the occasional light trail for example, a gravel path or a very smooth dirt trail, you’re just not going to need trail shoes.

It’s going to be overkill.

They’re probably going to run you on a lot more money. They add a cost because this is more hefty and expensive material.

They’re just not necessary in that situation.

If you do the vast majority of your running on roads, sidewalks, on harder surfaces, and then get on even trails just a little bit, you’re probably not going to have any problem in using a normal running shoe.

Let’s talk about running trails in a single track almost more like bike type trails. A lot of the times these are not necessarily so treacherous that a trail shoe is a necessity.

I’m not saying that they wouldn’t make any sort of difference, but at the same time, they’re not a necessity in every given situation.

When it is necessary to have a trail shoe, is if you’re doing some serious mountain running.

If you get into some pretty serious trails where it’s rocky or uneven, those are situations where a trail shoe does make sense, because it’s going to help keep you safe, keep you on your feet, and provide a lot more grip.

You’re just going to feel a lot more comfortable running on those types of trails.

Rocky trails is a big one because if you can run a little rocky terrain with normal shoes, you’ll find some of the rocks will literally jab up in your foot, in between the cushion of the shoe.

It was not designed for that type of surface.

With a trail shoe on the other hand, that will not happen.

We know where they are necessary and not necessary, but there’s a middle ground where it gets a little bit murky, that I alluded to at the beginning of the episode.

Maybe you’re doing like half your running on roads and maybe half you’re running on various trails.

You like to go explore some other trails, you like to run new areas, you like to go off the beaten path a little bit and in these situations, it really does come down to the exact situation.

In most cases, most times you’re going to be okay with a normal shoe.

If the shoe isn’t horribly worn out to where the tread on the bottom of the shoe is beaten up like a bald tire, then most of the time you’re probably going to be okay if you’re careful with your footing.

But if you’re somebody who doesn’t have the best balance or you just go try on a trail shoe and you’d feel more comfortable with that, then go with that.

Go with what you feel the most comfortable with but once it starts getting rocky and muddy, if there’s bad weather out, then those are situations where I would highly recommend a trail shoe, just to keep you safe.

There’s real trail running shoes that are designed around trail. There’s regular running shoes, and then there are shoes that are in between.

I know several of the different companies make them, but basically what it is, everything about it is just a normal running shoe except with a little bit extra tread on the bottom.

These types of shoes could be a great alternative for those people who are in the middle, who are mostly on the roads but also do a decent amount of trail running.

These types of shoes are designed for both of those and they can be comfortable on the road or trail.

I know Brooks makes a shoe called the Cascadia, that’s one of them.

All the different companies make one of these types of shoes because it’s gotten very popular ,but I would recommend checking those out, if you do maybe half and half like half road running and a little bit on the trails as well.

To conclude, sometimes trail shoes are necessary and sometimes they’re not. It really depends on the individual’s situation.

There’s not necessarily a hard line where after this point you have to have a trail shoe and before that point, you’re completely fine without one.

It gets a little bit gray and depends on the individual’s situation.

If it’s a rocky area or an uneven surface, if you’re changing surfaces a lot throughout the trail, that’s situation trail shoes can help.

They’re always helpful. Getting trail shoes can never be a bad choice, if you do a lot of trail running.

If you’re asking the question, then a trail shoe might work best for you. The last thing is to try some of those hybrid shoes.

If you’re somebody who’s not one 100% sure that you want to commit to a full trail shoe because they don’t do very well on the road and intended for the trail, then I would highly recommend trying those hybrid shoes out.

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See you next time.